CentreStage said they were “proud” to host First Minister John Swinney on his visit to Kilmarnock yesterday.
Established in 2006, the charity was keen to highlight the “significant role” their social enterprise model plays in bringing people together and addressing key social challenges.
The place-based collaborative approach CentreStage uses has been developed, tested and refined over the last 18 years and the visit also focused on the ability to enable individuals to quickly access the services they need across a single site, whilst building community cohesion and easing pressure on public sector resources.
CentreStage see their role as a “connector” to enable participants to find and access the support they need, when they need it.
The First Minister had the opportunity to hear stories directly from CentreStage’s Neighbourhood partners and participants whose lives have been positively transformed.
During the visit, they aimed to “highlight our core belief in the power of community to drive positive change”.
Fiona McKenzie, founder and chief of engagement at CentreStage, said: “It’s an honour to have the First Minister visit us today.
“Bringing the CentreStage Village to life has been a challenging journey only made possible through working with others, including Scottish Government, East Ayrshire Council and The Hunter Foundation, who believed in our vision of creating a new way of providing services to people, where and when they needed it, all wrapped around a creative community with the arts at the heart.
“This beautiful, regenerated building makes it possible for so many people to find their place and purpose, regardless of age or circumstance.”
Swinney’s visit is seen as “an important step in continuing conversations” by CentreStage and about what more can be done collaboratively to “reimagine how and where public services are delivered in future”.
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