All Photos credit: George Dixon
What a day! On 9 May 2026, the United Reformed Church in Rookstone Road buzzed with energy, creativity, and a shared passion for making Tooting a better place. TootingCAN, organized by Transition Town Tooting (TTT) and funded by the Wandsworth Grant Fund, brought together 108 participants from all walks of life to celebrate the skills, resilience, and kindness that make our community thrive.
From the moment you walked in, you could feel that this was more than just an event. It was a testament to what happens when we come together to learn, share, and care for one another. Whether you were trying your hand at British Sign Language (BSL), crafting a comic book, or whipping up date balls in the kitchen, there was something for everyone, and everyone had something to give.
Stitching the Totes
A Celebration of Skills and Community
TTT’s mission is to tackle the climate and ecological emergency through volunteer-led, community-driven action right here in Tooting. TootingCAN is our moment to convene the people with skills and experiences from our locality to do exactly that through sharing, showcasing that our work is nothing without the vibrant and diverse community right here in Tooting. Participants left with new experiences, fresh ideas, and a sense of belonging that’s vital to build a flourishing sustainable future.:
- 108 participants engaged across 15 activities.
- 15+ workshops delivered, from worm composting to AI sustainability and Indian dance.
- Around 75% of attendees were Wandsworth residents, proving that the best solutions start right where we live.
But the real magic was in the story we all started to weave:
- 9 out of 10 participants praised the event’s warmth and inclusivity, with many highlighting the friendliness and the diverse, healthy food as standout features.
- Activities like the BSL workshop and Creation Station, led by children and supervised by Core Group member Abby, (where attendees crafted badges, mugs, and comic book stories) were particularly beloved, with participants calling them “inspiring” and “connected to family heritage.”
- Special mention for Kelly’s cooking class for children; firstly as it enabled children to experience the joy of cooking nutritious meals from scratch, secondly as it introduced them to cooking sustainably through plant based recipes. It is hoped that this will plant the seeds for these children to enjoy cooking and cook meals that are good for the planet – potential huge long term gains if they can be sustained (through more Tooting CANs!)
- The event closed with a community meal, performances of the fresh BSL skills and slick Indian dance moves before a collective sing song with the Lido Choir which brought the room to life, proving that joy is a skill we all share.
Lap around a Laptop, take a look inside…
Feedback That Warms the Heart and nourishes our work
This year, we had an engaging and creative way to gather feedback on the walls of the entrance corridors. One attendee, a 70-year-old singer, said:
“I loved the community atmosphere, anyone can sing! I’d love to see more singing in future events.”
Another, a 50-year-old stitching enthusiast, shared:
“I connected sewing to my family heritage and loved the Lido Choir. The whole event felt so welcoming.”
Contributors (our 30+ volunteers) echoed this sentiment. They loved seeing the diversity of skills on display and the buzz of activity, and the collective effort of hosting TootingCAN.
Indian dance, clack! clack!
What’s Next?
Transition Town Toting have run TootingCAN for the last 3 years and the enthusiasm for it grows each time. This year, we received loads of ideas for workshops at future TootingCANs, such as:
- More singing and creative workshops (think choral singing, book clubs and dance)
- Deeper dives into IT topics like AI and sustainability.
- Arts and Crafts from crochet to lino printing, collage to painting & sketching
- Food and cooking workshops like fermentation, kimchi and baking
- Finally, the practical stuff: gardening, bike maintenance and woodwork.
Most importantly, TootingCAN proved that community resilience isn’t just a buzzword, it’s something we build, day by day, skill by skill, in community. Let’s see how next year’s tootingCAN develops!
Serving lunch
A Huge Thank You
To every participant, volunteer, and contributor, thank you for making TootingCAN a day to remember. Your energy, creativity, and kindness are what make Tooting special. Huge thanks to Amy and the United Reformed Church, our home from home. And to the Wandsworth Grant Fund, thank you for believing in this vision and helping us bring it to life.
The future is bright, and it starts right here in Tooting. Let’s keep sharing, learning, and growing together—because when we do, there’s no limit to what we can achieve.
Want to get involved? Perhaps you have something to offer for next year’s TootingCAN? Transition Town Tooting is always looking for volunteers and new ideas. Get in touch at [TransitionTownTooting@gmail.com] to join the movement!
Close with a sing song
Tooting can!
By Rich Couldrey
Step in to the creation station, stick, squeeze, badge
Take a lap around a laptop, who knew AI was…
Stitching ties, totes to carry your prize, whirrr, prick, chat, chat
Chaat chaat, making chaat, spiced cascade,
A taste of tooting in date …
balls and pizzas made, squeeze, need and dough
The meal begins to assemble ...
But wait, we dive underground, dark, as worms wriggle and squirm outside,
Past quests for reflection,
to planters repaired and hands in the soil, plants go in... grow, grow!
In community, we relate, a rainbow human family,
What did you say? Hands sway and flow, in letters made as we move, my name, your name, hello hello.
Gestures turn to dance, sticks clack clack! As Ragini moves, with such grace and poise, we follow, Kathak, Kathak.
And back, to find a way into a digital world, clickety clack of fingers on keyboards learning to excel, nearly time to relax...
Wooosh! A gleeful child runs and newspaper kites fly out back, time to rise up... up... up... to see a drawn map of us all, BAT BAT.
Enough of all that,
Take a breath, in and sing,
feel the healing, "hold on, my dear, here comes the dawn" rings,
And stop, pause, time to eat and reflect,
A leek and potatoes soup to fill the...head…
heart and hands, and celebrate...
Tooting's rainbow soul,
‘til next time we gather and change the world once more.
