OUR VISION

“MAP Charity makes a massive difference to the lives of many young people growing up in Leeds. Over the last decade they’ve been at the heart of a growing community in Mabgate, and have created opportunities for young people to gain new skills in creative industries, funded sustainably through the development of a wonderful creative space. Their model is an inspiring example of the power of culture and enterprise to fuel a neighbourhood and city’s growth, and we look forward to working with MAP as they continue this journey”.

Ed Whiting OBE, CEO of Leeds City Council.

THE HOPE FOUNDRY PROJECT

Hope Foundry is MAP Charity’s current home since 2007. In October 2019, we purchased the building following a two-year-long campaign.

Today, we have a bold new vision. We want to transform Hope Foundry into a space where everyone can access the creative arts – opening new facilities that will benefit the entire community. This will allow for MAP Charity’s impact to be amplified: reaching new and wider audiences, beyond its core alternative education provision, while positively contributing to the local economy.

Built in 1831, Hope Foundry is a stunning Grade II-listed building with a longstanding history of making, creating and inventing as part of Leeds’ proud industrial heritage. With the support of the public, we will continue that legacy: building a kitchen, café, roof-garden, studios, co-working, event, gallery and retail spaces whilst expanding the charity’s central provision for young people.

Our plan is to create a single site with multiple uses that directly feeds back into the common goal of advancement of future generations – particularly for those with less opportunities to pursue creative paths.

Hope Foundry: a creative ecosystem

Click on one of the icons below to reveal more about our plans for the building

MAP Charity offers a unique environment within the creative arts for the education of young people who have difficulty accessing mainstream schools. A space for practical talents to be honed, up to BTEC level, alongside functional skills.

The young people studying at MAP Charity will not only benefit from our specialised educational framework, but also be inspired by the invaluable guidance of our creative partners.
MAP Charity aims to deliver a practical and wide-ranging apprenticeship scheme for young people. This specialised programme will draw directly from the knowledge and trade experience of our creative partners and, in turn, our apprentices will have the unique opportunity to share their newly acquired skills with younger generations.

The benefits of our creative partnerships, artistic and education schemes will also be available to the wider community, in particular those studying at higher, university or adult education levels.
MAP Charity aims to transform Hope Foundry into a creative ecosystem, a hive of studios and workshops inhabited by independent businesses, artists and practitioners who feed directly into the educational ethos of the charity, strengthening it with their skills and experience. Our creative partners will also benefit from working together in the same building, creating opportunities for themselves within their respective fields, and for others.
MAP Charity aims to dramatically expand use of its gallery and event spaces, maximising their integral position within the charity. Their growth will enrich the community, providing beautiful spaces for exhibitions, workshops, screenings and music events open to all. These facilities will also be a vital addition to our education and professional development programmes, giving participants a place to exhibit their work alongside our in-house, or visiting, professional artists.
MAP Charity aims to dramatically expand use of its gallery and event spaces, maximising their integral position within the charity. Their growth will enrich the community, providing beautiful spaces for exhibitions, workshops, screenings and music events open to all. These facilities will also be a vital addition to our education and professional development programmes, giving participants a place to exhibit their work alongside our in-house, or visiting, professional artists.
MAP Charity plans to develop Hope Foundry’s garden, utilising previously defunct areas of the building to produce healthy, organic food. Through methods such as a seedling banks, bioponics and aquaponics we aim to improve students’ diets, teach them about horticulture onsite.
MAP Chairy plans to build a new kitchen which would be a facility for students to prepare their own healthy lunches, using fresh produce from our gardens.

Both the garden and kitchen, whilst helping sustain the building through some commercial activity, will be vital educational assets for MAP Charity and the local community.
MAP Charity plans to establish new retail activities within Hope Foundry as a social space for audiences and users. We will achieve this through creating cafe and shop spaces. These will serve as a practical outlet for our produce and creative production, and as an opportunity for young people to gain real life commercial experience.

Both ventures will generate income for the charity and, as they are open to the public, greatly enrich the community. Our shop will include a prominent sales space for students’ artwork and music – alongside established artists’ – giving them an opportunity to sample, and benefit from, the buyers’ market.
Hope Foundry is a Grade II listed building and was once a home for a range of multi-disciplinary craftspeople. A reminder of Leeds’ proud industrial heritage, the Mabgate area has a further 7 listed structures within a 500m radius of MAP Charity. But the landscape of the area is rapidly changing: next door to Hope Foundry, a £14.5m redevelopment project for the construction of new luxury apartment blocks is taking place.

MAP Charity plans to return Hope Foundry to a space of making and creating, restoring it into a permanent asset for the vibrant cultural scene in the area. A piece of history brought back to life for the benefit of all ages of the local community, and enriched for future generations.
MAP Charity plans to both practice sustainability and educate the community about its importance.

We aim to power Hope Foundry with clean sustainable energy, and teach others how they can do the same. We aim to feed students, staff and visitors with food grown on the premises and, again, teach people techniques to feeding themselves. We aim to offer courses in sustainability and create the possibility for research projects being held within Hope Foundry. MAP Charity, through its endeavours, aims to sustain the community.
MAP Charity will make Hope Foundry more accessible to the people using it and the surrounding community.

This includes improving the building’s infrastructure with newly accessible entrances, a lift and disabled parking facilities. We also aim to improve the accessibility for those from further afield, making sure people, and organisations, are aware of where we are and what we do.
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