Croydon Makespace
Community Interest Company
Croydon Makespace is a community led initiative delivering creative enterprise and wellbeing activities for residents across Croydon. We are starting small, focusing on connection, and building together.
"Getting the foundations right matters more than doing everything at once."
We believe structured creative activities improve mental wellbeing, reduce isolation, and build confidence. For this pilot, creative activity is not the final destination. It is the vehicle that brings people in, creates belonging, and becomes the foundation for enterprise and genuine independence.
Our fortnightly drop ins focus on making as therapeutic self care. We create a safe, warm space where you can slow down, focus on a craft, and let go of daily stresses.
We actively reach out to isolated residents, women from South Asian, African, and Caribbean backgrounds, and unemployed adults. Everyone is welcome exactly as they are.
When you are ready, we offer light touch guidance on pricing, online selling, and local markets to help you explore turning your craft into an income stream.
In our workshops, we focus on tactile crafts like sewing, embroidery, and jewellery making. Engaging your hands in repetitive, creative tasks has been shown to lower heart rates, reduce anxiety, and foster a meditative state of flow.
We provide all materials free of charge, removing any economic barriers to creative expression and community connection.
We have designed a gentle, structured pathway from your first creative drop in session to showcase events and potential enterprise.
Relaxed social sessions focused on making as a route to wellbeing. Explore sewing, jewellery, printing, drawing, and collage. No experience needed, and free refreshments are always provided.
A supportive social space for women who enjoy making and crafts. Connect with others, share skills, build confidence, and explore if your talents could lead to something more.
A light touch four session introduction to exploring creative self employment. We cover knowing your craft, options, money, pricing, and next steps in a friendly, conversational format.
Celebrate participant creativity and try out selling your work. We provide free stall space for pilot participants, community artwork displays, and informal networking events.
Our Creative Circles offer a welcoming space for women to connect, share their home crafts, and support each other. We focus particularly on reaching South Asian, African, and Caribbean women, as well as newcomers to the UK who may be seeking friendship and a creative outlet.
Sessions are friendly, social, and guided by what the participants want to talk about, from sharing skills to learning about local enterprise opportunities.
We do not have our own premises, which keeps our costs low and lets us focus on people. Instead, we run pop up sessions in accessible, comfortable community venues across Croydon.
Branch libraries at Thornton Heath, South Norwood, and Broad Green. Free or low cost hire, natural footfall, and fully accessible.
Croydon Voluntary Action hub and other local community centers with existing trusted community infrastructure.
Welcoming halls within walking distance of our target communities, offering flexible spaces for our creative drop ins.
Pop up community market elements in public squares, parks, and partner spaces when the weather permits.
We are always looking for warm, welcoming, and accessible spaces in Croydon to host our pop up creative wellbeing and enterprise sessions.
We have set realistic, conservative targets for our 24 month pilot to ensure we can measure our impact and build a sustainable future model.
We aim to engage at least 80 unique residents in Thornton Heath, Broad Green, South Norwood, and New Addington, tracking attendance through friendly registration logs.
Using a simple, validated three question wellbeing tool, we will measure improvements in mental health and stress levels for participants attending four or more sessions.
We will support participants to assess their own confidence before and after our creative enterprise taster sessions, helping them feel ready for next steps.
Whether you want to learn a new craft, meet friendly neighbours, or explore turning your making skills into a small business, we have a space for you.