Events Experience Portfolio
By Marcel Vornicu
Showcasing our expertise in planning, organising, and delivering multiple community events including Friends Party and Friends Kids Festival in Barnsley, South Yorkshire.
At Academy of Friends CIC, we are proud to document our journey and learnings through a series of successful cultural and family-friendly events. This portfolio highlights our commitment to diversity, inclusion, and community engagement, detailing each event’s objectives, activities, and outcomes.
A vibrant series of cultural gatherings bringing together local communities in Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham, Sheffield and Leeds. Friends Party celebrates traditions, music, dance, and art with interactive workshops and live performances.
Friends Party - winter edition
Date: 28 December 2024
Location: Lockys Bar, Wombwell, Barnsley
The event marked our first significant attempt at independently managing a cultural celebration for the Romanian community in Barnsley. Organised in the middle of the holiday season, it aimed to bring together families and individuals in a relaxed and festive environment after Christmas, offering music, food, games, and traditional social moments. I was responsible for the full design, planning and execution of the event.
One of the first challenges was working around the availability of volunteers and collaborators during the holiday break. I had to motivate people remotely, using WhatsApp and phone calls to recruit helpers and performers. Due to budget constraints, I relied heavily on community goodwill, including a donated venue and support from local businesses that helped with equipment and refreshments.
I used the AIDA model and segmentation theory from class to shape the marketing strategy. The promotion was bilingual (Romanian/English), visual, and community-led, utilising Romanian Facebook groups and posters placed in local shops.
I created the poster myself in Canva and adjusted the content for emotional and cultural resonance. The materials were effective, attracting 250 people, many of them families with young children.
On the day, I acted as host, team leader and troubleshooter. We had no access to early setup, which caused delays and pressure before the event opened. Sound checks had to be rushed, and some decorations were improvised. Despite this, the event ran smoothly and participants offered positive feedback. This experience taught me the value of contingency planning, the importance of team briefings, and the need for better scheduling.
From a professional point of view, this event helped me develop confidence in public-facing leadership and decision-making. I worked under pressure, resolving problems in real-time, and ensured safety and inclusion for a diverse audience.
Friends Party - Martisor Edition
Date: 2 March 2025
Location: Lockys Bar, Wombell, Barnsley
To mark the Romanian spring tradition of Mărțișor, Friends Academy organised a multicultural, family-oriented community event that brought together over 290 participants at Lockys Bar in Barnsley. The event took place in early March and aimed to promote cultural heritage, strengthen identity among Romanian families in South Yorkshire, and offer a joyful, inclusive space for connection and celebration.
Mărțișor is a centuries-old Romanian tradition that symbolises the arrival of spring, renewal, and friendship. Red and white string-tied tokens (mărțișoare) are offered to loved ones as signs of appreciation and hope. In this spirit, the event featured a wide range of activities accessible to both children and adults, and open to the wider community.
As the lead organiser, I (on behalf of Friends Academy CIC) was responsible for the full coordination of the event — from booking and adapting the venue (Lockys Bar, approx. 300 capacity), to creating a full programme and promotional strategy.
Event highlights included:
Games and competitions for children, with prizes, medals, and personalised certificates to reward participation and creativity
Live music and dancing, including a variety of styles — Romanian traditional, pop, and children’s favourites — plus a performance by a talented female folk soloist who delighted the crowd
Dance floor fun for all ages, which stayed lively until the end
Homemade refreshments, such as zacusca sandwiches and Romanian sweets for the children — all served in a warm, communal atmosphere
Cultural visuals using Romanian colours, bilingual signage, and a welcoming tone that allowed second-generation children and guests from other backgrounds to feel included
In organising the event, we applied key tools such as stakeholder mapping, segmentation theory, and the AIDA model to shape our communication and promotion efforts. Valuable lessons learned from a previous winter event helped improve logistics, including better signposting, clearer volunteer briefings, and early preparation of printed materials.
From a capacity-building perspective, this event demonstrated our ability to deliver a meaningful cultural experience under real-world conditions — with all the pressures of risk management, accessibility constraints, and live coordination.
The event was organised in close collaboration with Barnsley Council, who supported the planning process and community engagement.
Above all, the Mărțișor event proved that there is strong demand for culturally rooted yet accessible events in our region, and it gave us momentum to plan for larger initiatives, including the Friends Kids’ Festival in June and other upcoming celebrations.
Friends Kids` Festival
Date: 1 June 2025
Location: Grange Lane, Barnsley
Friends Kids’ Festival was our most ambitious project to date and marked the culmination of everything learned through our previous events. Conceived as a full-day outdoor family festival, it aimed to offer children and parents a joyful, inclusive experience filled with music, games, cultural performances, and Eastern European pride.
The core objective was to bring together Romanian and Eastern European families from across South Yorkshire and beyond, in a safe, welcoming, and festive environment.
This event was delivered by Academy of Friends CIC in partnership with Barnsley Council, whose support played an essential role in enabling community access, local engagement, and logistical viability.
Planning and Challenges
Organising such a large-scale event required extensive coordination with local authorities:
Licensing departments, Safety Advisory Group (SAG), South Yorkshire Police, and medical providers
Preparation of a full documentation pack:
Event Management Plan, Site Plan, Risk Assessment, Transport and Crowd Management Plan, and financial forecasting
Many of these documents were delivered under significant pressure, with tight and overlapping deadlines.
Marketing efforts were significantly scaled up:
We ran targeted paid social media campaigns
Collaborated with Romanian influencers and artists
Distributed flyers in Romanian-owned shops and churches across Barnsley, Sheffield, and Doncaster
Initial ticket sales were slow, partly due to the geographic shift to the North of England, where the Romanian community is more dispersed. However, through persistent communication, strategic outreach, and trusted community partnerships, the event gained strong momentum.
Delivery and Experience
On the day of the festival, we welcomed approximately 3,000 participants.
The event featured:
A big stage with music and dance
Over 30 vendors (food, crafts, services)
Inflatable playgrounds and dedicated children’s areas
Live shows with Jean de Craiova, Dragoș Moștenescu, and Formația Nouă
Cultural performances, family games, and interactive workshops throughout the day
Our team included more than 40 volunteers, coordinated closely before and during the event.
I (Marc Vornicu) was on site from 5AM to 11PM, covering roles such as:
On-site coordination and problem solving
Artist liaison and logistics
Safety and emergency communication
Despite challenges, the event was vibrant, emotionally charged, and widely praised by attendees. It successfully strengthened cultural identity and laid the foundation for the long-term vision of building an inclusive and sustainable event platform under Academy of Friends CIC.
The collaboration with Barnsley Council helped reinforce public trust, ensured local visibility, and set a precedent for future partnerships in the region.
