THE ‘Big Society’ was in full swing in a Worcester street at the weekend.

About 400 residents of all ages from in and around Rowan Avenue, Tolladine, joined together on Sunday to celebrate the nation’s third annual Big Lunch.

Organised by staff at the Tolly Centre, the event was part of a national initiative founded by the Eden Project in Cornwall.

Its aim is to bring communities together in the belief that people are better equipped to tackle the challenges facing them when they work as one.

Although food was provided at the street party, many neighbours took it upon themselves to do their bit by bringing along some of their favourite dishes for a buffet-style lunch.

The fun packed day, which was supported by Worcester Community Trust, Worcester Community Housing and Hamer Childs Solicitors, was topped off with activities including face painting, karaoke, arts and crafts, a bouncy castle and an appearance by Dippy the clown. Representatives from the Change 4 Life healthy eating campaign were also in attendance, handing out vouchers for fruit and vegetables.

Sandra Kennedy, a community development worker at the Tolly Centre, said: “A lot of communities these days don’t spend time together.

“We decided to turn our event into a Big Lunch fun day and we had about 400 attend throughout the day.

“We were really pleased with how it turned out and it was really good because when I got home, there were lots of good comments straight away on Facebook.

“It’s nice for everybody to get together. In this day and age, everybody’s got problems and it’s nice for people to spend time together.

“When you work together as a community, you share ideas and there’s always someone for people to talk to.”

The centre, which is run by WCT, will be holding an Olympic-style Community Games at Brickfields Park on Saturday, July 30.

To find out how to get involved, call 01905 20922.