This article details a community-driven needs assessment conducted in a rural village in Sri Lanka’s Eastern Province, designed to inform the development of a new community centre. Moving beyond traditional data-gathering, this study employed participatory focus group methodologies to understand the nuanced strengths, challenges, and priorities of local children, adolescents, emerging adults, and parents. We argue that this approach not only gathers rich, contextually specific data but also serves as a critical tool for empowerment, fostering community ownership and sustainability from the project’s inception. We present our methodology, which included four focus groups and three key informant interviews with a total of 50 participants, and share key findings across nine thematic areas: English language training, academic support, digital literacy, career guidance, transportation, life skills, mental health, creative expression, and programme implementation. This article aims to provide a replicable model for practitioners and organisations seeking to co-design and implement community-based initiatives in under-resourced contexts.
Haffner et al. (2026) studied this question.