Proposed People’s Park cafe in Luton all wrapped up for Christmas with messages of hope

The old pavilion in Luton' s People’s Park has been decorated with a large bow and 100 stars containing messages of hope from local schoolchildren.

It’s been added to the High Town Advent Trail, as residents believe its proposed transformation into a community cafe will be a gift to the area.

St Matthew’s Primary School teacher Liz Plane said: “Our Year 1s were really happy to take part in the Advent calendar because we’ve been learning all about Christmas and why it’s important to Christians. The theme of giving gifts was a great way for the children to express their hopes and wishes for their community."

Last year was the first time that people in High Town and Round Green decorated their windows based on themes from the Christmas story. Anyone can find out more by visiting the Facebook page for the High Town Window Advent Calendar https://www.facebook.com/htadventwindows or scanning the QR code at each display.

Planning permission was granted for the People’s Park Cafe project in April and organisers are working towards securing grant funding. The building, near the playground on Havelock Road, is Day 21 of this year’s calendar.

At each display there are simple reflections or activities to help people think about their own lives and what inspiration the stories may bring, especially at this challenging time. A map, the reflections, some pictures of the windows so far and people’s responses can be found on the Facebook page.

There is more information on the People’s Park Cafe project on its website https://peoplespark.cafe. People’s Park Cafe is a not-for-profit Community Interest Company (CIC) that wants to transform the disused changing rooms and toilets in the park into a community cafe.