Summer of Fun Events Attract Thousands

Almost 20,000 people took part in this year’s Summer of Fun season of free family events in Christchurch, the highest attendance in the series’ four year history.

Seventy community-led events took place this season, ranging from family picnics to planting days to outdoor movies for everyone. The season ran from 1 November 2014 to 28 March 2015.

The CERA Wellbeing Surveys show that the loss of recreation facilities and community events are having an impact on people. While the rebuild is now in full swing and new spaces are becoming available, Summer of Fun has provided community groups with the funding and equipment they needed to be able to provide these popular events over the past four years.

The events have been wide-reaching and have delivered days out for many neighbourhoods in the greater Christchurch area. Summer of Fun funding has been able to deliver events such as dances for young people with disabilities and their carers, picnics and games for the whole family to get involved with and scone bake-offs for older members of the community to enjoy.

As discussions begin about the future of the event series, its legacy is in the skills, tools and equipment that greater Christchurch communities now have to continue to put on events for their neighbourhoods.

The events are organised and run by community organisations, churches and residents' groups and supported by the local councils. The Christchurch Earthquake Appeal Trust provided a grant of $400,000 to fund the events over both the 2013/14 and 2014/15 summers while CERA supported groups to run, co-ordinate and promote events.

Check out www.facebook.com/choicechch to see pictures of all the great events held this summer.

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