Dancing in the street is getting Wigan residents through

Residents on Porlock Close in Platt Bridge are emerging from their homes at a set time each day and showing off their moves - all while standing in their gardens to strictly observe the social distancing measures.

The idea was the brainchild of Kirsty Lewis, who saw a video on social media of another community coming together to dance.

She floated the idea of Porlock Close doing something similar to neighbours Sarah Taylor and Catherine Boulton and it quickly snowballed in popularity.

Now many residents on the road are joining in the daily dances and the organisers say the communal moment has helped forge a great local spirit in a tough time.

Kirsty, 32, said: “One by one the neighbours started coming out and now most of the street is involved every day.

“It gets us out for a bit. We never spoke to each other, we just got on with our days and maybe said hi as we were going out to work every morning. It has brought us together.

“It’s cheered everybody up a little bit. It’s something to look forward to every day, rather than just looking at the same four walls.”

Sarah said: “The first day Catherine, Kirsty and I thought there would only be the three of us, but we thought it would be a giggle for a few minutes to break up the boredom.

“About half a dozen houses joined in that day and we’ve kept it going. On the Saturday we decided to dance in the evening and a couple more people got involved.

“We’re all being careful to respect the two-metre distance so we’re dancing in our gardens.

“It’s brilliant because we’re all in the same boat. I walked up the street on Saturday to ask if people were enjoying it and they said it felt they had been out.

“We’re also getting to know our neighbours when we’ve never really spoken before. We’re now messaging each other. It’s quite nice.”

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