30 Oct 2026
The Cathedral Nave was buzzing with energy on Saturday as around 70 charities and community organisations came together for the St Albans Community Showcase 2026.
Their vital work ranges from tackling homelessness, loneliness and inequality to protecting our environment, supporting families, creating music, encouraging sport and simply bringing people together.
The Showcase celebrated the extraordinary breadth of community life across St Albans and the surrounding area, and gave visitors the opportunity to discover local organisations, meet the people behind them, explore volunteering opportunities and make new connections.
Spokesperson Pamela Reitemeier said: “The Showcase was a powerful reminder of what makes a community thrive: people coming together, looking out for one another and finding ways to make a difference. One community. One incredible day.”
New Bishop of St Albans, the Rt Rev Dr Andrew Rumsey said: “What an inspiring event! I have a fistful of flyers and have found out about all kinds of charitable endeavours here in the city and across the county.
“Church buildings and cathedrals have for centuries been engines of local charity and social service, so it’s entirely fitting that this should take place in this ancient building and for stalls to be packing out the Nave this morning, it’s wonderful to be here.”
St Albans Mayor Cllr Matt Fisher said it was a very proud moment to witness: “We have a huge variety of charities and other organisations here promoting the great action that is happening locally. It’s a day of celebration and it’s very humbling to be here.”
Chief executive of Youth Talk David Barker said: “A huge, huge thank you to the Cathedral for putting on such an amazing event!”
Ben Wicks from Chess in Schools and Communities explained: “We love coming to the Showcase every year because we always find wonderful volunteers to deliver chess clubs in schools and even prisons.”
Alison May, on behalf of Rennie Grove Peace Hospice, said: “It’s great to be here at the Showcase and to connect with other people in the community. It really helps a lot of charities and ourselves to get the word out about what the voluntary sector does in the local community.”
Debbie Wood, chief executive of ADD-vance said: “We’re delighted to be here today as part of the St Albans Showcase. As a charity, we’ve been here for the last few years and we love to work and talk to parents of children with ADHD, autism and or any of the other related conditions.”
Emily Horwood from The Living Room, which provides free group therapy sessions supporting adults to break free from addiction and rebuild their lives, said: “There’s a fantastic atmosphere and there are some wonderful people here offering some brilliant services.”
And Jane Slatter from St Albans Soroptimists added: “We had a brilliant day at the Cathedral Community Showcase and met lots of interesting and interested people. We had some great conversations and took away lots of ideas for the St Albans Soroptimists to follow up on, including an interview on Mix FM 92.6 on December 3.”
All photos by Banita Lal.
