DEALING with stress? In need of something to help you unwind? Then you might have done well to attend a creative gala event at the Lawn Community Centre on Saturday to learn how to improve your wellbeing.

Artist Mary Parsons organised a range of activities which saw guests get active, develop new skills, and take a moment out for reflection.

Around £200 was raised through donations at the event and all proceeds have gone straight to the Brighter Futures radiotherapy appeal.

Mary said: “I really enjoyed putting it on and getting so many people involved. It was an unusual event I think which didn't quite fit into a typical category of event so I think people weren't sure what to expect until they turned up.

“However, the comments that I had were that people found it to be a really nice atmosphere, and enjoyed trying things that they may not otherwise have considered trying.”

Guests were treated to Tibetan relaxation sessions, art workshops and music from the Lawn Chorus choir. Levi Saunders also performed tunes on the banjo while entertaining children with his foot-operated puppet.

Mary added: “The jugglers, artists and creative people were all great at involving people.

“I’m hoping that they felt comfortable and will come back to try something else. I think the centre has a lot of potential to reduce isolation, give people a purpose and a way to meet their neighbours. Centres and events like this show that Swindon is thriving.”

Freelance juggler Jake Hirsh Holland came down to show off his skills at the gala. He said: “People had a great time, it was nice that there was a real mix of ages. I was teaching kids to juggle who were 10 and also teaching people in their 50’s and 60’s.

“Doing circus skills is therapeutic in the way that any physical exercise is therapeutic, but with juggling you’re using both sides of your body and training hand-eye coordination, and getting a sense of achievement. It gives you the feel-good factor.”

Matthew Groom travelled from Newbury to demonstrate the wonders of Origami with his nine-year-old daughter Natalija. He said: “It went down really well. It’s a nice way of focusing on something abstract and going through the process of creating a model is a good way to calm the mind.

“I try to combine it with the mindfulness I do as well as I find it very relaxing, so the idea was to start teaching it. After the reaction we got on Saturday its something we want to pursue and do again.”

Brighter Futures is approaching the £2.4 million mark and staff hope to find an extra £500,000 worth of funding by the end of the year. Oxford University hospitals is investing £18 million to build the radiotherapy centre itself, while the Great Western Hospital charity plans to use its contribution to buy equipment for the facility.

For some patients, the cutting-edge technology will eliminate their cancer and control the symptoms that come with it.