Drop in to Belfast?

Tuesday 28 August 07

Could Belfast City centre use a drop-in centre?

In OCT’ 2006 the idea for a drop-in centre within Belfast around the Saint Anne’s Cathedral area was put to the City Council for funding, but the real question is would young people use it? Let me tell you a bit about it…

The centre is to include:

·       Accommodation and training rooms for various organisations such as include youth and contact youth etc. above the drop-in centre.

·       The drop-in centre itself will include a stage area for music and dramas, and could be rented out at a low cost rate to other groups.

·       A coffee bar to provide low cost nutritious meals.

·       An information point providing services such as careers and sexual health advisors.

·       Showers and laundry facilities.

·       Small meeting rooms rented out at a reasonable rate for youth groups, private and public organisations.

Depending on funding for staff, the centre was hoped to be open at regular times with the shops in the town, and late closing on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. However it was planned that when the building is shut, there will be a telephone line network where the organisations can be reached after hours. Eventually it is hoped that if there is enough funding to pay for staff, and the building could be open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week!

The project developers insist that the centre will have fully qualified youth workers employed to be in the centre at all times and the building will be based on a 15,000 sq ft area within the city centre… all this for £200,000!

So what do you as a young person feel? Is it a good use of money or a waste? Would you yourself as a young person in Northern Ireland use a centre?

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