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The Imaginarium Centre in Newry will be forced to close at the end of this month if funding isn't forthcoming.
It is a fiercely popular facility for children and their parents/ guardians from Newry and much further afield, but despite that, Sticky Fingers Arts who run the facility will be forced to close the doors on the Edward Street premises if funding can't be found. Without that base it's entirely possible the award-winning Sticky Fingers Arts organization would base themselves south of the border with the incredible creative organization lost to Newry forever.
MEP's and Ministers from Westminster have all came and went and they have all said the same "This is amazing - this is the model to follow" but talk is cheap.
The Imaginarium is Ireland's premiere children’s creative Centre, operating at full capacity every day and used by practically every group in Newry, but it's existing now on volunteers and earned income that they had built as reserves that is going to run out at the end of this month. Grainne Powell, CEO, Sticky Fingers Arts said, "We're in a ridiculous situation that it's winning awards left, right and centre, it's been highlighted as a success story, it's the model that the government is telling other groups to follow and yet we can't get any basic support from the local Council or the Department for Communities."
The place is busy every day, attracting people from all over the country, operating at full capacity since mid-June with people coming from Dublin, Coleraine, Derry, Magherafelt. Families from Enniskillen and Omagh and busloads of children coming from schools and summer schemes bused into Newry to come to programmes, all wanting to come back after seeing what an amazing resource it is. It is particularly popular with children with autism and additional needs.
No public funding
It is the only community Children's Centre in the whole of Northern Ireland that receives no public funding. Grainne said "We provide programmes that are the statutory responsibility of the Council and the Department for Communities but neither of them are providing any funding to support this essential work, and neither of them provide those programmes in any other venue. If we do close in Newry, there's going to be a huge gap because there's nowhere else for local people to go. So, if the Imaginarium closes, the Town Hall's closing, the Sean Hollywood Art Centre's already closed. There'll be no access for children and young people to have the opportunity to experience the arts, despite how important this is to their health, well-being, education, and the wider community.
No access to the Arts for the citizens of Newry despite the government and councils’ obligation. Yet again Newry will miss out.
The Imaginarium Centre opened in 2018 and up until this year the Sticky Fingers Arts organization has taken all responsibility for running the Centre, using their own staff to carry out the roles that are relevant to a busy arts venue. Sticky Fingers Arts has outlined that due to several funding cuts to their own programs has resulted in the future direction of organisation moving towards the south of Ireland, which will result in the building closing. “We simply don't have the staff or the resources to run the building.”
“We have been in constant discussion with local politicians and councilors since April and have raised the issue and the negative impact locally if the Imaginarium is closed, but no solution has been found.”
"Basically, the timeline that we set was that at the end of August, the building will have to close, regardless of the fact that it's obviously being so well used and is full, but it can’t continue without staff, and it needs basic core funding to operate as an arts venue or as a community facility." said Grainne Powell
Grainne explained her frustrations "We've had meetings with politicians back in April and May, and we're still waiting for a resolution. We advised the timescale was the end of August and we'd have to close. We haven't heard back yet, and time is running out.
“Although this is a new issue resulting from several budget cuts, we have previously highlighted the lack of support as an ongoing problem which has restricted the programs we can provide. It is not possible to operate a busy venue without basic core funds. At a time when we need more programs, we are forced to do less.”
Grannie continued " we're getting phone calls and emails every day from groups in Newry asking can they book in, can they rent space all directed to the Imaginarium by the Council, however there needs to be staff here to take those bookings and manage the building.
It's Obvious
Anthony Fitzpatrick from Newpoint is angry at the potential loss of the facility. Anthony said "The Town Hall's closed the Art Centre's closed, what else have we? These young people coming from Newpoint and all these mothers and babies coming in, which is giving them something more to do during the day, than sitting in the house twiddling their thumbs going mad. The kids are in here with Newpoint instead of being on the streets. What are we supposed to do in Newry. Newry needs places like this. It doesn't make sense that we even have to say it because it's obvious that we can't do without places like this. At the minute this is all we have from an artistic point of view."
Plans
Sticky Fingers has been successfully operating since 2002, bringing many magical events to Newry from the famous Haunted Markets, the Dragons, Giants Lair to hosting the International Children’s festival, all successful projects, attracting visitors to Newry and providing local families with quality projects and events.
Every couple of years, they are forced to adapt to new funding cuts, but they just diversify, create new ways of working and move on. There's no shortage of opportunities for what they're doing in the south and elsewhere in the north. they are in huge demand for their award-winning projects and parks.
Sticky Fingers Arts currently rent the building that has become the Imaginarium Centre and were in the process of buying it to create a Community Trust, to make sure it would always belong to the community and provide support to the community.
Grainne Powell was also in the process of setting up another organisation upstairs that would develop creative industries for emerging new technologies. A huge area of growth for Northern Ireland and a first again for Newry. This could all be lost and yet again Newry will miss out.
The creative industries are the only growth sector within Northern Ireland and while the rest of the country is investing in arts and creative development, Newry Council is closing the door, it is very frustrating as the role of the arts and creativity in building stronger community is well documented. Ensuring our children can learn and thrive is essential yet here we are having to fight for a very basic right. Our children are yet again treated as second class citizens and yet again at a disadvantage. 25 years after the Good Friday agreement and it has never been so bad.
Grainne continued "Newry currently has youth suicide figures sitting at 15% higher than Belfast yet we've a much smaller population, and it's all down to how we respond to the needs of children and young people and what support we provide for them. It seems to be impossible to get this message across.
"There's so many issues in Newry at the moment. As a community. we're quite broken. Working with the local schools and local families we recognize the need to be providing more programs on the ground, but the resources aren't there." she added. It’s heartbreaking.
Safe Warm Space
Caring Coins are just two months in the building and with around 60 people a day in their Cafe the thought of the facility closing is daunting. They have even been asked to set up a Covid support group. Co-Founder Kerrie Havern said "This building is providing so many more services on an intimate and personal level that would never have been achieved in somewhere like the Arts Centre because it's such a personal place.
"It's a safe warm space, people are coming in in the morning and they're there all day.
" Families are coming through the cafe, the people who need the wee bit of help, so a lot of the time we would offer it rather than them ask for it and there's no stigma then. We make sure that every child regardless of their situation can have access to the programs offered at the imaginarium and this is possible through the different groups all working together, sharing what limited resources we do have to help local families.
Kerrie added "They're coming into us, and they know us because we have been at their doors, and they feel like they've got somewhere to go." This Centre has become a lifeline for many families over the summer, and despite Caring Coins only been in the building a few months we already have established relationships and programs in place that we need to deliver now”
£200,000 per year
It would take around an investment of £200,000 a year to run the Imaginarium Centre, to properly staff it. In comparison the Sean Hollywood Arts Centre ran annually at a cost of just over £2.5m a year.
Grainne concluded "For £200k we would have a full programme with events happening for adults, children and young people every single week spanning the arts, metal health, well-being, and community support. That would be the difference between a community thriving or dying. The groups within the Imaginarium are working at grassroots level, providing activities that are needed in these communities, not what's relevant in Belfast or Derry or Magherafelt but what we need in Newry. We are working together to create real and sustainable change, but we need some level of support.
