It’s a Clapham Cook Up Bandstand Beds Squash and Bean Swap: Feasting

The afternoon of Friday 4th October saw community cooking and feasting at Notre Dame Community Hall on Clapham Common Southside. A really lovely afternoon of chatting, cooking and joining up, with all ages and diversity in attendance.

Beanballs, Squash N Bean monster croc-ettes, salsa and pumpkin pie made a lovely tea time feast. All washed down with homemade lemonade. Universal consensus that more of these events would be very good, and especially a regular cooking club, and pumpkin production, such as dudi, kodu and potimarron. Hold on while the slideshow loads…



A big thanks to all who came and cooked, and those who donated produce and prepared food from the Bandstand Beds team. Thanks too to the Lambeth Forum Network team at the council, and the Brixton People’s Kitchen for hire of their beautiful bike kitchen.

A large cast of important players:

  • 19 adults and 20 children from the Estate and Notre Dame school
  • ‘mother’ of the Notre Dame Estate Community, Mary Ann, and Carol of the committee
  • core volunteers Gill, David and Diane
  • project co-ord/workers Emma, Sarah, Fiorella and Fiona

The community consultation exercise, ‘What one thing would you change about Clapham?’ yielded some interesting items:

  • more events like today’s one
  • adult paddling pool on the Common
  • more classes of cooking on Saturdays
  • more growing produce within the estate
  • hanging baskets like Southwark on pedestrian barriers
  • computer classes
  • more beds for flowers
  • veg growing at hall
  • Clapham Area office again
  • more rollercoasters
  • ‘Food Heroes’ cooking on Saturday
  • more parks
  • community forum
  • more growing on the Common
  • Sports gymnastics
  • more integration of small pockets of communities in SW4
  • swings in the swing park