Aulnay has so many stories to tell.

When they heard we were painting one of the staircases they asked if they could have extra paint so they could paint the smaller one as well. This morning, over 30 rose at 7am and worked hard all day to add colour to their local square. One boy we spoke to said that he never wakes up at 7am. Not even when he was at school or work (Aulnay has an 80% unemployment rate), but he didn’t even question setting his alarm for this.

The head of local community group, Les Femmes Relais said that adding colour to this area was so important. She said that because so many areas are rundown and falling apart they don’t respect their surroundings and so they treat it badly. The fact that now they can regenerate and make it more beautiful means that people care about them and it’s a nicer place to live.

I’m not quite sure who got more from this experience. Aulnay or us. Thank you to everyone we met, interviewed and painted with.