Community Connection Project to support asylum seekers and the areas hosting them
Minister Joe O’Brien announced the new €3m programme to support communities, and a further €1m for supports for new arrivals at the Welcoming New Communities conference in Dublin Castle this week.
€1 million funding to create 42 new Community Services Programme positions
32 organisations are set to benefit from fresh investment in the programme, which aims to tackle disadvantage through a social enterprise model.
Steering Young Drivers to Safety
Donegal’s Garage Project paves the way for safer roads as 130 young people complete LEADER-funded training.
Biggest expansion of National Walks Scheme adds 62 new trails
The largest ever expansion of Ireland’s National Walks Scheme was announced this week, promising to add 62 new walking and hiking trails across 17 counties.
Members of public invited to join Advisory Group on Racism and Racial Equality
Minister of State for Community Development, Integration, and Charities Joe O’Brien has this week announced the publication of an expression of interest campaign for the Advisory Group on Racism and Racial Equality.
End Child Poverty Week – Call for Budget 2024 to be “Children’s Budget”
End Child Poverty Week takes place this year from September 11 to 15 to highlight key issues relating to child poverty and the impact on those affected.
First Local Action Groups to deliver LEADER 2023-2027 funding announced
Local Action Groups in counties Carlow and Tipperary were announced today as the first two local development strategies (LDS) approved to deliver the 2023-2027 LEADER programme.
Islands policy provides “a good foundation” – Comhar na nOileán
Residents of Ireland’s offshore islands believe that the new national policy for island communities provides a good foundation to help address some of the challenges facing them.
First national policy in 27 years aims to help islands thrive
An ambitious new ten-year national policy designed to support vibrant and sustainable island communities was launched by Minister for Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphreys this morning.
Social enterprises generate annual income of €2.34 billion
A new in-depth report ‘Social Enterprises in Ireland: A Baseline Data Collection Exercise’ has provided vital insights into the sector in Ireland for the first time.
The data collected shows that there are currently 4,335 social enterprises in Ireland employing 84,382 people – three per cent of the Irish workforce.
Highlight your ideas for rural Ireland on Tues, Nov 15
If you have ideas for a socially inclusive rural Ireland, this event is for you. Next Tuesday, November 15 (from 10.30-12.30) ideas are being sought during an online forum organised by the Department of Rural and Community Development.
It invites anyone who is “passionate about rural Ireland” to join the event to discuss key themes from ‘Our Rural Future’.
Oct 7 deadline for Social Inclusion Roadmap submissions
Minister Joe O’Brien, as chair of the ‘Roadmap for Social Inclusion’, has issued a reminder that the deadline for submissions on the mid-term review of the strategy is fast approaching on October 7th.
Humphreys says Ireland can learn from OECD as she opens Cavan conference
The 13th OECD Rural Development Conference, hosted by Ireland’s Department of Rural and Community Development (DRCD) has kicked off this morning in County Cavan.
Overnight, a large team led by Department’s Dr. Andrew Forde put the finishing touches to conference arrangements and delegates arrived to a momentous Céad Míle Fáilte this morning.
Cavan ready for major international rural dev’t conference
Cavan tonight began to welcome 400 people from as far away as Canada, Korea, Latvia and Columbia for an international gathering of rural development workers, policy makers, academics and ministers and their officials. They are in town to attend a major conference titled ‘Building Sustainable, Resilient and Thriving Rural Places’.
C&V Sector tells government what is needed from Budget 2023
As Budget 2023 is moved forward to September 27, Changing Ireland examines some of the key proposals of groups working in the social inclusion and community sector.
Protected: “Grown men crying” before reforms to RSS, Tús & CE schemes
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Ireland wins UN award for its community work – SICAP among 10 winners after 350 apply from 58 countries
Ireland has won a United Nations award for its response at community level to the Covid pandemic. The UN received over 350 entries from 58 countries for 10 awards – with Ireland winning one for its Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP).
Mary Hurley is new secretary general at Dept of Rural & Community Dev’t
Mary Hurley has been appointed as the new Secretary General at the Department of Rural and Community Development.
Campaigners welcome amnesty
Gone is “the fear that the next knock on the door will be someone to take us away”, said Tjanasi Potso, responding to today’s announcement by Justice Minister Helen McEntee of an amnesty for undocumented migrants.
Pobal chair Rosarii Mannion calls on development workers to join board
Last year, they sought two new members for Pobal’s board; this year they have six vacancies and chairperson Rosarii Mannion is calling on people with community development experience to apply.
Social inclusion & community programme budget up 10% for 2022
Budget 2022 will see additional workers hired to work in communities through the Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP). Funding for the programme will increase from €40m to €44m, in a widely welcomed move.
Hope is focus of Dublin Arts & Human Rights Festival (Oct. 15-24)
Festival aims to highlight the work of human rights defenders and the role of the arts in promoting human rights
Children are sometimes at risk through contact visits with violent parents
The family court system needs urgent reform, says Mary Louise Lynch who founded a group for survivors of domestic violence, Survivors Informing Services and Institutions (SISI).
New online mag – ‘Develop’
Published on behalf of the Irish Local Development Network (ILDN) the new magazine focuses on LEADER projects and work by the 49 not-for-profit Local Development Companies in the State.
Humphreys: Draft islands policy by year’s end
Minister Heather Humphreys, speaking in the Dáil on May 25th, gave an update on the development of a new islands policy. While work on the policy was delayed by the pandemic, it is one of the key elements in ‘Our Rural Future’, the Government’s new rural development policy.
Our Rural Future: The Government’s blueprint to transform the country
Our Rural Future – supported by 150 commitments across Government – reflects the unprecedented change in living and working patterns during Covid-19 and the significant opportunities this presents for rural communities – from remote working and revitalising our town centres to job creation, developing a green economy and enhancing our outdoor amenities.
Take a deep dive into a #SicapStory – From Malawi to Wexford
In Wexford – as featured in our long read here – community workers under SICAP made people welcome during a pandemic. The same good community work is happening across the country, from Inchicore to West Mayo. It is but one of many #SicapStories. It would make for an ideal television series, as amateur film-makers are proving.
Community pub hubs should be put to work ASAP
Pat Kennedy urges Government not to allow its plans for the use of pubs as community spaces to get stalled by bureaucracy.
People new to Ireland to learn ‘an cúpla focal’ this month
Free Irish language and sean-nós dance classes are being offered to new Irish communities in Meath, Louth and Cavan this month through a collaboration by Cultúr Migrants Centre and Conradh na Gaeilge. The online classes are some of the many events taking place across the country – mostly online – during this year’s Seachtain na Gaeilge.
“Initiatives such as these, while they may seem tokenistic, actually play a very important role in helping migrants and refugees to assimilate and integrate into Irish society and culture,” says Sorcha Grisewood who interviewed those involved in the collaboration:
Social enterprise sector has a new representative body from today
CAPTION: A year ago – last July 19 – the Government’s first National Social Enterprise Policy was launched and, in November, the first National Social Enterprise Conference (run by the Department of Rural and Community Development) took place in Croke Park. Pictured among the attendees are two of the founders of a new body launched today called ‘Social Enterprise Republic of Ireland’ (Seri) – Larry O’Neill, CEO of South Dublin County Partnership and Senan Cooke, author of ‘The Enterprising Community’. They are pictured here with Bernie Walshe from Sunflower Recycling. (PHOTO BY: Changing Ireland).
One Minister, two Departments: Community in Cabinet
In 1997, “Community” became a named function of a government department for the first time. It has remained in usage ever since. So how come Minister Heather Humphreys is responsible for two departments, one including Community? Allen Meagher reports:
Tomorrow we’ll know if this is monumental, or an historic footnote
Here’s a comprehensive analysis of what the proposed Programme for Government says that should concern and interest the many people devoted to community development and social inclusion.
New Distance Travelled Tool set to begin its journey
The new My Journey: Distance Travelled Tool is set to launch, but what can be learned from its introduction event?
Are pub hubs the answer to a lack of community spaces?
There’s no doubt that community facilities are immensely useful for many reasons, but what can you do if your community can’t afford a new building? With pub hubs, Pat Kennedy may have the answer.
SICAP report calls for bottom-up approach to evaluation
A new report on the Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP) was published earlier this year. Here, Allen Meagher covers the main points.
Social farming: Gaining experience in the field
As the concept of social farming gains traction around the country, Changing Ireland takes a look at the overall picture.
3 co-operatives abroad that will inspire at home
On the eve of the UN and International Cooperative Alliance’s International Day of Cooperatives, we’re revisiting a spread from our June-July 2018 issue (Issue 60) drawing on cooperatives from around the world for examples of best practice.
4 SICAP success stories and the LDCs behind them
Consistently showcasing successes can give those holding the purse strings confidence in the work. Some companies are already doing this, and have been able to do so on a national stage.
Why do we still have to justify community work’s existence?
The work of community development and social inclusion organisations has a consistent track record in Ireland. So why do those organisations continually have to justify its existence?
Could social inclusion consultations have been simple tokenism?
At SIF 2019, feedback from community representatives seened to ask one big question: was consultation on the new social inclusion strategy all a sham?
What happened at the first ever meeting of the Pullough Men’s Shed?
As Men’s Sheds become more and more popular around the island, Changing Ireland attends the very first meeting of the Pullough branch.
The Big Hello: How can you get to know the neighbours?
Wish you knew more about the people living next door? Here’s your opportunity…
No job? No problem: A Terenure crash course in entrepreneurship
Often, it can be the more vulnerable people in our communities who have the most difficulty finding ways to be self-sustaining. Here, Terenure Enterprise Centre enterprise support officer Vasilena Vasileva explains what they did with Walk to change that.
Community workers share experiences at SICAP consultations
At a series of consultations that sought frontline views of SICAP, case studies and stories gave us a detailed picture.
Social farming: A closer look at the growing initiative
Following on from a successful visit to a Co Kerry social farming open day, Allen Meagher takes a closer look at what it’s all about.
Social farming open day: ‘It’s not tied to old ideas of farming’
Farming is a vocation as well as a way to make a living. Imagine sharing farming life with people who need to catch a break, but who may also not know a thing about farming… That’s social farming and it’s changing lives.
New caps on moneylending could end exorbitant interest rates
As laws come into effect to cap moneylending rates, Olive McCarthy and Noreen Byrne of the University College Cork (UCC) Centre for Co-operative Studies explain why they support it.
Horace asks: Have you been sigh-capped?
Former agony uncle Horace McDermott has come up with a new approach to help promote SICAP. To make sure everyone can pronounce it he is introducing tattoos.
Is social inclusion our best weapon in the fight against the far right?
People forced to the margins of society are far more likely to be radicalised, so why aren’t we talking more about successful social inclusion approaches?
The Secret Librarian: “What kind of society do we want?”
As a raft of new services are announced for Ireland’s libraries, we ask our Secret Librarian for their take on the upcoming changes.
330 libraries to become ‘community hubs’ under new strategy
As Minister Michael Ring launches the new library strategy, we learn more about what the library of the future might look like.
Minister Ring launches 5-year anti-poverty programme
Minister for Rural and Community Development Michael Ring officially launched the Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP) in Limerick on 20 April.
How to get your Mojo back
When reporter Ray Lucey spotted a poster promising ‘male spaces’, he started asking questions. He encountered Mojo, and learned all about the nationwide initiative.
Further perspectives on ‘Alignment’
– Excerpts from reports by Dr Brendan O’Keeffe, Niall Crowley, Debra Mountford, Seán O’Riordan:
NEW RESOURCE: POBAL MAPS
- Social inclusion mapping now a reality With the click of a mouse, you can now view levels of deprivation in your area under a range of categories and down to street level. You don’t hear people saying ‘Thanks to Pobal’ everyday, but that’s where the credit is due...
Budget 2010 – COMMUNITIES DOWN AT LEAST 10%
Some of the most severe recommendations in the McCarthy Report will not be implemented this year, but with a similar budget promised for next year and the year after, it's far from over for communities. For now, commentators are talking about the cumulative effect of...
2 PROGRAMMES TO BE MERGED – CURRAN IN CAVAN
The Community Development Programme, first established in 1990, is to be absorbed into a new unnamed programme that also incorporates the Local Development and Social Inclusion Programme.
