Executive Summary

Belfast’s labour market is at a critical inflection point. While employers across sectors face acute recruitment challenges, thousands of individuals, particularly those from economically inactive or disadvantaged backgrounds remain disconnected from meaningful employment. Traditional interventions, though widespread, have consistently struggled to convert training into long-term, stable employment outcomes. Too often, programmes focus on volume over impact, bringing participants through schemes without addressing the deeper social, cultural, and structural barriers that prevent sustained progression.

BelCAT (Belfast Centre for Arts and Technology) offers a strategic and transformative response. Rooted in the internationally recognised model developed by William (Bill) E. Strickland in Pittsburgh and supported by philanthropist & entrepreneur Steve Sarowitz, the Strickland Global Leadership Institute and a global network of affiliated centres, BelCAT integrates arts, culture, and dignity into vocational education. The Strickland model demonstrates that when people are placed in beautiful, affirming environments and treated with respect, their confidence grows, their potential unfolds, and true transformation occurs. As Strickland puts it, ‘You have to change the way people see themselves before you can change their behaviour.’

BelCAT will establish a world-class city-centre training and cultural facility, designed to reconnect people with opportunity and employers with untapped talent. Its dual-focus model prepares both individuals and employers, combining employer-led, accredited training with intensive personal development, mentoring, and post-placement support. Central to its ethos is the belief that changing someone’s self-image; helping them see themselves as capable, worthy, and employable, is just as important as teaching them a trade. Strickland has famously said ‘You build prisons, you get prisoners. You build beauty, you get beauty.’ This captures the philosophy behind BelCAT’s environment and ambition.

BelCAT will target those most often overlooked; economically inactive individuals who want to work but face systemic exclusion, including young people Not in Education, Employment or in Training (NEET), carers and those with health conditions. These are the people typically underserved by mainstream provision yet vital to Belfast’s economic future.

Working closely with employers across hospitality, digital media, IT and financial services, BelCAT will co-design training that meets real labour market needs and supports inclusive hiring practices. A robust community partnership model ensures that individuals are not only engaged through trusted local networks but supported long after placement. The result is not just a job, but a career pathway and long-term progression.

With an investment of £4.5 million, BelCAT will support approximately 200 participants by Year 3 and generate an estimated £6 million in social return. While this model serves fewer people initially than traditional schemes, it delivers far deeper, more lasting outcomes. In a landscape where fewer than 20% of participants in major employment programmes secure jobs, BelCAT will aim to redefine what success looks like, offering a high-quality, human-centred alternative to current offerings. Drawing on outcomes from other Stricklandmodel centres, BelCAT aims to support 70% of its participants into employment.

BelCAT is not simply a skills programme; it is an invitation to rethink how we value potential and build inclusive economic growth in Belfast. It is about investing in people not just for what they can do, but for who they can become.

The project has already secured significant philanthropic backing. Entrepreneur and philanthropist Steve Sarowitz—who worked previously with Bill to establish centres in Chicago and Israel—has committed up to £3 million match funding. This pledge is in recognition of BelCAT’s potential to deliver transformative impact in Belfast.

BelCAT is currently raising £500,000 to begin its programming in Belfast. We are now actively seeking £200,000 from visionary individuals and foundations who share our belief in inclusive growth and transformation opportunity. Steve Sarowitz will contribute the other £300,000 if we are successful.

This support will enable BelCAT to establish a world-class facility, build lasting partnerships, and deliver life-changing outcomes for those furthest from the labour market.

Bill Strickland says, ‘Hope is the cure for poverty.’ BelCAT seeks to prove that when hope is combined with opportunity, the result is not just economic growth but flourishing humanity.