The Big Village Cream Tea
The trustees of the Perranwell Centre would like to cordially invite the whole village – and anyone who uses the hall – to the Big Village Cream Tea, a brand new event for 2025.
Planned for 7th June from 3pm-5pm, it’s inspired by the Eden Project’s ‘The Big Lunch’, which is all about growing connections, celebrating community, and helping people feel a sense of belonging in where they live.
For this informal event, we’re inviting everyone to come and join us for cream teas and a glass of fizz as a celebration of the community and a chance to see what goes on at the hall and playing field, to share ideas about community events in the future, and to share acknowledge and thank the people in our community that you appreciate.
We’ll have activities and entertainment, as well as our hall and playing field user groups on hand so you can see just how much we have going on regularly. In addition, we’ll be hosting informal ‘open forums’ for groups to discuss any questions they may have around the hall and playing field and how these assets can best serve our community. These won’t be led by any particular group, but are aimed at bringing everyone together to help brainstorm ideas they may have that can be taken forward afterwards.
And lastly, we’ll be unveiling our ‘Big Village Thank You Wall’, where people can show their gratitude to someone in the village whom they feel has helped them or contributed to the community. We’re asking people to send in their thank yous, so we can display them (providing the people involved are happy for us to) and share some of the remarkable acts of kindness that happen every day in our community. June is the month of community and we think this will be a wonderful way to bring together our village hall community – and wider village community, as well as sharing progress on our fundraising for the village hall and showcasing everything we have going on here.
We’d love to receive people’s contributions for the Thank You Wall, which can be emailed to susiematthews3108@btinternet.com or brought along on the day.
We look forward to seeing you all on 7th June. Please find some more info on various aspects of the day below….
Is this the same as the Big Village?
Some people might remember the Big Village – a wonderful event for Perranwell that hasn’t been seen since pre-Covid times. Many of us would love to see the return of this great community event, but this event is in no way trying to replace that or set itself up as the Big Village. This is a community gathering inspired by the Eden Project’s Big Lunch, and a chance to share gratitude and find out more about our village facilities.
However, we also thought it might be a great place to discuss future events and the potential return of the Big Village, so you could consider this a prequel in some ways, or just a chance to attend a lovely community event on a day when so many villages and towns and groups across the country will be doing the same.
What is the Big Village Thank You Wall?
In the spirit of community, we’re setting up a Big Village Thank You Wall to give people the chance to show their gratitude to one another, and for those who help others to get some recognition. People can nominate others, mentioning how they’ve helped them or the community, and these will be shared on a wall in the village hall to help spread some community cheer.
If you want to nominate someone, please email contributions to susiematthews3108@btinternet.com or bring them along on the day.
Please do be mindful that some people may not want to be shouted about for their own reasons, so it may be wise to check with them that they are happy to be featured in any nomination. If not, there is always the option to nominate someone anonymously to share some of the good works that people do for each other and the community without them feeling their privacy has been affected in any way.
What does open forum mean?
For our Open Forums, we’re adopting the idea of Open Space – a great way for groups to think, talk and take action together.
Participants self-organise to create their own agenda on the day, allowing a dynamic and immediate response to the issues at hand. The process allows free-flowing conversations about the things that really matter to the people in the room.
The process starts with the participants meeting in a circle. The facilitator explains the process, and then there is a chance for anyone present to suggest a topic they want to discuss. After that, participants move into smaller, informal and flexible break-out conversations to work on the topics they are interested in. It’s up to the participants how they work. Participants are invited to make notes and create reports on their sessions which can be shared later on and put towards action points.
Our open forums will be informal on 7th June, and the event is as much about community and fun as having serious discussions, but we think it’s a great opportunity to bring people together to share their thoughts and ideas on how our wonderful assets in the village can best serve the community. These discussions won’t be le by any particular organisation and are an opportunity to brainstorm and come up with ideas for the future.
What is The Big Lunch?
The Big Lunch is the UK’s annual get-together for neighbours and communities, with millions of people coming together for a few hours of friendship, food and fun. It’s a great way to get to know each other better, have a good time and celebrate where you live.
The Big Lunch was born in 2009 from a simple idea from the Eden Project to get people together with their communities and share a meal. Taking place on the first weekend of June each year, it’s the UK’s annual get-together for neighbours, with millions of people coming together for a few hours of community, friendship, and fun. The Big Lunch connects people and encourages friendlier, safer neighbourhoods where people start to share more – from conversations and ideas, to skills and resources, and, for some, it ignites a passion for doing more good things where they live.
