THANKS to the generosity of Belfast City Council’s Local Investment Fund and the Ardbarron Trust, a new day is dawning for Mornington Community Project.

Mornington have just opened their beautiful new venue at 117 Ormeau Road where they showcased some of their already successful projects and businesses which are to benefit from the refurbished premises.

Amongst these are the Nurturing Programme (funded by Comic Relief and Belfast City Council) offering courses and support for parents and families in the local area; Global Kitchen who aim to support refugees in their efforts to find employment; and Gluten-Free Patisserie, a new bakery producing quality bread for coeliacs.

With support from the South Belfast Social Enterprise Hub the state-of-the-art venue is now available for hire and includes conference space, small meeting rooms and rehearsal/dance/yoga space.

Mornington Chairman Gerry Tubritt said: “The investment by Belfast City Council represents an exciting new chapter in the life of Mornington Community Project and will enable us to reach out to more people living and working in the South Belfast area.”

The future of Mornington is looking bright and the vision of the Board is that this welcoming venue and safe space will become a nurturing and development centre for the community. The centre will offer courses and childcare for parents, situated alongside a vibrant hub for social enterprise and local business.

In essence this whole Project is about creating local employment opportunities, modelling self-sustainable community projects and developing a supportive, nurturing centre for the community.

If you want to get involved with Mornington or you’d simply like to find out more, contact Anne McKay on annemckay@rocketmail.com