Background / History
Ravenscliffe Community Association was established in 1983 and became a registered charity in 2003. It was formed to meet the needs of a vibrant community situated in an area of multiple deprivations. The founders of the organisation saw the need in the area and the benefits for the community of being able to come together to discuss issues, create lasting friendships and set up new and varied projects. This was done with the aim of improving the outcomes for individuals and their families to determine a better future for themselves. The ethos of RCA has remained the same after all these years, but the organisation has grown massively, moving from the basement of our local housing office to a state of the art, energy-efficient, purpose-designed community centre named “The Gateway” built 12 years ago in partnership with The Children’s Society.
The Gateway from Ronnie Hughes on Vimeo.
The Gateway is a Community and Children’s Centre in Ravenscliffe, Bradford, UK. And this is the story of how the local community created a beautiful place for them to begin regenerating their neighbourhood, out of conditions where a less determined and less well-led community might have simply given up.
We worked with the people of Ravenscliffe over a period of five years, on their vision for a building of their own and on how they would organise themselves to run it. And we saw them move from despair to elation and back again several times, before finally inviting us over to spend a week with them and make this film together in the Autumn of 2006.
A film by Sarah Horton and Ronnie Hughes, a sense of place.
More information at www.asenseofplace.com
We have grown from a volunteer-led concern to now employing 10 members of staff (mainly part-time) and vastly extending activities to reach more beneficiaries in need.
By the Community, For The Community
The centre aims at bringing long term change in the Ravenscliffe and Greengates community by assisting residents to tackle poverty and disadvantages. We provide services and activities which target the fundamental causes of poverty, social exclusion, unemployment – overcoming barriers to educational attainment, lifelong learning, employment and quality of life.