Community and Enterprise

The various programmes delivered e.g. the Urban and Village Renewal Programme, CLÁR Urban Enhancement Programme, the PEACE II County Council led Task Force involve local communities in the economic and social regeneration of their areas through partnership and consultation.

It also assisted in the further development of the Community Forum, and increased its involvement in cooperating with other agencies to work for the socio economic development of the county through its involvement with the RAPID Programme, Team Sligo, County Childcare Committee, the Sports Partnership, County Enterprise Board, Sligo LEADER Partnership and other working groups and committees.

The Office of Community & Enterprise is also involved in the areas of Tourism Development, Tidy Towns and the provision and maintenance of Burial Grounds. During 2003 confirmation of funding from the Department of Communications, Marine & Natural Resources for the design and construction of a fibre ring on a phased basis around Sligo Town. The possibility of providing wireless broadband to other towns in the county is also being explored.

COMMUNITY AND VOLUNTARY

Sector Grant Scheme 2003

Sligo County Council provided an allocation of €50,000 for the Community & Voluntary Grant Scheme in 2003. The Scheme assisted community-based projects carried out during the year under the following headings:

• General Public Interest
• Events
• Activities
• Cultural and heritage developments projects
• Tidy towns/Village enhancement projects
• Enhancement of graveyards

The Community & Voluntary Grant Scheme 2003 attracted 97 valid applications of which 72 were allocated funds. The applicants were from a wide and varied selection of community and voluntary organisation working in the county. The level of interest and numbers of applications received during 2003 shows the high levels of community and voluntary activity in the county. It is hoped that the Grant Scheme can grow and develop over the coming years and continue to support the valued work of community and voluntary activities in the county.

The following applications were recommended for funding under the Community and Voluntary Sector Grant Scheme 2003:

Sligo Community Forum

Sligo Community Forum, established in March 2000, is a representative body of community groups and voluntary organisations active and operating in County Sligo. It provides a platform for affiliated community and voluntary groups to exchange information, share experiences, and work collectively to voice issues and concerns relating to economic, social and cultural development of the county.

Some of the many Community Forum activities in 2003 included:

• Official launch of the County Community Forum and the Funding Directory.
• Organisation and facilitating of area meetings around the county to build up the participation of Community Groups in the Forum and to discuss issues relevant to local groups.
• The development of a communication action strategy to keep community groups informed of the work the Forum is carrying out on their behalf.
• Working with various agencies to increase the number of Community Development Programmes in the County.
• Continue the Community & Voluntary representation on various County Committees.

Comhairle na nÓg

As part of Sligo County Development Board’s role in co-ordinating the implementation of the National Children’s Strategy within the county, a Comhairle na nÓg or Young Persons Dáil was held on the 8th May, 2003. The purpose of the Comhairle na nÓg was to

• Select representation to attend the 2003 Dáil na nÓg (ages 12-17). This took place in November, 2003. Dáil na Páisti (ages 7-12) will take place in 2004.
• Consult with children on issues of local and national importance.
• Facilitate the establishment of permanent structures in the Sligo area to ensure that children are given a voice in matters that affect them.

Invitations to attend Comhairle na nÓg were forwarded to all primary and secondary schools in county Sligo. The event was a huge success with 133 representatives from 15 national and 8 secondary schools from around the county.

The first part of the event took place in Council Chamber where the Cathaoirleach welcomed the delegates. Delegates were given a presentation on the functions and role of the council members and the services provided by Sligo County Council.

The second part of the event took place at St. Anne’s Youth Centre. The participants were divided into seven groups/workshops facilitated by staff of the Sligo County Council, Sligo County Childcare Committee and independent facilitators. Discussion took place regarding issues of importance to the youth of Sligo County.

Selection of Students - to attend national Comhairle na nÓg/ Dáil na nÓg

The selection process was devised by the students participating in the initiative. Each group selected the person whom they thought would best represent Sligo at a national level, this was done by secret ballot.

The Representatives/delegates selected to represent Sligo at Dáil na nÓg were:

The Representatives/delegates selected to represent Sligo at Dáil na Páistí were:

Dáil na nÓg

Dáil na nÓg is the National Youth Parliament of Ireland, and forms part of the National Children’s Strategy “Our Children - Their Lives” which was launched by An Taoiseach Mr Bertie Ahern in November 2000. The key objective of the Strategy is to improve the quality of children’s lives in Ireland over the ten years from 2000 to 2010. The first goal of the Strategy is to give children a voice in matters which affect them. Dáil na nÓg is a measure identified in the Strategy to progress this goal. The delegates will let the decision makers in the Government know what they think of issues that affect their daily lives.

A formal invitation was extended to the Sligo representatives by Mr Brian Lenihan, TD, Minister of State with Special Responsibility for Children.

The four Secondary School students Blaíthín Gallagher, Ruth Feeney, Aoife Cawley, and John Bell attended the third sitting of Dail na nÓg on 15th November, accompanied by Marie Brennan from the Community and Enterprise Department of Sligo County Council. The ‘Dail’ convened in the Hogan Stand Conference Centre, Croke Park Stadium. Minister Lenihan and other Government Ministers were in attendance on the day.

Views of delegates from Sligo

Dáil na nÓg was a day to remember. It was very motivating and views and opinions were listened to and taken on board. The delegates had the chance to discuss the problems and issues of concern to them and they felt that for the first time as young people the government acknowledged the valuable input they can make. The main points discussed were Alcohol and Drug Abuse and Educational Disadvantage. Following this programme the students are confident that their views, opinions and solutions are taken into account in shaping the future of Ireland.

Tidy Towns

Each year a number of communities in Sligo take part in the national Tidy Towns competition, which is organised by the Department of the Environment Heritage and Local Government. The principal sponsor of the competition is SuperValu.

County Awards

Best Town/Village in the county

Coolaney once again received the award for securing the highest mark in the county.

Riverstown was highly commended.

Ballintogher was commended.

SuperValu Endeavour Award

This award is presented to acknowledge the town or village in each county which has made the greatest improvement on its performance over last year. In 2003 the winner was Ballymote.

Best Shopfront Awards

Mullarkey’s, Banada-Tourlestrane was awarded the regional award for making the best effort to preserve a traditional shopfront.

The local groups who carry out the work in each village are extremely committed to the betterment of their area and in recognition of this effort Sligo County Council provides a fund under the Community & Voluntary Grants scheme to assist them in their efforts.

The Overall results of Towns and Villages throughout Sligo were:

Telecommunications and Broadband

In 2003 Sligo County Council received confirmation of funding from the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources for the design and construction of a fibre ring or Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) on a phased basis around Sligo Town.

Phase 1 will include the design of an entire MAN’s network and a staged construction (stage 1 not exceed 5KM) around Sligo Town.

Phase 2 will include the construction of the remainder of the network.

The design of the network will link up all of the main business and technology parks, educational institutions, hospitals, libraries and major demand beneficiaries etc. The MAN network will also incorporate a co-location facility or POP Centre (Point of Presence) an interconnect point for national and global carriers.

The approximate cost of Phase 1 of this project will be in the region of €1m-€1.5m.

The design of the network will commence in February 2004. Actual construction of the MAN’s should commence in mid 2004 with estimated completion time of the 5KM network in Autumn 2004.

Wireless Broadband

Initiatives are underway to provide wireless broadband to a number of rural towns in the county.

Under the CLÁR initiative the towns of Enniscrone and Tubbercurry are being addressed, while ICBAN is making an application for funding under INTERREG II for the provision of wireless broadband for rural towns for which Ballymote is included in Sligo.

Sligo County Development Board

Integrated Economic Social and Cultural Strategy for county Sligo (2002-2012)

Sligo CDB launched its integrated strategy in Economic, Social & Cultural Development in April 2002. The Strategy is founded on extensive and widespread consultation and drew on the expertise of representatives from the various State Agencies, the Social Partners, and the Community & Voluntary Sector over a two-year period. The County Development Board held five meetings in 2003 and four implementation working group meetings, the implementation working groups were set up to monitor the implementation of the Strategy. The Office of Community & Enterprise also organised three training days for CDB members and key individuals within the different stakeholder agencies on the Cora project management/project vision software system.

Key Goals of the CDB Strategy include:

• The development of a critical mass of infrastructure.
• Developments in enterprise, industry, agriculture, retail and tourism that maximise opportunities and employment potential in an environmentally sustainable way.
• The development of a co-ordinated and multiagency approach in tackling the structural and attitudinal barriers surrounding social inclusion.
• The promotion of Sligo’s cultural life while balancing accessibility and development with the need to protect and preserve the county’s heritage and unique environment.

TeleCommunication Advisory Working Group

An interagency approach has been taken to the development of broadband in Sligo. In this regard Sligo County Council has taken a lead role in

• Securing funding for the initial construction (5km) of a metropolitan area network around Sligo Town.
• Supported the local community of Enniscrone and Killala in their bid for wireless broadband.
• Supported Tubbercurry Chamber of Commerce in its bid for wireless broadband under CLÁR initiative.
• Worked with ICBAN in preparing a cross border proposal for broadband to be submitted under Interreg III Programme.

Team Sligo

Sligo County Development Board established TEAM Sligo in October 2002 to examine how agencies can work in partnership towards improving the “face of Sligo Town” for potential investors and tourists and enhancing civic pride in the area. TEAM Sligo in 2003 set out their activities key outcomes of the plan include:

• Erection of Blue Parking Signs at key location to channel traffic,
• A number of initiatives to create pleasant visual on vacant properties,
• Meeting with fast food outlets to address the night time littering problem,
• A design statement for Sligo town,
• A pilot programme whereby litter wardens can work after hours

2003

With the successful launch of the Integrated Economic, Social and Cultural Strategy for County Sligo in 2002 the focus in 2003 was on developing a structure to monitor and evaluate the implementation of the actions in the plan. A number of training days were organised targeted at CDB members and key individuals within the different stakeholder agencies on the project management/project vision software system designed for the implementation process. To date there has been considerable progress on the implementation of actions within the Strategy with agencies inputting into the system on a regular basis.

Sligo CDB in 2004 will be progressing the new joint Ministerial initiatives introduced to reform and develop best practice in Local Development Agencies. The CDB will be co-ordinating a number of initiatives including the endorsement of local Development agencies annual action plans, developing proposals for improved cohesion/ funding for co-ordinating measures, and developing Integrated Target Group Plans. The CDB in 2004 will be working in partnership with local development agencies on improving and sustaining the quality of services provided to targeted social groups in the county.

Burial Grounds

There are 64 burial grounds in the county under Council control, however there are a number of these where no interments have taken place in recent years. Other areas are experiencing a shortage of space so there is ongoing work in locating land for burial grounds and providing extensions to existing burial grounds. During 2003 work was progressed in relation to providing extensions at a number of burial grounds, including Cloghermore, Calry and Kilglass.

The Council employ a Registrar for each burial ground; The registrars are an invaluable source of information for people who are tracing ancestors or compiling local histories as the records they hold span generations and also contain maps of the graveyards from which individual plots can be identified.

In recent years the increased awareness among local communities of the importance of burial grounds has inspired many burial ground clean-up schemes. The Council, in 2003 provided €10,000 under the Community & Voluntary Grants Scheme to assist local committees in their work, 26 local committees availed of the grant. It is hoped to involve community groups to an even greater extent in the area of burial grounds in future years.