Kilmore West CDP’S Project Co-Ordinator, Martin Hamilton
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Changing Ireland MAY-JULY ’08 ISSUE 25 The National Magazine of the COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME - funding 182 CDPs & 10 Support Agencies INSIDE e2.25 Cherry Orchard rocks Grateful for the lift Donegal alcohol-free zones Rural transport: it’sThis publication not and mostrocket projects featured inside science are par COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME t of the EDITORIAL Rural Transport is not rocket science RURAL people’s lives have changed for the better due to that the Community Development Programme had a the spread of rural transport schemes. Close to 1,000,000 presence in at least half-a-dozen areas targetted. Some journeys took place through the Rural Transport CDPs remain involved. Programme last year and 76% of those journeys were The Community Services Programme has also been from door-to-door. integral to the scheme’s ability to operate smoothly. Ten The schemes are community-led and community schemes directly benefit from the CSP. managed by local volunteers. The driver is likely to be By the end of this year, the Rural Transport Programme your neighbour. itself will have a presence in every county. It has spread Rural transport has given people with the free travel relatively quickly from a few pilot projects in 2001. We pass something to use the pass on. Some people rely on look in this edition at two CDPs involved in rural transport the new rural services to get to work or to college. Yet, a from the early days and at another CDP that is lobbying significant number of particularly older people take the for a service in their area. In fairness, it’s not rocket bus just for the journey, to meet other people, to feel part science. of a community once again. The Programme has taken on * * * * * a life of its own. This is our 25th issue, a cause for celebration and an During the initial set-up stage some years ago, the local opportune time to say to everyone who has been involved delivery of rural transport schemes was helped by the fact over the years . Thank you! Abaraka! Published by: ‘Changing Ireland’ is published by the Community Development Key focus on: Network, Moyross, Limited, Limerick, Ireland, with funding from the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs. Women, men, Travellers Address: ‘Changing Ireland’, Community Enterprise Centre, Moyross, Limerick. and local communities Tel Editor: 061-458011. Tel Administrator: 061-458090. THE Community Development Programme is currently supporting Fax: 061-325300. 182 projects which can be loosely categorised as follows: E-mail: [email protected] 105 Geographically-based projects [email protected] 22 Traveller projects Website: www.changingireland.ie 33 Women's projects/networks 2 Men's projects/networks Editor: Allen Meagher 20 Other supported organisations Editorial team: Sean McLaughlin, Juan Carlos Azzopardi and Allen Meagher Most of the projects funded by the Programme are Design: PrintZone, Limerick. geographically-focused, for instance, Ballybeg CDP in Waterford Printed by: Walsh Printing Services, Castleisland, Co. Kerry city or North-West Roscommon CDP. The figures are from the Front Cover: Cartoon by Austin Creaven Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, as of April 18th. THANKS TO . ‘Changing Ireland’ thanks everyone involved in the production of Issue 25. DISCLAIMER What CDPs are: The views expressed in this newsletter are those of the author concerned. ‘CHANGING Ireland’ highlights the work of Community Development They do not, by any means, necessarily reflect the views of the Editor, the Projects (CDPs). editorial team, the management committee of the Community Development Network, Moyross, Ltd., or the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht The projects: Affairs. • Have an anti-poverty, anti-exclusion focus and promote the participation of people experiencing poverty and exclusion at all levels of the project. OSS MOYR • Work from community development principles and methods. CED IN ITY RODU MMUN K • Provide support and act as a catalyst for community development P HE CO TWOR BY T NT NE activity. LOPME • Act as a resource in communities. DEVE • Provide co-ordination between community, voluntary and statutory groups in their areas. • Involve representatives of groups which experience poverty and social exclusion in their management committees. changing ireland 2 www.cwn.ie = clondalkin women’s network H I G H L I G H T S Consultation did not work for Supporting community us development Page 4 Pages 16-19 ‘Changing Ireland’ Volunteer profile reaches a landmark Page 5 Pages 20-22 ‘Controversial’ guide launched The Iceberg of Culture Page 6 Page 23 Showing domestic violence Donegal alcohol-free ‘The Door’ zones Page 8 Pages 24-25 Chill out! A volunteer’s life Page 10 Page 26 Latest trends in Rural transport in Ireland development Pages 11-15 Page 28 changing ireland 3 www.cosgallen.com/cdp/ = cosgallen cdp Participation and consultation COMMUNITY participation and consultation will feature as a theme in an edition of ‘Changing Ireland’ later this year when we look at how important participation is, how it works in practice and new ways to approch it. Recently, the management committee of a Community Development Project in Dublin 5 sent us this article, reflecting their experience of poor consultation. The article was written by Kilmore West CDP’s project co-ordinator, Martin Hamilton. He wrote it “to spell out to local and national groups the reality of being ignored in consultation.” Consultation did not work for us - Dublin 5 facilities shifting to Dublin 17 By MARTIN HAMILTON This is madness and makes no sense and is Kilmore West objectionable in that all community groups in IN 2004 this community project was KILMORE West CDP serves a community Kilmore West and the community members in approached by a company, Urban Capital, of just over 7000 residing in 1600 particular have strongly stressed the need for who, amongst other attributes, offer what households. Kilmore West is an estate built local community facilities. can be described as ‘conceptual planning’. in the early 60s on the north-side of Dublin They had been commissioned by Dublin City 5. It has minimal community facilities and POPULATION MAY RISE BY 50% Council to examine the feasibility of a public has been historically neglected. We can expect upwards of 4000 extra residents in this community when the house private partnership to redevelop the lands The few community facilities that do exist came into existence only through the energy building is completed, bringing the population up around the Northside Shopping Centre and and endeavours of local activists over the to a minimum of 11000 residents. Mums and over the main Oscar Traynor road into lands years but even these facilities are now due dads will not allow their kids to travel to Dublin within the Kilmore West estate. for demolition. 17 to access after-school childcare. Happy days: We were delighted because we The Kilmore West area is surrounded by • Imagine the mothers and dads with small believed if the re-development was recommended the estates of Artane & Beaumount on one children and prams negotiating the footbridge and went ahead we could secure much needed side of the busy main Oscar Traynor road to access crèche/childcare. community facilities for Kilmore West. and on the other side by • Senior citizens will be afraid of crime and anti- Following several meetings over the next two Coolock/Clonshaugh estates where the main social behaviour if they have to access facilities years with ‘Urban Capital’ where all active landmark is the ‘North-side Shopping via a footbridge in evening hours. community groups attended, we set out our list of Centre’. Kilmore West CDP was established • Local educational courses that residents are in 1999. requirements for this community should this re- comfortable with will not be ‘local’ and that development go ahead. We stressed the need for special feeling of ‘community’ will be totally a large community centre that would enable accommodation to house a youth project. In fact, diluted and replaced by a concrete jungle that provision of child-care, second chance education, this is only a replacement for accommodation that only stores up social problems for the future. personal development, literacy, programmes for already exists but is located in a large old I could go on and on but am confident that the those with disabilities, services for senior citizens recreation centre that is being demolished to readers of ‘Changing Ireland’ know only too well and so on. make way for some of the house building. that when local authorities and planners say they We had been campaigning for these facilities We had and have made it clear to the planners believe in local democracy, they really mean it, since 2000 and were highly motivated to attend and the local authority that we desperately need providing they are doing the democracing. these ‘consultation’ meetings to ensure the needs proper community facilities in Kilmore West. We Our experience and determination ensures that of this community were heard loud and clear. Fast have attended various ‘consultation’ meetings forward to 2006, the redevelopment was historically and in the recent past and it became we will continue to campaign for local community recommended, plans were drawn up and a scale very clear at these meetings that the local facilities. The main reason for this article is to model of the proposed redevelopment put on authority’s concept of consultation is to tell you spell out to local and national groups the reality public display for observation and comment. The what and where they are going to build and the of being ignored in consultation and we now local authority engaged in what they describe as views of opposition did not matter one jot.