The ‘Village Square’

AN Edinburgh church has launched a new open access community space in the city centre.

The ‘Village Square’ has been set up in the Greyfriars Charteris Centre, in the Pleasance. It is a place for people to ‘escape, rest, study, work, chat, meet, give, receive, learn and gain support as required’.

Open on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 10am to 3pm, the space is free to use. It has drinks available on a selfserve, donation basis, and will also be able to be used as an exhibition and performance space which will help attract more people and assist with future sustainability. It has a mixture of table/chair and comfortable seating arrangements.

Initially it will operate with volunteer-led provision, with a strong link to the University especially through the Edinburgh Universities Student Association (EUSA), and with assistance from the Campus Ministry team.

Because of the connections within the Charteris Centre, The Village Square will be able to signpost people to a range of support, plus representatives will be available from Greyfriars Kirk, Grassmarket Community Project, Campus Ministry, CoCo: Counselling in Communities, Edinburgh Street Pastors, Amina: Muslim Women’s Resource Centre, Edinburgh Social Enterprise, CrossReach: Heart for Art, Workplace Chaplaincy, University of Edinburgh, NHS Occupational Therapy, LOOPS (Local Opportunities for Older People) and other groups as they are in the premises.

As well as being a free, open access space, groups can also secure space for their discussions/meetings for a nominal fee, rather than pay for sole use of one of the larger halls in the Centre.

A Charteris Centre statement said: “The ‘Village Square’ is not a quiet space, but it is a peaceful place. By encouraging people to come together in one space from diff erent walks of life, we can offer a place of sanctuary from the busyness of life.

“In addition to creating this new activity, we will continue to develop activities and curated services to be delivered from the Charteris Centre that focus on areas of Wellbeing and Enterprise. This new space will act as a catalyst for development of many of these activities and enable better cross referral between current User Groups.”

The Charteris Centre, launched in 2016, is a mission outreach of Greyfriars Kirk. It was set up in the Kirk O’Field Centre, comprising the former Kirk O’Field Parish Church (which united with Greyfriars in 2013) and St Ninian’s Centre.

The centre is named after the Very Rev Archibald Charteris, founder of Life and Work, the Church of Scotland Guild, and the Church of Scotland Diaconate; and Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1892. This recognises the original name of Kirk O’Field Church – the Charteris Memorial Church – and the St Ninian’s Centre’s history as home to the Society of Deaconesses for the Church of Scotland.

Greyfriars Kirk is also a partner in the Grassmarket Community Project, founded with Grassmarket Mission in 1982 and now an award-winning social enterprise working with people who are homeless, experiencing mental or physical health problems or learning support needs.

This article appears in the May 2018 Issue of Life and Work

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