Sonali Gardens is a day centre in Tower Hamlets that until recently was used exclusively by social care assessed older people from the Bangladeshi community. Since 2006 community services for non-assessed residents have also been run from the centre. The non-social care services are a range of activities aimed at keeping people fit and active, and also at reducing social isolation. All older people are welcome to attend and participate in these activities. GPs and other health professionals also make referrals in the community leisure and social activities.
The centre now has a dual purpose and is used by assessed and non assessed older citizens. Bringing the wider community services into Sonali Gardens has broadened the ethnic mix of people using the centre. Events are now held regularly at the centre that attract a diverse mix of older people from the area.
This project was initiated as part of the LinkAge Plus scheme funded by the Department of Work and Pensions. LinkAge Plus have found that Day Centre users are less segregated from the community and are not marginalised. In the past there has been very little social contact between the Bangladeshi and the white community and they expected that it would difficult to get white services users into a centre that was seen as mainly for the Bangladeshi community.
However, LinkAge Plus have been able to get lots of older white people into the centre and much more mixing between the two groups. They have had a music event where they had a mix of East End and Bangladeshi music, plus further concerts and workshops.