If you’ve not been to one of @SE16Hour’s MeetUps you have been missing out! We meet at a different local pub or bar each time and spend an hour getting to know each other. It’s informal, fun and everyone is welcome. We don’t charge as the landlord or owners get an increase in their sales and we keep it low key, just enough to let you know you’ve arrived but not so much that you feel you’re at a meeting. All we do is ask you to leave your contact details so we can keep you up-to-date with developments and offer you a sticker to tell others who you are. That gives everyone an excuse to introduce themselves and find out more about you.
This sort of opportunity to meet your neig
hbours and to get a chance to share your story is getting rarer. We hope this is the right sort of place for people who are new to the area to meet some locals, for those who have lived and worked locally all their lives to share their love of SE16 and for those who join in with our weekly Twitter Hour (Tuesday 19:30) to put faces to the names they know so well online. We think that bringing people together and sharing a drink and a laugh together makes for a warmer more welcoming community. If you agree, then come and join in.
The next MeetUp is this Thursday (19 March) at the Yellow House bar and kitchen. It’s located opposite Surrey Quays Station at 126 Lower Road, London SE16 2UE. We are planning to hold our future MeetUps on the last Friday of each month so the April one is booked for 24 April at the Ship and Whale, 2 Gulliver Street SE16 7LT near the Redriff Estate and Greenland Dock. If you can’t make the March gathering, do book the April one in your diary!
If you are coming on Thursday, please let us know on Facebook
Big Lunch SE16 – 7 June 2015
The first planning meetings for this year’s Big Lunch were a huge success! Over 40 people turned out with enthusiasm to see an open-air party for their neighbours happen on Sunday 7 June. The three meetings covered different parts of SE16: Greenland Dock, Rotherhithe and Canada Water. We made a judgement that neighbours would want to meet other people from around their patch rather than from across the whole of SE16.
Each meeting looked carefully at where to hold the party. At Greenland Dock, several areas seemed to hold promise so the team is meeting soon to try to come to a decision. In Rotherhithe, St Mary’s car park together with the old Churchyard between St Marychurch Street and Time and Talents seemed to be the best option, especially if we can close off part of the street for traffic. For the team looking for a location in Canada Water, King George’s Field on the corner of Lower Road and Surrey Quays Road seemed the best. It seems we might just have three Big Lunch parties on Sunday 7 June in SE16!
Each team is also looking at what scale and style of party to hold. Some wanted to keep
it informal and encourage lots of neighbours to turn out to share their food with everyone. Other ideas suggested having some fun activities for kids and adults during the afternoon – face-painting, bouncy castles and games were mentioned at all three meetings. We talked about how to ensure that all parts of the local community were included and involved in planning the party. We particularly wanted to make sure that people could afford to take part and didn’t feel left out if they were less mobile. We want to reach out to people whose first language isn’t English to welcome them as well to SE16.
If you want to join the planning group, just drop a line to shout@iliveinse16.com or phone Mark on 07956 370676 or Lisa on 07773 519440. We are particularly looking for team members with event management experience, community promotion / PR and links to other language groups. If you want to see a Big Lunch in Bermondsey SE16, please get in touch so we can coordinate with you. And if you are planning your own Big Lunch for your estate or street, we would love to talk and see how we can help. After all it’s all about meeting your neighbours and making new friends.
