CENTRESTAGE COMMUNITIES LTD

For more information on how you can become involved, please email

enquiries@centrestagecommunities.org.uk

CENTRESTAGE COMMUNITIES LTD,

A company registered in Scotland SC382945

A Scottish Charity - SC039611

Centrestage was opened in Kilmarnock, East Ayrshire, in 2006 without public or grant funding

and operates with the ethos that anyone, regardless of age, background or experience, can

gain life changing social benefits through participation in the arts.

Centrestage Communities delivers projects in community engagement through the arts with a

particular emphasis on leadership development in young people. Using music, dance and

drama as tools to foster confidence, teamwork, pride and aspiration in even the most hard to

reach groups of our community, Centrestage has come to provide a direct link between many

groups on the margins of society, helping individuals within these groups feel more connected

to the wider geographical, cultural and social community. Working with children, young

people, young offenders, prisoners, the elderly and adults and children with additional support

needs, Centrestage aims to help participants improve their own lives by providing the tools to

make this possible. All projects are focused on building a strong sense of community both within

our organisation and in the town itself.

Details of our current projects follow;

Connect in Northwest

Musical Generations demonstrates that we are never too young or too old to learn from each

other. Every Monday afternoon we welcome elderly members of our community, most of

whom are either living independently, within supported accommodation or in a care home

setting. During this time they enjoy an afternoon of music, movement, conversation and

refreshments all free of charge. We have witnessed memories being revisited through music

and friendships being rekindled as people from across Ayrshire come together for

companionship, entertainment and community in a new, energetic and positive setting.

Carers and family members are encouraged to come along and participate too. For many

elderly people, who perhaps have a decreased ability to communicate, music can play a key

therapeutic role and allow them to regain their connection with others.

Unite

Our Unite project is for children, young people and adults living with a wide range of additional

support needs and learning disabilities, and encompasses Reach Out, Rising Stars and Aspire.

It seeks to enable our groups to participate fully within our Community allowing new

opportunities in performing arts, reducing isolation and discrimination and promoting true

inclusion within the broader community. Reach Out is a drop in class tailored for adults with a

wide range of support needs. This informal, sociable and high energy class is full of music,

creative movement and laughter. Rising Stars is a song and dance class for children age 5-14

years who have additional support needs. A high ratio of staff to children allow the participants

to make incredible progress in a supportive and fun environment. Aspire 2 Dance, Aspire 2 Act

and Aspire 2 Perform are classes for children and adults with additional support needs who

through the dedicated support of their Team Leaders become incredibly confident participants

in regular performances allowing them to attain improved physical fitness alongside greater

skills of communication, team work, self control and motivation.

Evolve

Our Evolve project enables women with mental health issues, often

with low confidence and self esteem, to come together in a

supportive, positive group, developing their creative and personal

strengths, sharing and learning from their experiences whilst moving

forward together, supported within the Centrestage community.

Connect

Connect is delivered to children and young people who find difficulty engaging with the

mainstream school system and aims to give them the tools to shape their own destiny, teaching

them to take responsibility for their own actions and choices. We never assume that negative

destination is inevitable. Through allowing them to develop their own self-belief and instilling a

conviction that they can individually make a fundamental change to their lives regardless of

their background – we can create new opportunities, broaden their horizons and empower

children and young people from vulnerable situations to believe that through their own actions

and efforts they can make a positive contribution to their communities.

Catalyst

The Catalyst project launched in October 2013 and extends our Reconnect project work inside

Bowhouse which has been running since 2011. Catalyst provides employability and enterprise

training for short term male offenders on release, whilst allowing them to continue with the music,

art, writing and similar creative work we deliver to short and long term prisoners inside Bowhouse.

With Catalyst, we are building positive links with agencies and employers who will be able to

offer our men work placements and opportunities to help prevent them reoffending whilst

introducing them to activities that they have rarely if ever been allowed to benefit from.

Fuse & Ignite

Fuse and Ignite projects were launched in the Summer of

2012 and have allowed us to involve people within

Shortlees and the North West of Kilmarnock in community

choirs, music theatre, dance, drama, enterprise and

leadership activities in the knowledge that such activities

can be used as tools to help raise levels of health and

education, reduce crime, anti-social and violent

behaviour, and strengthen the community.

Fuse in the North West - The Unlikely Lads

Ignite in Shortlees

Ultimately, each project aims to build on the knowledge and skills of all participants whilst

developing their individual and collective strengths. We aim to positively impact on both

individual and social welfare, whilst improving community capacity and engagement. Every

donation, however small, will make a significant and meaningful difference to each project.

Thank you so much for your support.

Sing & Smile

Our Sing and Smile project enables children aged from birth to 8 years and their parents/carers

to come together for play, song, storytelling and support during mornings and weekends. The

overarching objective behind this early intervention is to improve the quality of life for children,

particularly those living within disadvantaged families and communities.

Spark

Spark is our community dance project led by “Fearless” our all-male street dance team. Spark

will be visiting schools and community hubs around East Ayrshire to deliver dance workshops

and telling their individually inspiring stories of how dance has transformed their lives, often in

challenging circumstances.

CENTRESTAGE COMMUNITIES LTD For more information on how you can become involved, please email

enquiries@centrestagecommunities.org.uk

CENTRESTAGE COMMUNITIES LTD,

A company registered in Scotland SC382945

A Scottish Charity - SC039611