Young people at risk in Dublin's south inner city will get a second chance in life when the first facility in the State to offer residential accommodation and training opens on Marrowbone Lane.
The foyer (literally "hearth") concept originated in France in the 1930s and is designed to provide young people who may have left school at 14 with a sheltered, friendly living environment while they learn new skills.
"It provides a stepping stone to independence," says Ms Angela Brady, the project's architect and long-time enthusiast for foyers. "It's really such a good idea and I was determined that Dublin would have one." Foyers have been spreading throughout Britain over the past 10 years.
"There are already 200 up and running and another 200 being planned", she told The Irish Times. Three are operating in Northern Ireland.
In order to advance the concept here, Ms Brady and her partner, Mr Robin Mallalieu, organised a tour of London foyers for senior officials of Dublin City Council four years ago, which led to the Marrowbone Lane project.
London-based Brady and Mallalieu Architects had experience of designing foyers and won the commission to provide one on the site of the Player Wills cigarette factory, which the council had originally acquired for road-widening.
Initially, it was to be a renovation project - until the sums showed that a new building would be more economical. The scheme also had to include a multi-purpose sports hall for the local St Catherine's Community Association.
The association had raised £1 million (€1.27 million) for this project and needed to be convinced that a foyer could be tacked onto it.
Further funding was provided by the city council, topped up by Government grants.
At a total cost of €10 million, this hybrid building includes a spacious sports hall that can be used for basketball, indoor football and concerts, as well as a foyer with accommodation for 48 young people aged from 18 to 25.
"We would have liked it to be 16 to 25, as it is in France, but that would be against the law here," Ms Brady said. It was not designed for young people with problems but rather "to avoid problems".
The St Catherine's Foyer will be run by the Cara Housing Association, which will have the task of selecting 48 young people to occupy its eight apartments, each with six study-bedrooms and shared kitchen/dining facilities.
The apartments are grouped around an open landscaped courtyard which also includes separate self-contained apartments for two managers as well as communal rooms for relaxation and a suite of training rooms.
"If you left school at 14, you could come here and learn to read and write, then move to the next stage of computer training", Ms Brady explained. "Some foyers have radio stations and teach people how to become DJs."
Residents will spend an average of two years living in the foyer, where they can take courses either on the premises or elsewhere. "It's ideal for young people on the housing list to help them find their feet," the architect said.
Though the building is due to be completed next month, she said it would take at least a year to get the foyer element of it off the ground because of the need for a careful selection process. "After that, management will be crucial."
Bright colours - blue, green, acid yellow and shocking pink - are used throughout to give the foyer a "young feel", as Ms Brady said. The materials are robust and were chosen for their durability and low-maintenance qualities.
A café at first-floor level with its own terrace will be open to the general public while the sports hall will be open to members of the community association. The building also contains a creche, a sauna and a steam room.
Another foyer, also designed by Brady and Mallalieu, is planned for Limerick. But once the Dublin project proves itself, Ms Brady is convinced that the foyer concept will spread throughout Ireland, just as it has in Britain.
