The Skainos Project

One of the issues which has come to light in planning for the Skainos Project has been the existence of an old graveyard on the site, which was covered over some time in the 1950s we think.  In preparation for construction we are researching the graveyard, its location, the identity of those interred and what must be done if we uncover remains during construction.

What we have discovered about the cemetery to date indicates that there is considerable social history tied up into it which we hope to honour in the construction of Skainos, and about which we will blog in the coming weeks.

We have reconstructed some of the timeline thus far:

1826               Opening of the Methodist Church and graveyard
1891                Already the graveyard is in considerable state of disrepair, prompting letters to be written to                         editors
1918               Application to Belfast Corporation for the closure of the site
1941               Surrounding area, including Church and graveyard destroyed during the Belfast blitz
1950s?           Cemetery  covered, perhaps during the construction of the new Church building
2008              The existence of a cemetery comes to light again.

EBM, one of the founding partners of Skainos, have opened their fifth Re:Store outlet in Larne. The stores are part of EBM’s social economy project which is key to the Mission’s sustainability strategy but also diverts goods from the waste stream and recycles them back into productive use.

The Larne store is the newest addition to a portfolio that includes two stores on the Newtownards Road, one in North Street, Belfast and one in Antrim.

Below is a photo of the official opening: from the left, Anne Walsh (EBM Director of Business Development), Gary Mason, Mission Superintendent, Mark Houston, Mission Director and Dave ‘Boy’ McAuley, from Larne, former IBF World Flyweight champion, who did the honours.

Here is the store in the moments after opening. Congratulations to the whole team on the new venture.

In recent weeks the Skainos Project has attracted interest from students in disciplines as diverse as politics, community development and theology and from places as far apart as Sweden, the Netherlands and Belfast itself.

On Monday 28 April Par Gunnarson brought 16 students and faculty from the Folk High School in Helsingborg to hear about the project and the work of EBM in East Belfast. The Folk High School movement in Sweden is a holistic approach to the education of adults that includes creative curricula and integrated approaches to architecture that has much to teach us as we move towards Skainos.

Later that week, on Thursday 1 May, Elias Bom brought 44 students and faculty from the Utrecht School of Governance at Utrecht University. They were particularly interested in non-government interventions in the community regeneration and renewal.

The latest group of students to visit the project were theology students from Union Theological College in Belfast who are studying community engagement with Prof Drew Gibson. They visited EBM/Skainos on Thursday 8 May.

We are glad to be able to facilitate such study visits because they afford opportunities to test our vision and methodologies against different disciplines, approaches and cultures.

Just days after Minister Margaret Ritchie’s site visit to Skainos, her Department announced £5.4m funding for the Skainos Project.

Mrs Ritchie said:

“The Skainos Project provides a significant opportunity to reinvigorate and revive this area and to alleviate the high levels of dereliction along what was, historically, one of Belfast’s main shopping thoroughfares”

The funding secured under the DSD’s Neighbourhood Renewal Strategy will be subject to Skainos Ltd securing the full remaining funding for the development and firm commitments to occupy the proposed development from the main client partners, EBM, Belfast Metropolitan College and Age Concern NI.

Glenn Jordan, the Director of the Skainos Unit said,

“The Skainos Project represents a real tangible benefit of the peace process to this inner city area. It means community transformation and renewal for both the Protestant and Catholic communities here, but also for the new communities who have come to East Belfast. It is also part of East Belfast Mission’s long term commitment to the area.”

The Fire and Rescue Service were called on Sunday 20 April to a blaze at Hosford House, East Belfast Mission’s hostel for people who are homeless. The building sustained extensive smoke and water damage, but the fire officers did manage to stop the fire spreading.

Dave Newman, the Director of Hosford House said

“Hosford regularly houses 22 people who are experiencing homelessness and for a period of time Hosford is their home. This appears to be a tragic incident that thankfully did not result in the loss of life.”

The extent of the damage to Hosford House is being assessed by insurers and it is expected the facility will reopen as soon as repairs are made.

A brand new Hosford House with additional space is a central feature of the Skainos development. It is expected that the existing Hosford House will remain fully operational until the new facility is ready to take residents.

photographs by Guy Poland of Guy Poland Photography

Glenn Jordan presents members of the Skainos Board, partners and design team to the Queen.

The conversation is lively while Shaun Woodward, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland is briefed on scheme design.

Prince Philip engages the team in more ‘lively’ conversation

It’s been a busy time in the Skainos office in recent weeks.

Team members were delighted to welcome the Minister of the Department of Social Development, Margaret Ritchie on a site visit on Wednesday 26 March. The Minister viewed the plans for the site and had photographs taken on the street outside the East Belfast Mission.

This is a photo taken at the very first Skainos Board meeting in 2005.

Membership of the Skainos Board is drawn from the main partners in the project, East Belfast Mission and Oaklee Housing, as well as members of the local community in East Belfast and the trustees of the Methodist Church in Ireland.

check out this, and click the ‘watch’ feature for some video.

Photos will follow, but it is worth noting that this morning East Belfast Mission welcomed Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II and His Royal Highness Prince Philip to East Belfast. They spent an hour at EBM, visiting the parent & toddlers group and some of our regular clients in the Cafe. The royal visitors then entered the McIlwrath Hall where they met over 100 local people, community workers, and other guests.

The Skainos Project had pride of place at the centre of events and both principals paused to speak to staff, board and architects of the scheme. Reports indicate that they also encouraged funders who were there to offer full support to the project.

One senior government official indicated to staff that if this visit doesn’t unlock the funding required that he should be contacted immediately.

Glenn Jordan has his phone number.