New Community Centre Opens In West Belfast

A new £30,000 Community Hub has opened in west Belfast.

The Colin Community Outreach Hub will be used as a temporary information point for the Colin Town Centre and Early Intervention teams to keep the local community updated about the future regeneration of the area, while the Colin Early Parenting team will also use the facility as its base.

Opening the centre, Social Development Minister, Mervyn Storey, said: "Today marks an important milestone in the future development of Colin Town Centre. Together with the Colin Neighbourhood Partnership we have refurbished what was a vacant shop unit into an inspirational space where people can feel comfortable and relaxed to meet and discuss the future regeneration of the area.

"The Colin Town Centre proposals, of which this Community Outreach Hub is a part, will put the heart back into this community, making it a focal point for education, health, retail, leisure, cultural and social services facilities; not only for those who use it and their children but also for generations to come. I look forward to seeing the proposed new developments take shape over the course of the coming years."

He added: "The Outreach Hub will also raise awareness of the services of the Colin Early Intervention Programmes and particularly the Colin Early Parenting team who will use this unit as their base to deliver much needed services directly to the heart of this community, and I am delighted to see this important community asset come to fruition today."

(JP/CD)