The Aims of our organisation and what we do

We are a registered charity, a community centre with facilities for community engagement, sport, youth clubs and nursery. We have provided services since 1985 following considerable efforts by residents of the area fundraising and raising support to build a facility for young people and unemployed adults. 

The Centre proved popular and in 2002 won support through the New deal for Communities enabling a major extension of the existing building to be built. The extension provided training rooms, fitness suite, dance studio, youth centre and space for a nursery and meeting, project work and offices.

The Centre has an annual footfall of about 75,000 within five main areas of work - activity/support for children and young people, two nurseries including our provision within the Kilmarnock Road Resource Centre, work to alleviate poverty, engaging residents to promote involvement in tackling local issues relating to housing, community safety, health, education and employment and contributing to decision-making processes and providing low-priced accessible facilities for sport and rooms for training and meetings. We also deliver training including first aid, health and safety at work courses, and we have an onsite community cafe.

Our Youth Club opens for sessions each week for age groups aged 5 -11 and 11 -19. We provide sport, games, crafts, opportunities for discussion, socialising, trips and support for homework, problems and concerns. The agenda is set by elected club members and most attendees are local.

We also run activity and provide meals for groups of children and young people throughout school holidays, and support, on a one-to-one basis, including alternative education, for young people referred to us by schools and social services. This service is valvuable to the chidren and young people involved, their families and the referring agency.

Our Low Cost Food Project enables people affected by poverty access to food, household goods free or low-cost - we distribute food parcels each week and other goods if we have stock.

Our Nursery work began in 2014 when we opened Little Treasurers Day Nursery within the Belle Vue Centre. We were invited to take over the management of Little Stars Nursery within the Kilmarnock Road Resource Centre soon afterwards and we now engage around 100 children each week. Both nurseries have been rated 'GOOD' in their latest OFSTED inspections. We employ 22 nursery practioners within a total workforce of about 50 full and part-time employees plus volunteers.