A community group in Whitlawburn is thriving 30 years after it became one of the first in Scotland to receive funding from the National Lottery.
Formerly known as The Bonus Ball Centre, Whitlawburn Resource Centre started off life in 1995 when local people got together to create much-needed change in their own community.
The same year they received £804,437 in funding to convert a disused school in Belmont Road into a space for the community.
At that time leading the group was Philip Welsh MBE, but the baton has since passed on to his son Phil.
Philip was the community resource centre’s first chairman and he remained a committee member until he died in 2013. Inspired by his dad’s legacy, Phil, 56, has taken on the mantle, volunteering and fundraising to keep the centre running.
“Back in 1995 Whitlawburn seemed very grey and drab,” Phil recalls. “There were lots of repairs that needed doing to the houses as well as problems with vandalism and kids fighting.
“Someone set up a residents’ meeting to see what could be done. My dad actually only went to the meeting because he was forced into it by my mother, but next thing we knew he was giving it laldie as they say!
“With the community behind him, he became chair, and the story of Whitlawburn Resource Centre began.”
The centre opened up a whole new world of opportunity to the people living in Whitlawburn.
Phil continued: “We had gala days, bingo nights and master chef competitions, and there was a brand new youth club so the young people had a place to go. It was the biggest and best thing that the community had ever seen.
“As a young man of 26 I wasn’t much interested in the centre at the time, but I enjoyed seeing my father dressed up as a clown at gala days, or in the stocks getting pelted with wet sponges.
“He was always the first to volunteer for things like that.
“It was a few years after my father passed away when I was sorting through some of his things, that I came across something he’d written about west Whitlawburn.
“Whether it was a sign or not I don’t know, but as I read I felt the passion in his words when he was writing about the way the community has changed because of the resource centre. I immediately felt inspired to get involved.”
Phil now organises fundraising events to keep the centre going.
He explained: “I take after my father in that I’ll do any stupid thing to raise money for the community. He used to play Santa at our Christmas celebrations, handing out gifts to the kids, and now that’s my role.
“This centre has supported my family so much over the years, and I’m grateful for the chance to give back that support now.”
Almost 30 years on the latest award of £143,168 from The National Lottery Community Fund means that Phil and his team can continue to run activities as well as start new initiatives including a community fridge, digital access support, and family assistance programs such as school uniform recycling, to help those facing financial hardship.
“Whitlawburn without the community centre just wouldn’t be the same,” Phil admits. “We won the jackpot big time when we got the funding for the building and it’s paid back in buckets.
“Living in a tower block can be very isolating, but at the resource centre people can sit down for a coffee, and enjoy a wee chat with their neighbours. For some people it’s the highlight of their week.
“If my father was alive now I don’t think he’d expect it to have been going for this long. He’d be so proud to see how much the centre has grown in the last 30 years and how it’s still a vital part of the community”.
Chair of The National Lottery Community Fund Kate Still said; “As we celebrate The National Lottery’s 30th anniversary, it’s heartening to see projects like Whitlawburn Community Resource Centre still thriving.
“The centre exemplifies the lasting impact of community-led initiatives. Thanks to the dedication of Phil and his late father, this centre has remained a cornerstone for the people of Whitlawburn.
“We’re proud to support its ongoing work, which brings people together and provides vital resources, helping the community flourish for generations to come.”
For more information on the National Lottery Community Fund visit: www.TNLCommunityFund.org.uk
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