This year’s Hillrise Summer Festival at Caxton House Community Centre was another successful community event. Local families enjoyed a variety of activities, with everything from face painting to a penalty shoot-out for football fans.
Now in its fifth year the Summer Festival was bigger than ever, and attended by local residents, ward councillors and Islington North MP Jeremy Corbyn. The event was jointly organised by Caxton House Community Centre and the Hornsey Lane Estate Community Association, with the support of a festival committee.
The funding for the Summer Festival was secured by local Hillrise councillors Michelline Safi Ngongo, Dave Poyser and Marian Spall, with £3,000 allocated from Islington Council’s Local Initiative Fund (LIF), a small grants scheme that supports activities and improvements across the borough.
Cllr Michelline Ngongo, Labour councillor for Hillrise, said:
“I am very proud of our contribution to making the Summer Festival a success again this year. The invitation came from local councillors to involve as many people in the community as possible, and it was fantastic to see so many happy families enjoying the activities.”
Cllr Marian Spall, Labour councillor for Hillrise, said:
“We’re really grateful to Caxton House and the Hornsey Lane Estate Community Association for organising the event, and the amount of hard work that has gone into it this year. The Hillrise Summer Festival is a great day out for everyone and I encourage all residents to go along to a future event.”
Cllr Dave Poyser, Labour councillor for Hillrise and Mayor of Islington, said:
“I was deeply honoured to attend the Summer Festival in my very own ward as Mayor, which Hillrise’s Labour councillors have sponsored for many years. The Festival captured the spirit of Islington, with everybody enjoying themselves and sharing the fun.”
Sue Collins, book-keeper at Caxton House and one of the event organisers, said:
“Caxton House and Hornsey Lane Estate Community Association are pleased to see the Hillrise Summer Festival back for a fifth year full of fun for Islington residents, with activities including an Arsenal Penalty Shoot-Out, face painting with St Andrew’s Church, Monkey-Do tree climbing, Wild Fangs exotic animal show, crafts to make and take, information stalls and our very own Great Hillrise Bake Off.
“It’s a fantastic summer event for local families, and we’re very pleased to have the backing of our local councillors to make the festival a success. Look out for details of the Hillrise Winter Festivals later in the year!”