MK College Group celebrates the festive season with Christmas lunches for the local community

Milton Keynes College Group has celebrated the festive season with Christmas lunches at its Brasserie restaurant for different members of its community. 

Firstly, on 4^th December, the College Group hosted 20 older people from the Milton Keynes community, in collaboration with Age UK Milton Keynes, to attend a Christmas lunch served by staff and students from the College, including some of our Inclusive Learning cohort. The event was designed to bring together people who may usually experience isolation and loneliness to be able to socialise in a friendly and welcoming environment, whilst also enjoying a delicious lunch. 

The following week, 14 staff and volunteers from five charities supporting Milton Keynes communities attended the Brasserie for a Christmas lunch. The College Group hosted the staff and volunteers to thank them for the fantastic work they do supporting people across Milton Keynes and to offer an opportunity for sharing their experiences and networking with other local charities. 

MK Foodbank, MK YMCA, MK-Act, St Marks Meals MK and Water Eaton Community Hub volunteers and staff were able to take some time away from supporting some of the most vulnerable people in our community and be taken care of by the team at The Brasserie. 

Tara Bell, Volunteer Services Manager at Age UK Milton Keynes, commented on the lunch for local elderly people: “Events like this are a lovely way to bring older people together, especially at this time of year where Christmas can be a lonely time for some. One of the ladies who attended (who is 91) doesn’t get to go out too much due to health conditions and she has called me this morning to say how lovely it was to come along. She enjoyed her meal immensely but there was also the added bonus of getting to come out on a grey rainy day and socialise with other people, young and old. She thought all the students were lovely and very polite. Huge thanks to the staff and students at MK College for this lovely event.”   

Rebecca Myrie, Head of Community Engagement at Milton Keynes College Group, said: “Christmas is, for most of us, a time of celebration and spending time with family and friends. However, that’s not the case for everyone so that’s why we wanted to work with Age UK to bring to bring together older people who may experience loneliness and isolation at this time of year, to enjoy a festive celebration and to have an opportunity to socialise with other local people. We were very proud to host this lunch and our students and staff from the Brasserie, as well as our Inclusive Learners, provided our guests with a very special experience. 

“We also wanted to thank staff and volunteers from our local Milton Keynes charities for the amazing work they do in our local communities, and a lunch at the Brasserie seemed like the perfect way to do this. Christmas is a time when many of these charities are extremely busy supporting their service users, so we wanted to give them some time back to enjoy themselves and network with other people who also support those living in and around Milton Keynes.” 

To find out more about how Milton Keynes College Group supports our local communities, you can visit https://mkcollege.ac.uk/community/working-with-the-community/