There are good days at CDI’s Clockhouse… and then there are MAD Week days.
This week we had the absolute pleasure of welcoming Year 12 students from Larkmead School, guided brilliantly by Clare Woodcock from OCVA, as part of their Make A Difference project. Their mission: to explore loneliness and isolation across generations, and to see how organisations like CDI help stitch community back together with warmth, creativity and a lot of laughter.
And what a day they chose.
The “Morning After” England’s World Cup encounter with Mexico ! A day when workplaces across the country were flooded with suspiciously croaky phone calls, mysterious tummy bugs and the classic “Wi‑Fi down, can’t come in” excuses. Yet at The Clockhouse, we were fully staffed, fully caffeinated, and fully committed… if just a tiny bit bleary‑eyed after cheering on the Three Lions until the early hours.
Because ‘here’s the thing’, when you work with a team you genuinely adore, and for a community you’re proud to serve, turning up even with match‑day hangovers and flag‑shaped pillow creases on your face, feels not just doable, but joyful. Consistency matters. Being a constant matters. And showing up for our seniors, our families, our young people… that’s the heartbeat of CDI.
The students arrived to find The Clockhouse in full fettle. Seniors buzzing. Staff smiling. Sun shining on our beautiful garden and Wimbledon centre court on the tv…..all that was missing was Bill W singing a rendition of ‘Lovely Day’ and proceedings would be complete.
Over strawberries and cream, tea and scones, fancy cakes and the gentle thwack of short‑tennis rallies, inspired by Wimbledon, the students spoke with members about what loneliness feels like, what connection means, and how small acts of kindness can ripple outwards. Due to also visit a care home, a stroke ward and the adult social care team at the council, the Clockhouse gave the students something different: a glimpse of what community looks like when it’s alive, loud, colourful and fuelled by belonging.
They saw friendships forming over games. They saw confidence growing in structured sessions. They saw humour, hope, and the kind of joy that comes from simply being together. And hopefully, when they sit down to write their reports, they’ll remember that tackling loneliness isn’t always about grand gestures. Sometimes it’s about turning up. Believing in one another. Being creative. And making space where people feel at home.
We won’t break into song with a full‑throated “It’s Coming Home”… but we will proudly say that at The Clockhouse, CDI is home – for so many.
And partnering with OCVA, with Clare, and with brilliant young people from schools like Larkmead gives us real hope for the future. Because when communities pull together, across ages, backgrounds and football allegiances, we grow stronger, kinder and more connected.
Here’s to the students, the seniors, the staff, the flags, the hats, the laughter, and the shared belief that loneliness can be beaten… one conversation, one smile, one MAD Week at a time.
