For the past two months, community storytellers from our Becoming Neighbours project have been preparing to connect with former residential volunteers of Pembroke House’s Residency. A medley of local residents, neighbours and collaborators have joined us to not only gather stories but create a wider, connected community in the process.

Last week the group gathered over soup, dumplings and patties prepared by our brilliant Kam, and caught up on their first attempts to draw out stories through one on one interviews.

Building the confidence to speak to someone new can be daunting, but as the group reflected, it helped to approach the interviews as a friendly conversation: an opportunity to connect and take a trip down memory lane.

If not recorded, some of these stories might disappear and be lost to history. This point was driven home by a storyteller’s conversation with Anthony, who lived in the Residency 50 years ago. His struggle with dementia didn’t stop him from recalling how significant being a residential volunteer was for him. While some facts, such as exact dates and names, were difficult to pin down decades later, Anthony, along with other interviewees, still remembered and were eager to share how they felt, what they perceived, and the impressions that were left on them.

What drew many of the residential volunteers to Pembroke House was the desire to form an intentional community. In a city like London that often feels too large and overwhelming, the Residency offered an opportunity to form meaningful relationships, bridge social divides and contribute to the wellbeing of the neighbourhood and the people within it.

Duncan, a residential volunteer who lived at the Residency during the 70s was most excited to speak about the ‘boys club’ he founded, with some of his favourite memories involving taking the group on wild camping retreats in the Scottish highlands. Many of the boys had never been north of the river, let alone outside of the country. For Duncan those excursions were a way of sharing his piece of home, and supporting the boys’ access to new experiences.

For one storyteller, who happened to be a former residential volunteer, a point of connection during her interview were the physical aspects of the Residency and the neighbourhood. As they spoke they remembered the same features, the streets in the neighbourhood that have remained the same or transformed across generations. (In another interview, it was a surprise to discover that at one point the bedrooms had held bunk beds!)

Their conversation was a reminder that The Residency isn’t just a concept. It is a physical space, grounded in the architecture of the building and the neighbourhood.

We’ll be holding a public sharing event on 27th November 2025, where we’ll continue to share stories from the journey of Becoming Neighbours. Make sure to RSVP here!

If you’re interested in becoming a community storyteller and gathering these memories with us, get in touch with Juliette. We’d love to hear from you.