Mill Road Social Centre up and running

Excellent meeting of just over fifty in the new Mill Road Social Centre last night. Far less shambolic than I'd expected and the atmosphere was rather open and lovely. Plus there was only one dog which is always a bonus.

Over an hour and a half we discussed how to make the place more attractive and welcoming to the community, what to use it for (events already booked include a tango night TONIGHT lesson from 8-9 pm, women's only female roller derby for women, martial arts classes, poetry evenings, and an acoustic band night) all of which will no doubt help prepare people up for any argy bargy with the law and the approach revolution.

People seemed to be optimistic that the centre could be sustained at least until August, although we'll see what happens next. One amusing moment involved the author of a rather surly note that had been pushed through the door a few days ago.

The highlight of the note was "why don't you f*** off somewhere else, your graves hopefully, you c***s." What the note lacked in grammatical purity it more than made up for in, shall we say, clarity of purpose. Anyway, the guy who wrote the note turned up to the meeting and apologised to everyone and said that we were doing a grand job improving what had become a derelict site. That took some guts in my view

I think this shows the way forward. The more people get a chance to see the centre for themselves, rather than viewing it from afar, the more people will get won over by it. I'm currently considering what event to arrange as part of my contribution to making the site a happening, inclusive experience. Suggestions?

It's the twenty first century so, of course, there is a website. More importantly there is a calender which you can use to peruse the burgeoning community activities, or even book the space for your own events.