Funded by The Ark Trust [which was established in 2000 to provide the financial and support base from which to carry out special in-situ programmes beyond The Ark’s custom-built centre in Temple Bar], ArkLink sought to establish links with children living in disadvantaged communities and to bring The Ark and the arts into these communities in a meaningful way. The Trust raised significant funds from individuals, corporations, foundations and the public sector with which to finance this work.
The key aim of ArkLink was to work for and with children experiencing social exclusion, so as to enrich their lives and the lives of their communities. ArkLink was premised on the conviction that well-designed community arts practice can contribute distinctively and significantly to the personal and social development of children living in areas of social and economic disadvantage.
ArkLink worked in the community of Fatima Mansions, Dublin, a community that has historically experienced multiple disadvantage, in partnership with Fatima Groups United, to prioritise and deliver on the creative needs of children living in this community. It was committed to ensuring that they were placed firmly at the centre of this project, identifying their own needs and having a creative voice in their environment as it underwent a period of demolition and regeneration.Following the successful pilot phase, The Ark worked together with Fatima Groups United and The Fatima Regeneration Board to sustain ArkLink until it was transferred into community ownership in 2006.
Arklink evaluation by Alan Tweedie
Read more about the award winning documentary On the Block, made by the members of Arklink Fatima Mansions Film Club’.
