With less than two weeks to go to the Maidstone Community Mela which will be taking place in Whatman Park on Sunday 22nd July, a special launch event hosted by KECC took place at the kalaRED bar restaurant in Maidstone on July 5th. The event was attended by key partners including representatives from local community groups, Kent County Council, Kent Police and Maidstone Borough Council. The chief guests were the Mayor of Maidstone Cllr David Naghi, Deputy Lord Lieutenant Trevor Sturgess and KCC Cabinet Member for Corporate and Democratic Services Cllr Eric Hotson.

The purpose of the launch was to update partners around the plans for the Community Mela this year and to inform them of the journey it has been on to raise the required funds for the event to take place again. The Community Mela is organised by Kent Equality Cohesion Council and Cohesion Plus supported this year by funding from Awards for All, KCC Members Fund, Golding Homes as well as donations from members of the public. The Mela has been taking place in the borough since 2003 and is delivered in partnership with local partners and volunteers who have all worked tirelessly to ensure that Mela will take place again this year.

According to Gurvinder Sandher CEO of Kent Equality Cohesion Council, I am very grateful to everyone who has supported the Community Mela through financial contributions without which the event could not have taken place this year. The Community Mela is a beacon which other parts of the country can learn from as it is a great way of bringing diverse communities together and celebrating our shared British values.”