HRH The Duke of Edinburgh Opens FUSEBOX, a New Creative Space in Kingston-Upon-Thames

A new space for creative young people has been officially opened by HRH The Duke of Edinburgh in Kingston Upon Thames in his capacity as President of charity Creative Youth. FUSEBOX is a 750m2 space on the Thames riverside which features areas for performance, exhibitions, creative practice, socialising, co-creation and more. 

His Royal Highness unveiled a commemorate plaque at an event attended by patrons and supporters of the charity as well as representatives from the Greater London Authority and the Royal Borough of Kingston whose support helped make FUSEBOX possible.

Situated underneath the John Lewis department store in an extraordinary space which houses the footings of the original 12th century Kingston Bridge and The Remains of a medieval cellar (known as an undercroft), FUSEBOX will be a vibrant new cultural centre for the area, its young people and communities, support the regeneration of the area and drive employment and training opportunities.  

After a 7 month renovation project, funded by the Mayor of London’s Good Growth Fund and a pilot season of events and exhibitions, the space is now officially open and in the coming days will host performances as part of FUSE International, Creative Youth’s annual festival of performance. FUSEBOX was named by Creative Youth’s board of Young Creatives and wider team to capture the dynamic multifunctional purpose of the space and echoes the name of FUSE International.

Further details and information about forthcoming events can be found at fuseboxkingston.org  

Creative Youth is a charity based in Kingston-upon-Thames that exists to enable young people to realise their potential through the arts, involving them in innovative, original and ambitious projects. Current projects include the FUSE International festival and heritage project AMP Kingston; Art, Music and Pop Fashion.

Speaking about the opening, the new Co-Directors of Creative Youth Archie O'Neill & Daniel Cartlidge said “We are both thrilled to be part of Creative Youth's exciting new chapter, and champion FUSEBOX as a space which is run for young people, by young people. As a heritage site, we will look towards the past as a source of inspiration whilst continuing the work we do to drive the creative sector into the future. 

Launching FUSEBOX has allowed us to not only celebrate the work of our brilliant Young Creatives, current Creative Talent Programme Artist Tanvi Ranjan, and community engagement projects; but also invite other young people to bring their ideas, performances, and creative workshops into our space. We have already seen the venue come alive with creativity, community, and connection. 

We now welcome people through our doors to explore FUSEBOX and all it has to offer - not just for young people in the arts, but our entire community locally, nationally, and internationally.”

Chair of Creative Youth Robin Hutchinson said “FUSEBOX is quite simply a game changer for Creative Youth ensuring we can offer young creatives a dynamic, flexible and inspiring place. A home for them to develop their ideas, projects and partnerships. Even the pilot programme has shown that great things will emerge from this space and now we will be open full time the opportunities just multiply.”

Leader of Kingston Council, Cllr Andreas Kirsch, said: “We are proud to collaborate with innovative, local organisations like Creative Youth to bring back to life spaces like this one, that embrace and promote the creativity of our young people living and studying in the borough.

We are committed to ensuring our children and young people have a fairer start in life, and reinvigorating places within the borough to help develop new skills, spark imagination and create opportunities are crucial to that aim. FUSEBOX has rapidly become another special part of our vibrant and diverse cultural offer in Kingston town centre, and is an amazing addition to our beautiful riverside, in a historic building which houses the ruins of the ancient bridge and undercroft. It further showcases our ambition to place Kingston’s unique history and heritage at the heart of our regeneration, and create inclusive spaces local people value.”

Deputy Mayor for Planning, Regeneration and Skills, Jules Pipe said: “FUSEBOX is a fantastic new space for young people in Kingston and I am delighted that we have been able to team up with the council and local organisations to deliver this through the Mayor’s Good Growth Fund.

“The scheme proves that by thinking creatively we can regenerate the capital’s high streets and town centres, while providing a platform for young people and the local community to contribute to London’s exciting creative arts sector.”

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