Centre West has a long history of helping local people make a difference to life in the West End of Newcastle. Our charitable company picked up the baton from Newcastle New Deal for Communities as a successful ten-year regeneration programme came to an end in 2010.

Just like Centre West, New Deal was led by local residents, making a difference by tackling six main themes:

2000

Prospect House NDC

Newcastle City council successfully applies for New Deal for Community, (NDC), funding. Which provides £55 million for a 10 year regeneration programme, in the West End of Newcastle.
NDC is a novel initiative in that it is governed primarily by local residents working with partners from the public, voluntary and private sectors and supported by a dedicated staff team.
To regenerate the West End it aims to narrow the gap with the city average in the following areas.
Crime and community Safety.
Housing and environment.
Employment and Enterprise.
Health and Well-being.
Education attainment.
Community Engagement and participation.

2005

NDC & Hat-Trick

New Deal for Communities Board approved a joint funded project with the English FA and UEFA to establish Hat-Trick – A football based initiative to provide opportunities for young people in disadvantaged communities.
Hat-Trick is one of over 19 projects approved over the lifetime of the programme.
Since its inception Hat-Trick has established a national reputation for excellence and won numerous awards. Over its lifetime to date it has worked with tens of thousands of children and young people in Newcastle upon Tyne. Most of its staff started as young participants and progressed as volunteers or apprentices, worked as casual coaches and are now full time staff. In a typical week Hat-Trick delivers between 60 – 70 football and multi-sports sessions in school and communities in the West, East and North of the city.

2010

The Beacon

Newcastle NDC is evaluated independently for government and via a Mori household survey of residents and is assessed as the only one of the 39 NDC’s which has achieved the 5 key objectives set for the programme in 2000.
Centre West a charitable company is established to carry on the regeneration work of NDC. Hat-Trick as part of Centre West expands activities across Newcastle.
The Beacon a £6.7 million Enterprise Center a joint initiative with Groundwork, opens in January 2011, to provide a high quality base for new business start ups and SME’s.
Elswick Pool is closed by the council in October 2015. Centre West works with a group local residents to take over the Pool with an aim to reopen it as a community business, investing its staff time and board expertise and contributing £70,000.

2020

C.H.E.F.F.

CHEFF, Cooking Healthy Eating Fitness and Fun, was approved by the Board in 2019 to provide nutritional advice and fun healthy eating classes for children and families. It was extended in 2021 to enable expansion and now employs two full time members of staff. The Beacon, CHEFF and Hat-Trick continued to provided services during the Covid 19 period.
CHEFF is on target to achieve break even in 2023/24 while Hat-Trick and the Beacon are trading and generating small surpluses.
Hat-Trick is also expanding and has since September 2021 started to operate in Gateshead.
Elswick Pool was reopened in September 2019 under community ownership and is now a thriving community business providing services to the local community including 17 local schools while achieving a small trading surplus a year ahead of forecast.