Creating cultural and educational opportunities for young people from Patchway was the focus of a twinning delegation visit to our twin town of Gauting in Germany on 21 – 25 July.
Mayor of Patchway, Cllr Dayley Lawrence and Cllr Angela Morey were part of a small group that included representatives from the Friends of Patchway Twinning and teachers from Coniston Primary School who joined colleagues from Gauting and our French twin town Clermont L’Hérault for an exchange of ideas and cultural experiences.
Like Patchway, Gauting has a rich aviation history and on arrival the delegation visited the Schleissheim Castle and Aviation Museum in the town ahead of a meeting of the three Mayors and officers at the Town Hall.
The Mayors Meeting agreed on a focus on young people in the three towns which will be driven through youth exchanges, sports camps, work experience and pen pal projects, enabling our young people from Patchway to access new cultures and experiences.
The group visited a local school to see banners designed for the visit before the Civic Dinner held at Landgastof Böck in Unterbrunn.
On the following day and continuing the theme of creating opportunities for young people to engage with the twinning programme, the Patchway and Clermont delegations attended a breakfast hosted by the KULT Youth Festival.
This was followed by a visit and presentations on two new building developments in Gauting – Handwerkerhof and Patchway Anger – where Cllr Dayley Lawrence and John Thomas from the Friends of Patchway Twinning presented the recently completed Norman Scott Park project, and the nearby Brabazon development for our French and German friends.
On the final day, the Mayor of Patchway took part in a tree planting ceremony to celebrate the ongoing relationship across the three towns. And Coniston Primary School teachers Zoe Hickey, Jade Davies and Elisa Vindel met with their German counterparts at Gauting Primary School to explore future activities and opportunities.
All the Patchway delegation were hosted by generous German families who welcomed our residents into their homes showing the true value of twinning and international relationships that make a difference to peoples lives across all three towns.
This visit to Gauting was focused on how twinning and its values can increasingly support young people, including from Patchway, and we will share news of how this develops in the coming months.
Mayor of Patchway, Cllr Dayley Lawrence said, ’Our visit to Gauting has been a brilliant opportunity to talk to our fellow Mayor’s and Twinning Associations on how we can increase how young people from Patchway can be a focal part of twinning. Our German hosts have made us feel so welcome, and we look forward to taking forward our ideas in the coming year’.
The Patchway Friends of Twinning is also seeking new people to join the group and ensure that this invaluable link to other cultures in Europe remains relevant and successful for residents and young people of Patchway. Please email office@patchwaytowncouncil.gov.uk for more information and to get involved.
Comments