Community Games provide a great opportunity to really explore the cultural heritage, diversity and strengths of your community, and you can encourage members of your community to share their skills and experience.

What?

You could ask yourself whether there are any traditional activities in your local area that you could focus on, whether your area is famous for any key industries (textiles, engineering, cars, etc.), maybe there has been a historical event in your area or something else your community is famous for (e.g. food/drink?), and, ultimately, who forms your community or group?

The possibilities are limitless; you could:

• Look at your community’s architecture or heritage
• Involve craft making groups, or encourage a local art, photography or journalism competition
• Find local music groups, who could even help out with your opening/closing ceremonies
• See whether a local school wants to organise an exhibition
• See if any local theatre or art groups or businesses may have something special they could bring to your event

How?

As with sport there are many ways to include these activities, whether it’s a dance or skills performance that occurs during the event or within your ceremony, or a taster session allowing people to get involved. You could even set up a mini-exhibition and perhaps have professional or amateur artists show their work.

Competitions!

You could set your community a creative challenge at your Community Games. Photography competitions are one popular example, where participants would be told a theme at the beginning of the day and the best submission in that theme by the end of the day would win a prize. Such a competition may be a good way of involving a local radio station or newspaper in your Community Games.

Here are some ideas from Arts Council England - West Midlands - who held their own Community Games!

1. Theatre Dash
Race around the obstacle course before donning your thespian garb to give a brief monologue to the eager audience (rotten tomatoes optional)
2. Pictionary Relay
Form teams of three to compete. Do you opt for speed or artistic ability? Both are equally important!
3. “Have you ever seen anything like it” Penalty Shoot-out
Embrace your inner Maradona/Mr Bean as your footballing prowess is judged on the style of your run up as much as it is the ability to hit the target
4. Boxing Sing-off
Just how coordinated are you? Test your mettle in this hand-eye-voice-brain-twister of a challenge
5. Cupcake & Spoon race
This event will divide the Delias from the Jamies to discover who’s the fastest (and most stable…) chef in town