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Minister of State at the Department of Rural and Community Development, Joe O’Brien, today (Monday, 13 February) officially launched the North Tipperary Development Company’s (NTDC) Strategic Plan 2021-2025.
The strategy’s vision is to provide financial, social, organisational and personal support to communities, enterprises and individuals in rural and urban North Tipperary. This will assist them in maximising their sustainable potential and enhance the quality of life of all who live and work in the area.
Speaking at the launch Minister O’Brien said:
“I am delighted to visit North Tipperary and to launch your Strategic Plan, which lays out what will no doubt be excellent work by NTDC in future years. I am confident that you will achieve the goals set out in this plan and build on the work that you are already doing in communities in North Tipperary and the surrounding areas. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank all those working with NTDC for all the extra work and effort during the pandemic, and the current response to the arrival of those from Ukraine. You are making a real difference to the lives of many people.”
The focus of the new NTDC Strategic Plan is on four areas - Community, Inclusion, Sustainability and Impact.
Chairperson of NTDC Jim Finn expanded on this:
“It’s about how we nurture our community, how we ensure that all are included, how we not only develop but sustain our service in the face of new challenges and how we will make an impact, especially in areas of work that are new to us.”
Paying tribute to support of the funding departments and partner agencies, he added:
“Our journey is interdependent with and intertwined with our funders and partners – Department of Rural and Community Development, Department of Social Protection and Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Tipperary County Council, Tipperary ETB, Teagasc, Tusla, HSE, Tipperary Energy Agency and An Garda Síochána.”
The Minister then visited Roscrea’s Direct Provision Centre, Corville House, where he was introduced to some of the residents who shared their experiences.
The next stop in the Minister’s itinerary was to participate in a run with a group of Sanctuary Runners in the Town Park, Borrisokane. This group bring communities together, extending invitations to run, walk or jog regardless of nationality, legal status, gender or religion.
Minister O’Brien finished his day at Borrisokane’s Independent Living Centre for Asylum Seekers where he met with the residents of the centre and representatives from the local community. Before departing Borrisokane, the Minister was given a tour of an apartment in the Borrisokane Independent Living Centre.
SICAP, the government’s primary social inclusion programme, aims to reduce poverty and promote social inclusion and equality through supporting communities and individuals via community development, engagement, and collaboration.
SICAP supports communities and target groups to engage with relevant stakeholders developing the capacity of Local Community Groups (2646 LCGs supported in 2021) and creating more sustainable communities.
SICAP supports disadvantaged individuals (26,483 individuals supported in 2021) to improve the quality of their lives through the provision of lifelong learning and labour market supports.
Funding of over €44 million has been allocated to the programme as part of Budget 2023. An additional €10 million in funding has been secured for delivery of SICAP and the community response to support people arriving from Ukraine.
SICAP is funded by the Department of Rural and Community Development and co-funded by the European Social Fund (ESF) under the Programme for Employability, Inclusion and Learning (PEIL) 2014 – 2021.
North Tipperary Development Company (NTDC) is a community-led local development company operating primarily within the Nenagh and Templemore Thurles Municipal District Areas though it is also involved in some projects which extend beyond these areas.
NTDC is responsible for the delivery of a range of rural enterprise, social inclusion, and community development initiatives in the North Tipperary County area.
NTDC’s motto is “We meet you where you are and help you get to where you want to go”.
NTDC works with representatives from communities, state agencies and many other stakeholders to improve the lives of local people and serve as a bridge between the local community, the State, and the private sector.
The strategy sets out a roadmap for NTDC for the period 2021-2025. The strategy’s vision is to provide financial, social, organisational and personal support to communities, enterprises and individuals in rural and urban North Tipperary to assist them in maximising their sustainable potential and in order to enhance the quality of life of all who live and work in the area it serves.
NTDC has 65 staff and 220 scheme workers operating social inclusion, community development, employment, enterprise, personal development, environment and energy programmes across North Tipperary.
These also include childcare, youth services, training, job supports, enterprise supports and grants, counselling and family supports, health and wellbeing classes, domestic abuse supports and older person services.