Press release
Minister Joe O’Brien visits community initiatives in County Kildare
From Department of Rural and Community Development
Published on
Last updated on
From Department of Rural and Community Development
Published on
Last updated on
Minister for Community Development and Charities Joe O’Brien today (Tuesday, 16 May 2023) visited a number of community initiatives in County Kildare.
The Minister’s visit commenced in Athy where he met with the Community Engagement Officer and community representatives involved in the Empowering Communities Programme. The programme launched in 2022 with the aim to empower local communities to craft their own responses to area based poverty and social exclusion.
The next visit on the Minister’s itinerary was to the DARA Project, a drugs referral project, where he met the team and discussed the great work they are involved in within their community.
The Minister then travelled on to Kildare Town where he met with local representatives from Kildare Public Participation Networks (PPN) and Kildare Volunteer Centre.
Speaking about his visit to Kildare, Minister O’Brien said:
“I’m delighted to visit Co. Kildare this morning to see first-hand some of the important work being carried out by our community and voluntary groups.
“The work carried out by these groups is vital to helping our local communities be vibrant and inclusive places where support, opportunity and friendship is offered to those who need it.
“The people I have met across all the projects this morning really embody the best of what we mean when we speak of Ireland’s community spirit. It is great to see it so alive and well in Co. Kildare.”
Minister O’Brien concluded his visit to County Kildare LEADER Partnership where he engaged with the staff delivering a wide range of programmes including the government’s social inclusion programme, SICAP and the positive impact it is having in the community.
In some communities the challenges posed by high levels of deprivation combined with high incidence of criminality have gone beyond the capacity of existing structures to respond, or individual organisations to tackle alone. While many of these communities receive support under DRCD programmes such as SICAP, LEADER, and the CEP, it is apparent that there are a number of communities across the country where additional, more intensive support is required.
To this end, €2 million in funding was secured to design and implement a new programme aimed at specifically targeting area-based deprivation through a community development approach.
The Empowering Communities Programme (ECP) aims to enhance access community access to key services, and empower local communities to craft their own response to area based poverty, social exclusion and the resulting consequences, with the support of the relevant Local Community Development Committee (LCDC).
Launched by Minister O’Brien in June 2022, the programme initially focussed on 14 small areas experiencing significant disadvantage, identified using the Pobal HP deprivation index and with regard to geographic spread. The programme was extended in 2023 to include Cherry Orchard.
The DARA Project is drug free Community Employment structured day programme for people in recovery from substance misuse.
It was first established in Sep 2013 and was identified through service user involvement as a need for Co. Kildare. It first operated in Kildare town, yet moved to Athy, Co. Kildare some years ago.
The project provides a range of supports to people who have become drug free. It empowers each person to reach their full potential. The DARA project believes that recovery from addiction is possible for all who seek it. The project aim to support, empower and equip each person to live a drug free life. It endeavours to help all our participants become mentally sound, emotionally balanced, socially adjusted, physically well, and spiritually alive.
The Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP) is our country’s primary social inclusion intervention.
It is a national programme delivered with funding in excess of €220 million over a six-year period from 2018 to 2023. The SICAP budget for 2023 is €44.3 million.
SICAP is managed locally by 33 Local Community Development Committees (LCDCs) with support from Local Authorities. SICAP is delivered on the ground by 46 Local Development Companies (LDC’s) across 51 areas (Lots).
The aim of SICAP is to reduce poverty and promote social inclusion and equality in Ireland through supporting communities and individuals using community development approaches, engagement and collaboration.
A Public Participation Network (PPN) is a network for Community and Voluntary, Social Inclusion and Environmental groups in each local authority area.
PPNs provide the voice of the community for local authority boards and committees. Where a local authority requires a representative from the community to sit on their boards or committees such as Strategic Policy Committees or Local Development (LCDCs), they must source this representative from the PPN.
Membership of a PPN is open to all volunteer-led/not-for-profit groups in a local authority area. Over 18,600 groups nationwide are currently members of a PPN.
The department has been working with stakeholders on a consultative basis to develop a Roadmap of actions to guide any changes that may be made to how PPNs are structured.
This process was not limited to the recommendations made by Mazars in the structural review report, but has included further ideas and recommendations prompted by the report and by stakeholders’ experiences.
The department established a Working Group which includes PPN staff and volunteers, civil society groups, local authorities and relevant government department.
The draft Roadmap has been prepared by the Working Group. A consultation will be carried out over the coming weeks to give stakeholders one last opportunity to input into/raise concerns about the actions in the Roadmap before it is finalised.
The Working Group will remain in place to oversee the implementation of the Roadmap once finalized, and represent the voice of the PPN community in this process.
The department ran a public awareness campaign which was developed in consultation with PPN stakeholders. The campaign ran from 21 February to 31 March 2023, with radio and social media ads and articles published in a range of national and regional media.
Figures concerning the reach and success of the campaign were presented to the PPN communications sub-group on 10 May, including:
County Kildare Social Inclusion Week has become an annual event, running since 2017.
It offers opportunities for services, organisations, community groups and educators from across the County to showcase the work they do and to welcome new members. Kildare has many initiatives that support individuals and communities affected by issues which can lead to social exclusion, such as poverty, unemployment, homelessness, disabilities, and migrant re-location; Social Inclusion Week fosters greater awareness of these services and supports and how to access them.
Climate Action weekend has been running in Kildare since 2020. It has proven to be an extremely popular event addressing educational gaps and events which engage people of all ages.
Kildare PPN’s Climate Action Weekend covers topics ranging from health and wellbeing to biodiversity, local food production, recycling and sustainable energy production to list but a few.
This weekend sees Kildare PPN collaborate with member groups to ensure that the event is inclusive and meeting the needs of everyone in the county.
Kildare Public Participation Network along with Kildare County Council ran an event in November 2022 called “Working Together for Public Participation”. It was the first in a number of planned events to improve the collaboration and share information between Kildare PPN and Kildare County Council.
On Monday 15 May, Kildare PPN will brief all attendees on the upcoming County Wellbeing Statements/workshops which will be held later this year.
Kildare VC continued to embed the National Volunteering Strategy (NVS) in its operational and strategic plans while also pivoting to address the Ukrainian crisis which started to unfold in March of that year.
Kildare Volunteer Centre promotes, supports and encourages organisations whose activities involve volunteer, particularly those in their local area and community.
Kildare Volunteer Centre operates the Community Volunteer Programme on the full service and receives additional funding to run the programme.
Kildare Volunteer Centre has hosted a number of events to support displace Ukraine’s, some of these events include: