make north
Louise Smith opened Make North in August 2019 in Preston City centre, as a
community maker-space where members could access facilities such as pottery
wheels and print benches, as well as attending formal courses taught by our
resident-artists Christine, Katie and Micaela. Seven months after launch our
membership had grown to over 80 members and 100's of people had participated in
courses, then Covid-19 closed our doors. In response we launched a home-pottery
service and spent 15months delivering clay to member’s doorsteps and collecting
their pots to glaze and fire, over 120 households participated, with all ages
taking part. As it has for many the pandemic has been tough for us and we were
too new to be eligible for government 'cultural recovery' funding and so after a
long period of not covering costs and with ongoing uncertainty over Covid, we
took the decision in July to close. We survived the lockdowns thanks to the
enthusiastic and generous support of our members, we are incredibly grateful and
hope we can find a solution to reopen soon!
