The Fund In Your Area

Greenhill YMCA, Co Down

The Greenhill YMCA National Residential Centre is situated in the foothills of the Mourne Mountains overlooking Newcastle, Co. Down. The centre opened in 1974 and although principally an outdoor education centre, since the mid-1990s Greenhill YMCA has developed and sustained community relations programmes and activities, as well as integrating community relations principles into all of its business activities.    

Greenhill YMCA also acts as host for one of the Fund’s KEY Programme camps. The vast majority of participants in this programme are young people drawn from youth organisations, primary and secondary schools, community groups, YMCA Associations and Church organisations from areas on both sides of the Border affected by the Troubles.

Since 1993, Greenhill YMCA has employed a dedicated Community Relations Worker to develop community relations dimensions to its outdoor education activities. In 2003, the Community Bridges Programme awarded grant aid of £172,850 / €252,361 to support community relations work within the local area and surrounding districts at Greenhill, and since then Greenhill YMCA has been engaged in a series of peace building projects with a range of youth and adult groups including local community workers, statutory bodies and civic leaders.

In 2006, Greenhill YMCA received £975,000 / €1,423,500 in funding under the Fund’s Legacy Project for the £1.95m / €2,847,000 m expansion of its current residential facilities and improvement in the size and quality of its training, social and support facilities.

The expansion plan will allow an increase in accommodation capacity from 80 currently to around 150, the development of high quality training facilities and a social area, and the provision of five new chalets to provide flexible accommodation for groups.

For further information on Greenhill YMCA visit www.greenhill-ymca.org