The work goes on - Southill's day of action on drugs

- COMMUNITY WORK ON THE GROUND

- 100 ATTEND DRUGS INFO DAY IN SOUTHILL

- Limerick, June 23rd, 2010

The Local and Community Development Programme is due to take off by the end of this year - the structures are being argued over up and down of the country - and in the meantime the work on the ground in communities continues.

Southill CDP in Limerick today brought together 12 staff from 10 agencies involved in anti-drugs work for a public information day on drugs.

A lot of parents brought along their children to see what drugs look like, so they would recognise the dangers when confronted by the real thing.

'Changing Ireland' met a mother of an eight-year-old concerned about the way schoolchildren are being targeted. She was determined to educate her child before it was too late. Others sought advice on the day from Slainte, Aljeff, North Star, Cuan Mhuire, Victory Outreach from Cork and others on the way through addiction.

Caroline Keane is a community-based Drugs Education Worker and she says alcohol and nicotine are the most widely used drugs in Southill.

She was pleased at the end of the day: "We had 100 local people along today and 30 of them signed up for training." The training includes joining a Community Addiction Studies course starting in September.

Group photo above: John Hehir, Denise McNamara and Zoe Hehir who

attended the drugs information day and organiser Caroline Keane.

Photos below: Close-up shots of of patches from the North Star quilt. Each patch is in memory of someone who died before their time.

This report is the beginning in a series showing how local work around the country continues, while policy makers, politicians and community activists seek at the same time to influence the shape and structure of the new Local and Community Development Programme.

You can also follow us on Facebook!

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Contribute ideas, suggestions, comments and stir debate on community issues and community work.

In recent work via facebook, we have worked alongside members of the facebook site 'Hands Off Community Development' and Pavee Point to counteract racist websites. Two anti-Traveller sites (here's what one of the offensive sites looked like) were removed by facebook after presssure from activists and concerned citizens.

It was a case of every cloud having a silver lining. Community workers and volunteers came together on facebook to work together to fight cutbacks and thanks to that coming together they were in a position to force facebook to close down the racist websites.

Meanwhile, it's time this blog was brought to life once more. Feedback welcome.

28 pages of news, debate and updates - OUR LATEST EDITION!

Yes, the latest 'Changing Ireland' is out and it features:
- 6 pages of Sector news
- A Community Work report from Palestine
- Volunteering while unemployed
- New Programme: news, debate & updates on the new Local and Community Development Programme
- Social Enterprise Offers A Real Solution for Ireland

- An interview with former Community Minister Eamon O'Cuiv
- Plus letters to our agony uncle Help Me Horace!
HEY, WHAT DO YOU THINK OF IT? ANY STORY IDEAS FOR OUR SUMMER EDITION?
THANKS TO everyone who contributed to the current edition and to those who suggested ideas and/or critical advice.

A good book to ask your library to buy -

If you’re looking for new perspectives on youthwork in Ireland, then a new journal maps out new thinking on this area of work.

‘Youth and Community Work in Ireland: Critical Perspectives’ was published recently by lecturers from Cork.

It is currently the only text that covers the theory and practice of youth and community work in Ireland.

The authors aim with the book to reach a broad audience including workers, volunteers, students, policy makers and academics in youth and community work and related fields.

It is, they say, “a key text for youth and community work degrees and related programmes in universities and colleges and a resource for youth and community work groups, organisations and projects.”

For more information and to buy a copy – or indeed to ask your local library to purchase your copy – log onto the publishers website Blackhall Publishing.

The authors Catherine Forde, Rosie Meade and Elizabeth Kiely are lecturers in the Department of Applied Social Studies in University College Cork and have published widely on youth and community work.

14 CDPs lose funding following review

14 CDPs are to lose funding following a review by the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs. 13 are in Dublin and one in Clonmel, Co. Tipperary.

The Community Development Project Appeals Board report, released on Friday, January 29th, said issues considered in the review included the “identification of potential for achieving improved efficiencies”.

For more, check our main website's homepage for relevant links. You can also read the 'Irish Times' report on the review body's decision.