Help to save Bridgefield Mills Community Hub

Aim

Bridgefield Mills Community Hub in Elland, Yorkshire, is going to be sold. Help us buy our building and keep it in community hands for good

Save Bridgefield Mills. Protect a place that changes lives.

For more than a decade, Project Colt has been helping people across Calderdale rebuild their lives from Bridgefield Mills in Elland.

Now we're facing our biggest challenge yet.

The owners of Bridgefield Mills are selling the building. If we can't buy it, it could be sold to a private developer, putting everything we've built at risk.

With your support, we can keep Bridgefield Mills in community ownership and ensure it continues changing lives for generations to come.

More than a building

Bridgefield Mills has stood at the heart of Elland since the 19th century, when it was built as a textile mill.

Today, it's home to something just as important.

Every year around 50,000 people walk through these doors seeking support, opportunity, connection and hope.

Project Colt provides practical, therapeutic and community support for people experiencing addiction, poor mental health, unemployment, isolation and financial hardship. We help people regain confidence, develop new skills and take positive steps towards healthier, happier and more independent lives.

Alongside Project Colt, another 23 community organisations also call Bridgefield Mills home, creating a thriving community hub where people can access:

• Addiction recovery support
• Counselling and talking therapies
• Employment and training programmes
• Community café
• Community garden
• Creative workshops and artists' studios
• Peer support groups
• Choirs and wellbeing activities
• Barista training
• Bike riding clubs and shop
• And much more.

This isn't simply somewhere people visit. For many, it's the place that helped them rebuild their life.

Why we need your help

Buying Bridgefield Mills will cost £315,000 in total. We can't do this alone, and we're funding it through a combination of sources: a loan, a grant from the Tabhair Charitable Trust, and £30,000 from our own funds. The final £15,000 we're trying to raise through this Crowdfunder which will ensure we can buy the mill.

What your support protects

Steven spent 15 years trapped in addiction.

During that time, he experienced homelessness, served multiple custodial sentences and had no qualifications or employment history. When he came to Project Colt, everything changed.

Through our employment programme he gained practical qualifications, rebuilt his confidence and began believing in himself again.

Today, Steven volunteers as a barista at Project Colt three days a week and is studying to become a recovery worker so he can help others overcome the challenges he once faced.

His story isn't unique, and last year alone:

• 298 people benefited from our programmes.
• 244 workshops were delivered.
• 26 people progressed into employment or education.
• Our work generated an estimated £12 million in social value through reduced demand on health, criminal justice and welfare services.

Behind every statistic is someone who found hope when they needed it most.

"This place has become like a family to me, building me up with confidence, self-worth and helping me find purpose again." – Peter

"I no longer feel lonely and incapable because I know I am supported by this wonderful community at Colt." – Sharon

An award-winning charity making a difference

Established in 2003, Project Colt has spent more than 20 years supporting people facing some of life's toughest challenges.

Our work has been recognised nationally through the King's Award for Voluntary Service and regionally through the Community Spirit Award for Breakthrough of the Year, recognising our commitment to creating stronger, healthier and more inclusive communities.

But the greatest measure of our success isn't the awards we've won, it's the thousands of lives that have been changed.

Help us protect this place forever

This campaign isn't about saving an old mill; it's about protecting everything that happens inside it. It’s about ensuring that someone struggling with addiction can find support, someone experiencing loneliness can find friendship, or someone who has lost confidence can find purpose. Project Colt provides a place that local community organisations can thrive together.

If we succeed, Bridgefield Mills will remain a place where lives are rebuilt, futures are created and communities grow stronger.

Please give whatever you can.

Whether it's £10, £25, £100 or more, every donation helps bring us closer to securing Bridgefield Mills for good.

And if you're unable to donate today, sharing this campaign with your friends, family and colleagues could make all the difference.

Together, we can keep Bridgefield Mills where it belongs - in the hands of the community.

Funding method

Keep what you raise – this project will receive all pledges made by 6th August 2026 at 4:31pm