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A group of people standing in a line, seen from the back. They are all holding each other and wearing Citizens Theatre t-shirts. The room is illuminated in purple lighting with fairy lights.

Supporting women at the Lilias Centre through creativity

The Lilias Centre is Glasgow’s Community Custodial Unit, designed to provide safe and secure accommodation that better supports women. This is part of a wider movement by the Scottish Prison Service’s new trauma-informed strategy for women, and an important step towards a more empathetic and human-centred prison system.  

The Lilias Centre is an active part of the Glasgow community, building healthy relationships with key partners, as the women prepare to reintegrate into their communities post-custody. 

In early 2023, the Citizens Theatre became one such partner, offering a creative programme across the year at the Centre. Our creative workshops focus on the transformative effect the arts can have on those involved. They give residents an opportunity to work alongside professional artists and get involved with sewing and making, art, song writing, and creative writing. 

Our blocks of workshops are pressure-free and intimate, focusing on the experiences of the women we meet. Women develop skills, socialise, and connect with their creativity as part of their process of rehabilitation and reintegration.  

A large group of people sit in around a room facing each other. The room is lit in purple and decorated with fairy lights.

Lilias Centre December 2023 Sharing – Gallery
Two women hugging.
A woman smiles while holding a plastic kazoo to her mouth.
Four people sit in a row and point off to the right of the camera while holding plastic kazoos.
A colourful felt-tip drawing of three women, one sitting on a chair and two posing dramatically, drawn onto a map.

Lilias Centre Spring 2023 Workshop – Gallery
A hand draws a portrait of a woman in coloured felt-tip pens on top of a map.
A faceless figure pins fabric letters to a piece of fabric in preparation for sewing.
A close-up of a craft project. The word
A person holds up a grey pillowcase with a turquoise heart stitched onto it.

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