Eleven local groups have been awarded grants of up to £3,000 as part of the Kingston 2025 festival, designed to bring people together and explore the borough’s rich past, vibrant present, and shared future.
As Kingston prepares to mark 1,100 years since the crowning of King Athelstan—the first King of a united England—the borough is celebrating its diverse communities through a new round of cultural funding. Eleven local groups have been awarded grants of up to £3,000 as part of the Kingston 2025 festival, designed to bring people together and explore the borough’s rich past, vibrant present, and shared future.
Chosen by a panel of independent community and voluntary sector representatives working in partnership with Kingston Council, the funded projects reflect the festival’s themes of storytelling and community connection. They range from sewing workshops with refugees to interactive heritage projects with schoolchildren, reflecting the broad spectrum of voices and experiences that shape life in Kingston today.
One recipient, local charity RBKares, is using the funding to run weekly sewing sessions for refugees in the borough. Chair Kate Kenyon BEM described the project as a way for participants to reflect on their own journeys through textile work—an art form shared across many cultures. “Working with textiles gives people a way to tell their story, perhaps for the first time,” she said. “In celebrating Kingston 2025, people can not only reflect on their past but also consider what they want for their future.”
The creative output from the sewing workshops will be brought together in a collaborative garment, celebrating both individual stories and Kingston’s own historic links to the fashion world.
At Athelstan Primary School in Kingston, children will be getting hands-on with history thanks to a grant awarded to Story Storks. The project will explore the school’s Saxon roots and the legacy of King Athelstan through storytelling and community memory sharing. “This is a great opportunity for children to become local historians,” said Sara Cantrill, founder of Story Storks. “It’s about exploring history that’s literally on their doorstep and creating connections with their community.”
Other projects receiving support include inclusive drumming workshops, environmental education, volunteer training to improve event accessibility, and heritage events celebrating everything from Kingston Carnival to Decca Records. Each project adds a unique thread to the Kingston 2025 tapestry, creating a festival that is as inclusive and diverse as the borough itself.
Kingston 2025 is more than just a celebration of a historic coronation—it’s a celebration of the communities that call the borough home today, and of the stories that continue to shape its future.
