changing ireland - summer 2010

8/8/2019 Changing Ireland - Summer 2010

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newsFamily Resource Centres / New Departm

FRCs last year launched a range of additionalservices and supports to meet the demands of newlyunemployed people.e work was marked on July 7th with the launch by

Minister Pat Carey of a report detailing the response tothe jobs crisis by the 107 FRCs nationally. It found thatover 150,000 people accessed information from FRCs last year and almost 14,000 availed of training courses directlyrelated to gaining employment.

We also provide emotional and personal support, saidPackie Kelly, Chairperson of the Family Resource CentreNational Forum which launched the report alongsidethe Family Support Agency.

Over 13,000 people were provided with direct, one-to-one support what FRCs call cup-of-tea support in2009.

FRCs also provided in-house counselling to over 5,000 people nationally.

While FRCs have always provided developmentalsupports, counselling and information services, many hadto expand and tailor their o erings last year to responddirectly to the needs of the unemployed.

Many FRCs o ered very practical support to theunemployed: free internet and administration services;assistance with CV writing, and packs with all the relevantinformation needed by job-seekers.

Some Centres noted a particularly high number of young male users, accessing Back to Education support, personal development courses, and information andresources to assist them in seeking work.

POSITIVE TRENDSHowever, Pakie said there were also a number of positivedevelopments last year.

Providing photocopying and computer services hasa knock-on e ect of attracting people to FRCs that wehave traditionally found dicult to reach. What we

have seen now is that if people come to an FRC to getinformation on job opportunities or unemploymentsupports they are more likely to engage then with otheactivities and return to the Centre for future events.

Pakie also noted a growing level of voluntary activityFRCs are largely dependant on volunteerism.

Last year, 2,744 people volunteered in FRCs,making a contribution equivalent to that of 343 full-time sta members or10.98 million (calculated inaccordance with the average industrial wage). A further985 volunteers served as members of the boards of management of FRCs.

SUPPORT FORGRANDPARENTSSpeaking at the launch, Pat Bennett, Chief ExecutiveO cer of the Family Support Agency said the reportshows that FRCs impact positively on the lives of hundreds of thousands of people, and respond in aexiblemanner to the needs of their local communities.

According to Mr. Bennett, a future priority for FRCs will be to support grandparents whond themselves playing a key role in bringing up their grandchildren,something that is particularly becoming more common disadvantaged communities.

FRCs part of new Dept.e rst FRCs were set up in 1994.ey are funded

by the Department of Community, Equality andGaeltacht A airs through the Family Support Agency,the government agency that administers the FRC programme. All FRCs involve people from marginalisegroups and areas of disadvantage at all levels, includingtheir voluntary management committees.

W: http://www.familyresource.ie/

Dept. has

grown not disappeared!

The Minister of Community,Equality and Gaeltacht Affairs,Pat Carey, has expressed greathopes in his newly reconguredDepartment.

Four months into the job, he notedthat the media had written-off theDepartment earlier this year andcouldnt have got it more wrong as ithas doubled in size.

The new Department will be aserious, policy-driven department.Theres a huge amount of expertisehere. I think this Department will bequite a signicant crucible for ideas,he said.

Minister Carey was reluctant to

make predictions, but appearedcondent that the Department willsurvive the next election even if theres a change of political parties.

We have to draw up a strategystatement within 6 months of mybeing appointed a Minister. Infact, I think itll take the best partof two years (to fully develop). It ishighly likely Ill be gone out of theDepartment before it is beddeddown to a rened extent, he toldChanging Ireland.

The Departments website hasbeen updated and now includes up-

to-date information on its reach andresponsibilities.More info: www.pobail.ie

FRCs rising to assist the newly unemployed

In Ireland 1 in 8 people live in a one-parent family (Census 2006)


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LCDP: Community Development in Kilkenny

how to make alm on a Monday morning to producing one by Wednesday.

e trainers throw in tips for how best tond asuitable story, allocate crew positions and keep onschedule, and the main aim is on training youthleaders to repeat the exercise with young people.

ats the whole point. It isnt about taking onHollywood, the emphasis is on the youth workinvolved, the condence-building, the team-building. In short, the kids.

We started out with 15 teenagers in 1990,said Mike. Now we make short featurelms withhundreds of young people each year.

I was talking to Mike in the YIFM oces in

Kilkenny and as he spoke, teenagers in schooluniforms started pouring in from every doorway.School was over.

Brad Ellis (13) told me, Irst heard about thisfrom a friend; now Im an actor in e Usurperslm, there are 30 in the cast.Brad and his pal Lukas Hartmann spelt out

the name of their website for me: HYPERLINKhttp://www.bracknashaddax.co.cc www.bracknashaddax.co.cc.ey say its devoted tozen-lm-making.

e project deals with the 10-20-year-old agegroup and classes are held every day.

ITS YOUTHWORK WITH CAMERAS- MIKE

Linda Hanbidge started o like Brad or Lukas,going to the YIFM as a teenager. Now she worksthere, as a national outreach worker.

We ran ourrst outside course through thelocal Community Development Project LARChere in Kilkenny and since then weve run coursesin schools and with Family Resource Centresin the South-East and for free with groupsthroughout County Kilkenny thanks to KilkennyLEADER Partnership.

Not everyone in Kilkenny wants to playhurling, you know, says Linda.

For the young people, its about making alm, but the primary purpose for us always isdeveloping them and helping them discover their potential, continued Mike. Its youth work withcameras and computers.

Important work takes place when the childrenget involved in on-screen editing.

eres a whole new literacy has arrived and if you cant work with computers, you cant engagesocially or look for a job anymore.

He applauds Youthreachs work nationallyon this issue with groups in disadvantaged areasthrough its Digital Literacy Programme.

e projects main funders supporting theemployment of six sta - comes from the Arts

Council and the National Youth Council of Ireland, while FAS funding employs a seventh worker.

COMPUTER-LITERACY In the world of lm, YIFMs impact emulates

the Cats success with hurleys, as demonstratedby the fact thatlm-courses in Dublin areover owing with Kilkenny people. A number of successfullm companies also trace their rootsback to YIFM. e real measure however is how young people develop from the experience.

ey develop condence, computer skills,learn team-work, have a laugh and learn aboutabilities they didnt know they have, said Linda.

More recently, the YIFM ran two outreachcourses in Limerick city.e cost was55 per participant, good value

for three days training, and the price will remainlow while the pilot stage of the outreach workcontinues.

NOTE: Zombie Love featuring a star performance from Ross Ryan, a journalistcurrently on placement with Changing Irelandis on youtube. Anotherlm produced by peopleattending a course in St. Munchins FamilyResource Centre in Limerick should be onlineshortly. It features some embarrassing acting fromthis reporter.

W: www.yifm.com T: 056-776-4677.

cameras goes national

project.Teresa recalled: We were downtown with the

cars and the boys turned them all on together, there was a surge of power and all the (electric) chips inthe cars melted. e power surge came from pylonson the roof of the nearby Bank of Ireland and thecars had to be sent to England for repairs.

But Happe House still has a good relationship with banks.

We got3,000 from AIB in the Better IrelandAwards, said Gladys. Shes glad by the way thatAIB copped onto giving a grant to each of the threenalists, rather than the corporate-style winner-

takes-all competition the bank used to run.

YOUNG MEN ON COURSEAt the moment, were doing a community

garden project with New Park Close FRC, saidGladys. Its for young men that were on the dole who wanted to come o the dole but couldntnd work eyve activities ve days a week nowand as its coming to an end, theyre asking for anextension.

Gladys said they were told to expect people todrop o the course as time went on.

at might happen in some FAS courses, but notin Happe House.We still have the 19 we started with. Nobodybelieved wed keep them occupied. Its oneachievement were quite happy with, smiled Teresa.

A er nearly ten years visiting very worthwhile

Community Development Projects, usuallymeeting with sta , it takes a while to take onboardthat everyone involved in this Kilkenny-based project is voluntary.

eir work is well regarded.e localPartnership company recognises that the volunteersin Hebron Park are inspirational and have a grfor what they do (see accompanying box).

I hate people in their areas knocking where theycome from. How do your children have hopes of getting jobs if people knock the area? I love where Ilive, said Gladys.

Both women believe that in recent times

community spirit is returning. Partly because of the recession, people are more interested in whatshappening in their communities.

People are coming in now to us who never(bothered) when werst opened, said Teresa.

PARTNERSHIP SUPPORTe workload on the volunteers has increased

and they arenally moving towards taking on part-time paid workers to help out.

Since the spring, part-time CommunityEmployment worker now cleans the Centre andsoon, Happe House hopes to employ two paid sta if HSE funding comes through for the childcare workers in the crche.

is is where Happe Houses volunteer managersnd the Kilkenny Leader Partnership particularly

helpful, supporting them with funding applicationsand the like. e Partnership also runs a lot of activities through Happe House as well as having anoutreach worker for the wider area based there.

Teresa was winding me up about the biscuits,but she and her volunteer partner in crime have agi for making people want to contribute to the project theyve been running for 14 and 21 yearsrespectively.

Hows a thousand words lads!By the way, its time to replace the Maxwell

House with Fairtrade co ee.To nd out more about the model car building

youth project, which is a novel way to counteracta tendency in a community towards anti-socialbehaviour, call Happe House on 056-7731004.eres also an excellent report online at:

http://www.kilkennyalive.com/story/happe-days-are-here-again

One-parent families are more likely to be poor than most other families.


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LCDP related news

Tim Hourigan reports *

O ver 250 representatives of CommunityDevelopment Projects and LocalDevelopment Companies turned up for theOutline of Transfer Events workshops in Dublin, on June 10th.

e organisers acknowledged that there was a lotof strong feeling in the room about the upcoming changes to the programme, and certainly there were very active question and answer sessions aer each workshop.

Pobal arranged four rotating workshops eachaddressing a di erent aspect of the expected transfers/mergers:

- General Requirements for transfers- Due Diligence- Protection of Employees- Good Practice for Transfers/Mergers

PROTECTION OF EMPLOYEES INTRANSFERS

One of the workshops, presented by GillianOCallaghan a solicitor with IBEC, dealt withlegal issues relating to transfer of employees and the protections that exist in law for employees being transferred.

A transfer, by itself, cannot be used as anopportunity to dismiss sta , and the the terms and

By Juan Carlos Azzopardi *

CDPs and others, including this magazine, havecriticised the Centre for E ective Services(CES) for their silence amid the controversythat has ensued since the Minister of Community,Rural and Gaeltacht A airs (at the time), JohnCurran announced the new Local and CommunityDevelopment Programme (LCDP) with the mergerof the Community Development Programme and

the Local Development Social Inclusion Programme.e criticism has included some questioning over thecontinued funding of CES.

It has been hard for CDPs to understand why CES,as the organisation responsible for reviewing the old programmes and designing the new single programme,have had nothing to say on the LCDP or defendedtheir work since the validation workshops they heldin October. However, the Department of Community,Equality and Gaeltacht A airs has recently shed lighton the reluctance of CES to engage in the debate thathas been ongoing since the presentation of the newProgramme at Croke Park on November 2009.

e Department ocials claried that the remit of CES was for a specic purpose, namely to carry out areview of the design of LDSIP and CDP and devise programme frameworks based on international best practice. **

While the redesign work was linked to structuralre-alignment/merger thenal decision to mergeboth programmes was taken by the then Minister,

John Curran. e CES was then required to devise aframework for one amalgamated programme. CESclaim and this is veried by the Department that theyhad no role in recommending the merger of both programmes this was entirely a political decisionmade by the Minister.

REJECTION V ACCEPTANCEOnce the Minister made this decision the CES

could focus on the redesign of a single,integrated programme. is they did, proposing a new name, oneover-arching objective and four programme goals.

CES discussed these with the Department whoindicated their approval and then CES presented themat a second validation workshop to a representativecollection of people from projects funded under boththe LDSIP and the CDP where they were broadlyrejected. e Minister however, accepted in itsentirety, the CES recommendation and instructed hiso cials and POBAL to put the structures in place toset up the new LCDP and administer and support thechanges required.

Once the CES recommendation for the newProgramme design was accepted that aspect of theirremit was completed and there is no expectationon the part of the Department for them to act asadvocates/publicists for the new LCDP.e new progamme has not met with universal approval andthe previous and current Ministers, their ocials andnow POBAL have had to deal with the anger and

Plenty questions for POBALat national meeting - Day of workshops as projects prepare for transfers

PERSONAL REFLECTION T

here was a mixture of enthusiasm, and cautionover the course of the four

workshops, and while the questionand answer sections were active, attimes people felt that the questionsthey most wanted to ask were notable to be addressed (e.g. legalimplications of certain fundingarrangements). This was seen as adrawback.

Many speakers acknowledged thedepth of concern they had for thefuture, under conditions of imposedchange, and that the workshops onlyseemed to acknowledge one model.

Pobal say that, to their knowledgeat the time, they were aware of submissions for alternative models,but that these had not been decidedon yet.

There was also dissatisfaction thatDCEGA had made payment for thenext period conditional on submittinga transfer/merger plan, which felt likemore pressure to comply.

Jerry Murphy of Pobal indicatedthat if alternative models areapproved groups will be free touse these plans to model their neworganisation.

There were some discussions

about bearing in mind theimplications of delaying paymentsand how it can lead to concernsamong projects over things likereckless trading.

Pobal said they would wish toavoid that, and hoped that no projectwould be left in this position.

A lot of people said that whilethey appreciated Pobals time andeffort, they were still in need of moreclarications and assurances in thefuture.

One group left in protest. TheClondalkin Travellers DevelopmentGroup wrote to projects nationwide

afterwards to explain why. They hadnot been allowed to ask questionsthat were important to the CTDGsboard.

- Tim Hourigan

THE CENTRE FOR E and their right to s

Average debt of people going to MABS = 15,500


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Social & Community EnterpriseWhat role can we playin developing socialenterprises?

Asks Ger Doyle

THERES A SOCIALENTERPRISE NEARYOU

Social enterprises are present in most urbandisadvantaged communities in Ireland, forexample, community childcare projects,community launderettes and community cafes.

When theyre located in disadvantagedcommunities, social enterprises can encounter anumber of constraints including:

grow social enterprises.

within disadvantaged communities.

and government ocials that economicdevelopment can only be delivered by privatebusinesses.

enterprises compared to those a orded to private enterprises, making it dicult for themto grow.

from regeneration programmes prematurely.

5 GOOD REASONSTO SUPPORTCOMMUNITYENTERPRISESHowever, it is in the interests of the State to providegreater assistance to disadvantaged communities intheir e orts to develop social enterprises:

1. e formation of social enterprises can enablestate agencies and local authorities to achieve theirtargets as detailed for them in a number of policyframeworks (e.g. the National Anti-Poverty Strategy).

2. In particular, social enterprises reduce thenumbers of people on the dole, and provide peopleon societys margins such as drug users in recoveryand ex-prisoners with an opportunity to get workexperience, acquire new skills and be in a position tosecure employment.

3. ey can also enable State agencies to get greater value for the money in procuring a range of services.

is is because social enterprises mission is less aboutmaking prot and more about improving the qualityof life of people they provide services to.

4. Social enterprises which provide maintenance,security and property management services on behalf of local authorities can also contribute to ensuring that neighbourhoods which have beneted from physical regeneration programmes are sustainableand do not require further capital investment fromthe State.

5. rough their knowledge of the areas in whichthey are based, social enterprises are better placedthan private enterprises to provide a range of careservices for older people and people with disabilities.

HERES WHATWOULD MAKE THE

DIFFERENCEIf social enterprises are to play a more signicant rolein transforming local disadvantaged communities, it will be necessary for Central Government to developa strategic policy framework which will enablecommunities to be empowered to develop theireconomies. is will need to include the following components:

enterprises to be established and grow.

a proportion of their services from socialenterprises as is the case in Italy.

obsolete assets, such as buildings, to recognisedcommunity trusts which would assistcommunities in generating income.

social enterprises to conduct market researchand bring social enterprises from concept totrading stage.

government departments and State agenciesso that they champion social enterprisedevelopment within their respectiveorganisations.

State agencies to view social enterprises asimportant stakeholders in regenerating localeconomies.

enterprises sustainability not innancialterms alone, but also including the extent to which it achieves social sustainability, attains

nancial sustainability and is environmentallysustainable .

businesses with a view to securing a range of expertise and funding.

In conclusion, social enterprises can demonstratethat there is an approach to engaging in economicactivity which is more humane and democraticthan conventional private enterprise and which isconcerned with limiting income inequality betweenmanagement and other employees.is approach would contribute to a more equal Ireland.

INTRODUCTIONIn Ger Doyles rst article (Issue32, pages 19-21) he gave real

examples from Ireland, Englandand Scotland of how socialenterprises work in communities.Ger hoped to encourage cash-strapped communities to see newways to develop their economiesand also deliver services.

In doing so, they will promotecollective approaches toeconomic development.

In the second of his two-partreport, Ger outlines what the

State and others need to do atnational and local level to make ithappen.

For the record, social enterpriseis dened as a business formedto provide employment, servicesor create income for communitybenet. It does not necessarilymake a prot.

is approach would contribute to a more

equal Ireland.

Ger Doyle

Over 10,000 people have viewed Changing Ireland videos on Youtube


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By Gearoid Fitzgibbon

From May 11th to June 3rd, four regionalseminars were held in Galway, Dundalk,Wexford and Cork, as part of IrelandsNational Programme for the 2010 EU Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion.

A huge amount of work and preparation wentinto the seminars.

According to Community Workers Co-op co-ordinator Ann Irwin, We were taken aback at theturnout: 120 people attended the Cork seminar,with over 350 people attending nationally. Peoplewanted to talk about the issues. It was a valuableopportunity for people who make policy andimplement policy to talk face-to-face. Criticalfeedback centred around consultation fatigue:people need to see something concrete happenas a result.

A huge amount of work and preparation wentinto the seminars which comprised a morning of four workshops on the following themes:

1. Access to services with a particular

focus on older people;2. People with disabilities;3. Access to quality work and learning

opportunities;4. Child poverty

The workshops featured a presentation of good practice by a policy maker, followed byfacilitated discussion. The main points of all four workshops were fed back to a wrap-up session.

It is not clear whether these seminars or the follow-up forum will have any impact ondecisions being made in the December budget.

However, Chris OLeary of Farranree CDP,who chaired the wrap up discussion, said:Obviously there is a concern that this is goingto be just a box-ticking exercise. However,the contributions from the participants were

excellent. The seminar reports should be sentback out to see if anything was missed. Thenpeople need to see action.

Paul ORawe, manager of South KerryDevelopment, organised a bus which broughtstaff, volunteers and students along: It wasworthwhile, but there should be an effort topromote more participation, especially for peoplefrom target groups who attend.

Miriam Holt of Waterford Womens Centre wasaggrieved at the abolition of the CDP voluntaryboards, which, she felt offered working classwomen an opportunity to directly representthemselves and their communities.

Mark Ryan of Tipperary RAPID Programme

was encouraged by the large attendance, whichshowed the dedication of people. Mark whoattended the Child Poverty workshop, was happyat the presence of a senior ofcial from theDepartment of Education and Skills. He said, Itsimportant that the informal education sector isproperly valued.

Presentations from the seminars and copiesof the seminar report are available on requestfrom CWC.

A report on the seminar outcomes will form thebasis of the National Social Inclusion Forum tobe held on November 17th.

Will a year of talking about poverty make a difference? - Over 350 attend seminars on poverty and social exclusion

EU year for combating poverty and exclusion The seminar attended by Changing Ireland was organised by the Community Workers Co-op, the European Anti-Poverty

Network Ireland and the CommunityPlatform, on contract from the Social InclusionDivision of the Department of Community,Equality and Gaeltacht A airs.

According to the advance literature, theseminars were an opportunity to take stock on progress to date in theght against poverty, as well as a moment for reection and planning.

e stated objective of the seminars was togive people experiencing poverty and socialexclusion a chance to voice and articulate theissues they are facing, and make suggestions onhow to deal with these issues at local, nationaland international levels.

Minister Cuv wants your ideas!!!The Minister for Social Protectionamon Cuv has indicated hewould welcome suggestions fromChanging Ireland readers for changes he should maketo the social welfaresystem.

He is specicallyinterested in makingchanges that wouldallow people workwhile claimingunemploymentbenet, if thatdoesnt sound like acontradiction.

In an interviewpublished in thespring edition, theMinister talked of his plansfor supporting people onunemployment welfare who wishto work and help their communities at the

same time.He would like to see volunteers on

social welfare paid small amounts for engaging in community work without it

interfering with their entitlements.A few ideas volunteers withChanging Ireland suggested

include:Guarantees that social

welfare ofcers would notpenalise people by deemingthem unavailable for workwhen they are engaged involuntary activity.

Free childcare places inlocal community crches

where someone gives up their time to engage in voluntary

community work.Payment of PRSI while someone

is on long-term voluntary workplacement.

E: editor@changingireland,ie

changing ireland - summer 2010

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