The Story Sanctuary

Open Mornings: Drop-In & Say Hi
2026-04-25 10:00 - 13:00, 2026-04-24 10:00 - 13:00, 2026-04-18 10:00 - 13:00, 2026-04-17 10:00 - 13:00, 2026-04-11 10:00 - 13:00, 2026-04-10 10:00 - 13:00, 2026-04-03 10:00 - 13:00 (Europe/London)
Come down on Friday or Saturday mornings in April to find out more about The Story Sanctuary!

We’d love to invite you to come along to one of our Drop-In & Say Hi sessions, the kettle will be on.

Whether you’re already connected with us or just curious to find out more, these relaxed mornings are a great chance to pop in, have a look around, and meet some of the team. If you’ve ever wondered what goes on here, this is the perfect time to come and say hello.

You’re welcome to:✨ Ask any questions about what we do🤝 Chat about volunteering or getting involved🎁 Bring along donations if you’d like🏡 Have a nose around our space

There’s no pressure and no booking needed — just drop in when it suits you.

🗓 April dates (10am–1pm):Friday 3rd, 10th, 17th & 24thSaturday 11th, 18th, 25th (closed 4th)

We’re always happy to meet new faces, share what we’re about, and connect with our local community.

This is the beginning of a grassroots community initiative, and it will only grow into something meaningful if it’s shaped by the people around it — what could you bring, and what would you love to see happen here?

Come along, have a look around, and be part of the conversation.We look forward to welcoming you! 💙

Meditation & Check In Circle
2026-04-25 08:00 - 09:00, 2026-04-18 08:00 - 09:00, 2026-03-28 08:00 - 09:00
An early morning reset to transition from the week into the weekend. A gentle welcome and warm-up followed by a 20-25minute guided meditation and time for check-in and reflection. Designed for busy mums and all who carry stress and responsibility that feels hard to let go; allow yourself this moment to ground yourself, restore some balance and calm so that you can be fully present in yourself and your weekend.

Pascale Roura specialises in community wellbeing and family yoga. She believes in nurturing human connection for growth, balance and joy. She is trained in children’s yoga and meditation tuition and is passionate about our planet and climate change.

Practical Details:

Our building is not (yet) fully accessible, there are steps down to the toilets which are not suitable for wheelchair users or those who need assistance.

Ticket Costs:

The Story Sanctuary is a grassroots community initiative, led by volunteers. To help balance accessibility with sustainability, we use a tiered pricing model:

SUPPORTER – £15Covers the true cost of your place at an event/workshop and helps support our future.Intended for those on a decent salary or pension who can comfortably meet their basic needs.

STANDARD – £12Covers the bulk of the cost of your place at the event or workshop.Intended for those who are waged or have a reasonable pension and can meet their basic needs.

ACCESSIBLE – £8Helps make participation possible when money is tight.Intended for those on benefits or pension credits, or who are experiencing financial difficulty.

Click here to book

Reading for Resilience (11-16 yr olds)
2026-04-24 13:00 - 14:30, 2026-03-27 13:00 - 14:30
Reading for Resilience is a relaxed, youth-led space where young people come together to explore stories, share ideas, and connect through books that speak to real life.

This group is shaped by you. You help choose the books we read and the themes we explore — including resilience, identity, emotions, and wellbeing. We read together, share storytelling, and talk about characters and moments that stand out.

You can join in as much or as little as feels right for you.

The group is led by a creative psychotherapist who specialises in young people’s wellbeing, offering gentle guidance, emotional support, and coping strategies when needed. Sessions are flexible and will be shaped and adapted to the needs of the group, so everyone feels comfortable and supported.

What this group is about:

Feeling safe, accepted, and respected

Building connections at your own pace

Exploring emotions through stories and creativity

Being heard — without pressure to speak

Having choice and control over how you take part

You don’t need to be a confident reader or speaker. Listening is okay. Sharing is optional. Being yourself is enough.

By joining, you can:

Connect with others in a calm, supportive space

Understand your feelings through stories and discussion

Build confidence and resilience

Feel a sense of belonging

This group is open to young people who enjoy books, stories, or simply being part of a group focused on wellbeing, identity, and resilience.

Practical Details:

Our building is not (yet) fully accessible, there are steps down to the toilets which are not suitable for wheelchair users or those who need assistance.

Ticket Costs:

The Story Sanctuary is a grassroots community initiative, led by volunteers. To help balance accessibility with sustainability, we use a tiered pricing model:

SUPPORTER – £15Covers the true cost of your place at an event/workshop and helps support our future.Intended for those on a decent salary or pension who can comfortably meet their basic needs.

STANDARD – £12Covers the bulk of the cost of your place at the event or workshop.Intended for those who are waged or have a reasonable pension and can meet their basic needs.

ACCESSIBLE – £8Helps make participation possible when money is tight.Intended for those on benefits or pension credits, or who are experiencing financial difficulty.

Click here to book

Chair Yoga with Veronica Moulder
2026-04-22 13:30 - 14:30, 2026-04-15 13:30 - 14:30, 2026-04-01 13:30 - 14:30, 2026-03-25 13:30 - 14:30
Chair Yoga is a safe form of exercise that is suitable for everyone. It is especially useful for people who have restricted movement due to disability, injury or ageing. It can help with conditions such as high blood pressure, anxiety, arthritis, MS, depression and chronic pain. Chair Yoga allows you to move your body safely and increase strength and flexibility. It will also help with balance, relaxation and stress management.

Veronica Moulder has been teaching yoga for over 20 years. She trained with the British Wheel of Yoga and is passionate about the benefits of yoga for improving the quality of life of her students both physically and mentally.

Practical Details:

Our building is not (yet) fully accessible, there are steps down to the toilets which are not suitable for wheelchair users or those who need assistance.

Ticket Costs:

The Story Sanctuary is a grassroots community initiative, led by volunteers. To help balance accessibility with sustainability, we use a tiered pricing model:

SUPPORTER – £15Covers the true cost of your place at an event/workshop and helps support our future.Intended for those on a decent salary or pension who can comfortably meet their basic needs.

STANDARD – £12Covers the bulk of the cost of your place at the event or workshop.Intended for those who are waged or have a reasonable pension and can meet their basic needs.

ACCESSIBLE – £8Helps make participation possible when money is tight.Intended for those on benefits or pension credits, or who are experiencing financial difficulty.

Click here to book

Untangling Ourselves: Carers Colour, Doodle & Chat
2026-04-20 11:00 - 12:30
A non-judgemental welcoming space for carers to decompress and share their experience. Colour, doodle or tangle over coffee, tea and biscuits or just sit and listen; you only share what feels right for you. A brief interlude where you can focus on, and remember how to be, yourself with others who understand how self-care is not as simple as it sounds.

Welcoming carers of all types, particularly those supporting adult children, or juggling supporting their parents alongside raising their family.

Jill Finch is founder of The Story Sanctuary, the inspiration for which partially came from being a long-term parent/carer to both her child and mother-in-law. She understands the isolation and the emotional, financial and logistical complexity of care, and balancing your own needs against those who need you.

Practical Details:

Our building is not (yet) fully accessible, there are steps down to the toilets which are not suitable for wheelchair users or those who need assistance.

Ticket Costs:

The Story Sanctuary is a grassroots community initiative, led by volunteers. To help balance accessibility with sustainability, we use a tiered pricing model:

SUPPORTER – £15Covers the true cost of your place at an event/workshop and helps support our future.Intended for those on a decent salary or pension who can comfortably meet their basic needs.

STANDARD – £12Covers the bulk of the cost of your place at the event or workshop.Intended for those who are waged or have a reasonable pension and can meet their basic needs.

ACCESSIBLE – £8Helps make participation possible when money is tight.Intended for those on benefits or pension credits, or who are experiencing financial difficulty.

Click here to book

Community Garden & Maintenance Drop In
2026-04-17 10:00 - 14:00
Join us for a gentle gardening and tidy up session. No experience or regular commitment needed.

We’d love your help keeping our front garden welcoming and well cared for. There will be a range of simple tasks like sweeping and weeding, through to more hands-on jobs such as pruning — and even opportunities to help us think about future garden plans.

It’s also a lovely chance to make new friends and find out more about what we do.

🗓 First Tuesday of each month — 10am–3pm🗓 Third Friday of each month — 10am–2pm

Tea, coffee and biscuits provided ☕🍪If no one is outside when you arrive, please come to the staff entrance.Bring tools if you have them (no worries if not!).

Feel free to join our WhatsApp group for updates and reminders:https://chat.whatsapp.com/Jz4ecXsEyoI4HkfpzWCKRa

We’d love to see you there! 🌱

If it’s raining, we’re probably not gardening but do pop down and say hi!

A Common Thread: Creative Sewing & Embroidery
2026-04-16 10:30 - 12:00
A growing community of soft makers: our ‘A Common Thread’ sessions are the epitome of how we build community over shared passions and experiences. All ages, all skill levels, all backgrounds, all together: bring a project or start one; help with a group make to display in the space or help others to learn. Whether it’s patchwork or embroidery, cross-stitch or crochet, you will likely find someone who shares your making joy.

Led by Christel Stranack (@craftybleublancrouge), a talented multidisciplinary maker, supported by other volunteers of all ages. These sessions are predominantly for hand-makers, but all welcome!

Practical Details:

Our building is not (yet) fully accessible, there are steps down to the toilets which are not suitable for wheelchair users or those who need assistance.

Ticket Costs:

The Story Sanctuary is a grassroots community initiative, led by volunteers. To help balance accessibility with sustainability, we use a tiered pricing model:

SUPPORTER – £15Covers the true cost of your place at an event/workshop and helps support our future.Intended for those on a decent salary or pension who can comfortably meet their basic needs.

STANDARD – £12Covers the bulk of the cost of your place at the event or workshop.Intended for those who are waged or have a reasonable pension and can meet their basic needs.

ACCESSIBLE – £8Helps make participation possible when money is tight.Intended for those on benefits or pension credits, or who are experiencing financial difficulty.

Click here to book

Stop Motion Animation Workshop for 9-14yr olds
2026-04-08 11:00 - 12:30
A relaxed workshop taster session for young people who are interested in learning about stop motion animation. Led by Skye Baker, a professional illustrator and arts educator.

Come and make your very own stop motion animation! All materials provided.

Bring your imagination and watch your ideas come to life frame by frame—whether it’s a tiny character, a magical world, or a short story only you could invent. Discover how a series of small movements can turn into a moving film you’ll be proud to share. 🎬✨

You need to have a mobile phone or tablet to take part in this workshop.

You need to have downloaded and installed the Stop Motion Studio app before the session, the free version is fine! https://www.stopmotionstudio.com/try.html

Practical Details:

Our building is not (yet) fully accessible, there are steps down to the toilets which are not suitable for wheelchair users or those who need assistance.

Please wear clothes that you don’t mind getting glue and plasticine on 🙂

Ticket Costs:

The Story Sanctuary is a grassroots community initiative, led by volunteers. To help balance accessibility with sustainability, we use a tiered pricing model:

SUPPORTER – £15Covers the true cost of your place at an event/workshop and helps support our future.Intended for those on a decent salary or pension who can comfortably meet their basic needs.

STANDARD – £12Covers the bulk of the cost of your place at the event or workshop.Intended for those who are waged or have a reasonable pension and can meet their basic needs.

ACCESSIBLE – £8Helps make participation possible when money is tight.Intended for those on benefits or pension credits, or who are experiencing financial difficulty.

Click here to book

Make a Newspaper Pot and Plant a Sunflower!
2026-04-07 11:00 - 14:00
Well, this event is pretty self-explanatory!

Join us during our monthly community gardening session and meet some of our gardeners; make a pot, plant a sunflower to take home and another one for our garden!!

We’re going to have a sunflower growing competition, it’s going to be a big one! So we need lots of sunflower seeds planted for lots of seedlings…

This event is free of charge and there’s no need to book: simply turn up!

Practical Details:

Our building is not (yet) fully accessible, there are steps down to the toilets which are not suitable for wheelchair users or those who need assistance.

Please wear clothes that you don’t mind getting compost on 🙂

Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult.

Community Garden & Maintenance Drop In
2026-04-07 10:00 - 15:00
Join us for a gentle gardening and tidy up session. No experience or regular commitment needed.

We’d love your help keeping our gardens welcoming and well cared for. There will be a range of simple tasks like sweeping and weeding, through to more hands-on jobs such as pruning and helping to plant our new community garden.

It’s also a lovely chance to make new friends and find out more about what we do.

🗓 First Tuesday of each month — 10am–3pm🗓 Third Friday of each month — 10am–2pm

Tea, coffee and biscuits provided ☕🍪If no one is outside when you arrive, please come to the staff entrance.Bring tools if you have them (no worries if not!).

Feel free to join our WhatsApp group for updates and reminders:https://chat.whatsapp.com/Jz4ecXsEyoI4HkfpzWCKRa

We’d love to see you there! 🌱

If it’s raining, we’re probably not gardening but do pop down and say hi!

Crafting our Community with Emmie the…
2026-04-03 13:00 - 16:00
We’re thrilled to be joined by students from the MA Architecture course at Central St Martins for a mini-residency helping us to explore our future as a community space and organisation.

Emma and Lumie, currently in their final year are on a mission to activate public spaces with collaborative, fun and free workshops, talks, events, and other forms of knowledge exchange around London, where everyone can define and redefine the « … » of Emmie, The …

Emmie, The « … » is a mobile workshop made entirely from scrap materials found around the streets of London and Croydon!

Emmie is coming to The Story Sanctuary as “Emmie the Future Crafter” and we’ll be exploring what community means to us all via crafting, conversation and more.

Our first workshop in the series of three is called Crafting our Community and we’ll be thinking, chatting and making about what that means and what The Story Sanctuary could be!Open to everyone – all ages from 5-95+! Free to attend, booking preferred!!

Practical Details:

Our building is not (yet) fully accessible, there are steps down to the toilets which are not suitable for wheelchair users or those who need assistance.

Please wear clothes that you don’t mind getting glue on 🙂

Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult.

Click here to book

A Common Thread: Creative Sewing & Embroidery
2026-04-02 14:00 - 16:00, 2026-04-02 10:30 - 12:30
Easter Special – 2 hour session!

A growing community of soft makers: our ‘A Common Thread’ sessions are the epitome of how we build community over shared passions and experiences. All ages, all skill levels, all backgrounds, all together: bring a project or start one; help with a group make to display in the space or help others to learn. Whether it’s patchwork or embroidery, cross-stitch or crochet, you will likely find someone who shares your making joy.

Led by Yolanda Shields from A Collective, a talented multidisciplinary maker, supported by other volunteers of all ages. These sessions are predominantly for hand-makers, but all welcome!

Under 16s to be accompanied by an adult.

Practical Details:

Our building is not (yet) fully accessible, there are steps down to the toilets which are not suitable for wheelchair users or those who need assistance.

Ticket Costs:

The Story Sanctuary is a grassroots community initiative, led by volunteers. To help balance accessibility with sustainability, we use a tiered pricing model:

SUPPORTER – £15Covers the true cost of your place at an event/workshop and helps support our future.Intended for those on a decent salary or pension who can comfortably meet their basic needs.

STANDARD – £12Covers the bulk of the cost of your place at the event or workshop.Intended for those who are waged or have a reasonable pension and can meet their basic needs.

ACCESSIBLE – £8Helps make participation possible when money is tight.Intended for those on benefits or pension credits, or who are experiencing financial difficulty.

Click here to book

Story and Craft Time with Croydon libraries
2026-03-31 10:30 - 11:30
Join the team from Croydon libraries to listen to a story and make something to take home inspired by what you heard. Suited to families with primary school-aged children.

This activity is delivered in partnership with Croydon Libraries and is offered free of charge.

More details to follow!

Practical Details:

All children must be accompanied by a parent/carer who can join in or relax in our seating area. Please ensure you register each child with their own ticket.

Our building is not (yet) fully accessible, there are steps down to the toilets which are not suitable for wheelchair users or those who need assistance.

Click here to book

Playful Poems! For kids aged 7-11
2026-03-30 10:00 - 11:30
Created for National Poetry Day 2025 and inspired by the theme of Play, this fun workshop explores how poets experiment with language, meaning, and imagination.

We start by looking at how poetry bends and twists words in surprising ways. Then participants jump into a fast-paced game of Rock Paper Anything, where they’re challenged to think beyond themselves and become someone, or something, else. An object, an animal, or even an abstract idea.

Using this game as a starting point for imagining ourselves as something else, participants write mask poems from the perspective of their chosen voice. The workshop finishes with an opportunity to share and perform our poems in a supportive and friendly environment.

Workshops are designed and delivered by Steve Sobolewski, founder of StoryMatters. Steve is a poet, writer and educator. He holds a first-class degree in Creative Writing from Birkbeck College, University of London, where he was honoured with the Michael Donaghy Prize for Poetry. Steve has worked with children of all ages in a wide variety of educational and community settings across London and Sydney since 2022.

This workshop is free, thanks to funding from Arts Council England.

Suited to primary school-aged children, this is not a drop-off workshop: a parent/carer must remain onsite.

Practical Details:

All children must be accompanied by a parent/carer who can join in or relax in our seating area. Please ensure you register each child with their own ticket.

Our building is not (yet) fully accessible, there are steps down to the toilets which are not suitable for wheelchair users or those who need assistance.

Click here to book

Open Mornings: Drop-In & Say Hi
2026-03-28 10:00 - 13:00, 2026-03-27 10:00 - 13:00
Come down on Friday or Saturday mornings in March to find out more about The Story Sanctuary!

We’d love to invite you to come along to one of our Drop-In & Say Hi sessions, the kettle will be on.

Whether you’re already connected with us or just curious to find out more, these relaxed mornings are a great chance to pop in, have a look around, and meet some of the team. If you’ve ever wondered what goes on here, this is the perfect time to come and say hello.

You’re welcome to:✨ Ask any questions about what we do🤝 Chat about volunteering or getting involved🎁 Bring along donations if you’d like🏡 Have a nose around our space and make yourself at home

There’s no pressure and no booking needed — just drop in when it suits you.

🗓 March dates (10am–1pm):Friday 6th, 13th, 20th & 27thSaturday 7th, 14th, 21st & 28th

We’re always happy to meet new faces, share what we’re about, and connect with our local community.

This is the beginning of a grassroots community initiative, and it will only grow into something meaningful if it’s shaped by the people around it — what could you bring, and what would you love to see happen here?

Come along, have a look around, and be part of the conversation.We look forward to welcoming you! 💙

Monthly Mending Clinic
2026-03-25 18:30 - 21:00
As part of our A Common Thread season, we’re launching our monthly mending clinic.

Every fourth Wednesday of the month – whether you’re new to repair and reuse or an experienced upcycler, come and meet a group of likeminded people who want to minimise their impact on the planet.

Bring a small project, or help someone with theirs… whether it’s a beloved garment that’s worn out or a Vinted buy that doesn’t quite fit, we have experts on hand and a wide range of equipment and materials you can use.

Workshop Cost:The Story Sanctuary is a grassroots community initiative, led by volunteers. To help balance accessibility with sustainability, we use a tiered pricing model:

SUPPORTER – £15Covers the true cost of your place at an event/workshop and helps support our future.Intended for those on a decent salary or pension who can comfortably meet their basic needs.

STANDARD – £12Covers the bulk of the cost of your place at the event or workshop.Intended for those who are waged or have a reasonable pension and can meet their basic needs.

ACCESSIBLE – £8Helps make participation possible when money is tight.Intended for those on benefits or pension credits, or who are experiencing financial difficulty.

Please choose the option that feels right for you — every booking helps keep us running.

Practical Details:

Our building is not (yet) fully accessible, there are steps down to the toilets which are not suitable for wheelchair users or those who need assistance.

Get tickets on Humanitix
