Category: News

Three Ukrainian creatives displaced by the war, are appealing for funding to secure the future of a new children’s activity club they launched in Redditch.

Friends Tetiana Volikova, Yana Tyshyna and Svitlana Vasylieva established and run Creative Carousel with the support of Redditch Kingfisher Rotary Club. But now the team need to replenish their depleted £9,900 grant from Redditch Borough Council which has only funded the first four months.

It is hoped a free Heritage Fun Day on September 13^th will also help showcase the Club which, they say, offers a unique blend of UK and Ukrainian teaching methods and after-school care.

The event takes place at St Laurence Church and the Ark between 11am-2pm, when members of the team will be on hand to talk about the Club. There will also be a host of family fun on offer, including church and tower tours, prize draws, games, live performances, face painting and food stalls.

The three ladies all resettled in Redditch a few weeks after the outbreak of the aggression, being forced to flee with their children to Poland and Turkey, before finding sponsor families in Worcestershire.

After meeting through the BRWR (Bromsgrove and Redditch Welcome Refugee Group) they realised their passions and skills as a vocal coach, artist and choreographer aligned and so set about building Creative Carousel.

Tetiana said: “I felt there was a need for something like this in the area. We asked Rotary to help us organise this project and apply for grants as we didn’t know how to do it. Also, we would like “Creative Carousel” to become a business sometime in the future. So Rotary lent us a hand and bought us some materials to help get us up and running. We couldn’t have done this without them.”

For Tetiana, Svitlana and Yana, Creative Carousel marks a return to the work they love – but were forced to leave behind – in their homeland.

Tetiana has over 30 years of experience as a performer, vocal coach, and international competition judge and had been running her own successful vocal studio for 12 years before the war broke out.

She said: “Being in UK I previously contributed to projects funded by the National Lottery and the Arts Council, including the renowned Eurovision Refugee Choir project in Liverpool and the European Youth Music Refugee Choir. These experiences were deeply inspiring, instilling a desire to create another project that fosters international cultural exchange through music.”

“Through these initiatives, I witnessed the transformative impact that culturally diverse, inclusive arts projects can have on communities. It strengthened my commitment to making arts accessible and meaningful, especially for refugee and immigrant populations.”

It was only a few days after war broke out that Tetiana fled Khmelnytskyi with her two children aged 17 and 6.

She recalls: “I took some important stuff for me, such as my gadgets to stay connected, and minimal clothes. We had two travel bags between the three of us. My biggest aim was to stay calm, not to stress or scare my daughter”.

“I left my entire life behind. Suddenly you have no hopes, no aims, no decisions. You can’t plan anything. But I have shed all my tears and now am embracing life over here and trying to be positive.”

She added: “Life has to go on. I have responsibilities. I had my family and my community. I needed to do something, to make a change. I can’t stop the war. I can’t make decisions for other people, so I decided to try to focus on what I’m doing here, and that’s why Creative Carousel came about. We decided to develop something here similar to what we all used to do.

Yana Tyshyna is a choreographer and production ballet master and director of the Mriya dance ensemble in Birmingham, which includes over 50 dancers from various countries.

In Ukraine she worked at the Kyiv College of Culture and Arts in the Department of Choreographic Arts before fleeing to the UK with her seven-year-old twin sons, who are themselves, excellent dancers.

She said: “Creative Carousel for me is not just an after-school club—it’s a fun, creative family where everyone feels needed and an irreplaceable element in a well-coordinated mechanism. Here, I teach children the art of dance with great pleasure. Movement is life… but it’s more fun with music.”

Professional artist Svitlana Vasylieva, resettled in Redditch after fleeing Dnipro with her two sons aged 2 and 11, and has since exhibited in the UK and won the Art in Redditch Graham Award in May 2025. She is highly regarded for her work with children – frequently invited by cultural centres, holiday clubs, and community organisations to lead art workshops for young audiences.

She said: “My experience working with children from different backgrounds aligns perfectly with the Creative Carousel mission to celebrate cultural diversity through the arts.

“I aim to bring a unique cultural perspective and create a welcoming, inspiring environment for young participants, encouraging them to express themselves confidently and authentically through art.

“We are looking for all possible ways to reduce the prices and make our lessons affordable to all children interested. We are open to collaboration with businesses, charity organisations and funds to cover price for families in need.”

From September the Club will run three classes a week:

Redditch ( The Bridge Church (former St Luke’s Church), Headless Cross, B974JX)

Mondays: Group 1: Ages 6-8, 16:30-18:30

Wednesdays: Group 2: Ages 9-11, 16:30-18:30

Alvechurch: (St Laurence Church and The Ark, School Lane, Alvechurch, B48 7SB)

Thursdays: Joined Group: Ages 7-11, 16:00-18:00

The cost of each session is £10, including teatime, with a special offer of just £2 for the first session.

Sibling discounts are available and families enrolling with multiple children receive a 20% discount.

Donations towards the work of Creative Carousel can be made HERE or HERE.

Further information is available HERE or to pledge sponsorship, contact Tetiana and the team at: creativcarouseluk@gmail.com.

Hundreds of festival-goers enjoyed fun, food and a fireworks finale at a community music festival on Saturday.

More than 600 people soaked up the sun and the sounds of local musicians for the second Stratfest, hosted by Stratford Park Hotel & Golf Club.

The event, which has been hailed a huge success, also raised more than £1k for Warwick-based children’s charity Molly Ollys.

Rock and Roll party cover band Bands Texan Peacocks, from Stratford, and No Direction, a rock and pop cover band from Snitterfield, headed the impressive line-up. Other acts included Frazer Lepford, performing Indie and Rock; Jake Rees, performing Classical and Pop; guitarist Luke Brougham playing Spanish/Latino and Country; Rock Pop duo The Tickets and Pop vocalist Honor Isabella.

The hotel’s co-owner and General Manager Beverley Haynes, said: “We are still on a high from Saturday after welcoming hundreds of people to The Stratford Park Hotel & Golf Club for Stratfest.

She added: “We created Stratfest because Stratford deserved its own festival organised by a local family business where our incredible local musicians could connect with their community and experience playing in a festival environment with professional sound, lighting and staging.

“Too often, festivals are priced out of reach for ordinary families, but we believe music should be accessible to everyone – and by bringing together our fantastic local business community as sponsors – and with ticket sales, we can cover the festival costs and maintain these affordable prices. A huge thankyou to our sponsors.

“We were proud to be raising awareness and funds for local charity, Molly Olly’s, also while creating a true family-friendly celebration that brings neighbours together. The guests at the festival generously donated to the charity on the day.

“Stratfest is by Stratford, for Stratford – a festival that belongs to all of us.”

Sponsors included BDR Group, Grenfell & James, Lodders Solicitors, MGC construction, Virtually Visual photography, DPI Signs and Pyrotek Fireworks.

Rachel Ollerenshaw established Molly Ollys with husband Tim in 2011, following the death of their eight-year-old daughter Molly from a rare kidney cancer.

The Warwick-based charity works to support children with terminal or life-limiting illnesses and their families and help with their emotional wellbeing. As well as providing more than 4,300 wishes to date, they donate therapeutic toys and books to both children directly and to hospitals throughout the UK.

A set of books from the charity’s exclusive Olly The Brave series and the lion have now been handed out to more than 70 hospitals or health centres to distribute to children undergoing treatment. Olly has his own Hickman line and a detachable mane which helps to explain and normalise the effects of chemotherapy.

Part of more than £5m raised to date, has also been used to fund the first consultant in paediatric palliative medicine at Birmingham Children’s Hospital and pay for the training of a further two consultants.

Rachel Ollerenshaw said: “It was a privilege to be Stratfest’s chosen charity on Saturday and as expected, the event didn’t disappoint. From incredible music to wonderful food, and from family fun to the spectacular fireworks finale, it was great for Molly Ollys to be part of something that has become a firm favourite on the Stratford upon Avon events calendar. And the glorious weather proved to be a real bonus, no doubt boosting turnout.

“Funds raised from ticket sales and throughout the day will be used on wishes and therapeutic toys for those children we support who have life-threatening illnesses. We’re so grateful to Bev Haynes and her hard-working team at Stratford Park Hotel for choosing Molly Ollys and for making things run so smoothly from start to finish.”

The festival also laid on a host of family activities including bouncy castle, bouncy slide, face painter and fun Rhyme Time and Muddy Munchkins Playgroup, which is based in the grounds of the hotel.

The independent Stratford Park Hotel & Golf Club, which now has 32 bedrooms, was converted from a farmhouse and opened in 1993, alongside an 18-hole 72-par golf course, offering a range of visitor and guest packages. The adjacent Meadow Barn events venue is popular for bespoke weddings, surrounded by a private arrival courtyard with fountain and terrace seating.

Visit: https://www.thestratfordpark.co.uk/