Students from IT Sligo’s course in Interior Architecture and Design have presented design proposals for a new innovative community hub in Sligo.
Sligo Centre for Independent Living (SCIL), which is running the community inclusion project, invited the third-year students to pitch their designs for a welcoming space for the whole community.
The design proposals took place (yesterday) on Thursday, 1 February in front of the CEO and committee of SCIL at IT Sligo.
SCIL will use the students’ design ideas to create a free and welcoming space that’s fully accessible to everyone.
The new hub, which will be located on 45 High Street, will include games, activities, music, and community projects and is designed to foster and stimulate interactions between those who use the space.
As well as this, there will be office space for SCIL and Sligo Volunteer Centre, among other functions.
SCIL, which recently received funding for the project, plans to open the community hub by the summer.
Maria Mulligan, CEO of Sligo Centre for Independent Living said: “We want to create a space that allows every user to feel comfortable and like they belong.”
“Asking the BA in Interior Architecture and Design programme at IT Sligo to help us design such a space felt like a win-win for both of us. Sligo CIL have a chance to benefit from the students’ wealth of knowledge and expertise while the college has an opportunity to involve themselves in a live project which is community focused and offers some valuable learning opportunities”.
IT Sligo welcomes design projects that connects its students with the community, inspiring them to make a positive difference according to Rowan Watson, of the BA in Interior Architecture and Design.
L to r: Christy Gallagher, Wiktoria Zaluska (IT Sligo), Olivia Byrne from Sligo Volunteer Centre and Lara Curran from Sligo Centre for Independent Living
Commenting on SCIL inviting the programme students to design their visions for the community space, Ms Watson said: “This has been an invaluable design project for our students. It has encouraged them to factor wellness into design, to think about accessibility in design, how design can be used to bring people together, and to focus on what unifies us regardless of age, gender, personal circumstance or background.”
Maria Mulligan added: “It has proven to have been an inspired move. The students have come up with designs which are thoughtful, innovative, fresh and show a depth of understanding we were hugely impressed with. We are delighted with the results and we’ll be using them in our project”.
Media contact: For more information or to arrange interviews, please call Ciaran Byrne on 071 930 0942 or Rowan Watson on 086 818 9035