AS part of its Community and Education Programme, The Anvil Trust has organised and funded a series of musical workshops in homes run by Sentinel and Hanover Housing Associations.

The residents at Abbey Court in Popley have already enjoyed three singalong sessions with Amanda Parsons, a professional singer from Chandler’s Ford, and residents from Binfields Close, Weale Court, Fiske Close and Hanover Gardens recently came together at Oakfields in Lychpit.

These sessions included songs from the 1940s such as A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square, which coincided with the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, and songs from the 1950s including Stupid Cupid, and Oh Boy.

Sarah Smith, Sentinel’s community investment manager, said: “It’s been lovely for the residents of Abbey Court and Newman Court to come together for a singsong. Group singing has some fantastic benefits – it encourages a sense of community, increases self-esteem and confidence and above all it’s really fun!”

Karen Vallence, estate manager at Hanover, said: “The residents really loved the afternoon; they all said how wonderful it was and how uplifted they felt.

“Afterwards, the room was a hive of chatter and laughter as we all shared a cuppa.”

Christine Bradwell, chief executive at Anvil Arts, added: “This is an ongoing project which aims to work on a long-term basis with older members of the community – still to come are songs from the sixties and seventies, plus a series of talks by a local historian.

“Projects such as this are an important part of what The Anvil Trust does, working with everybody in the community and taking arts to those people in the borough who are unable to come to The Anvil and The Haymarket”.