Minister praises Offaly community groups and charities for 'magnificent effort' during Pandemic

THE magnificent effort and the invaluable assistance from community groups and charities was highlighted during an official visit to West Offaly on Thursday last.

Minister for Community Development and Charities Joe O’Brien visited community and voluntary groups in the region, during which he warmly thanked the local groups for their wonderful efforts during the pandemic.

The Minister visited four different locations, including Ard Aoibhinn in Mountbolus, Fiesta Hall Kilcormac, Faithful Fields Kilcormac and a Direct Provision project.

“I was particularly glad to visit the Ard Aoibhinn Centre in Mountbolus village,” he told the press afterwards, “where I met with the team providing the Meals on Wheels service to the local community as well as a weekly Social Food event - which was in full swing when I visited. It was also of particular interest to me in my role as Chair of a government Working Group on Food Poverty.

“The role of volunteers in the pandemic was particularly important and I’m delighted that tomorrow I will be officially opening the Offaly Volunteer Centre. This means we will have a better resourced focal point for volunteerism in Offaly and it means we will be able to offer people interested in volunteering a more structured and supported experience and indeed likewise for organisations who are interested in engaging volunteers.”

The Minister added that the government might engage with community and voluntary groups in Offaly (and across Ireland) in terms of the nation’s response to refugees from Ukraine.

“The Government is currently developing its response to how we are going to welcome and support refugees from Ukraine. The pandemic has further shown us what a key partner the community and voluntary sector is in times of crisis. And indeed the sector is already responding to the current crisis. I think it’s likely we will be further engaging with the community and voluntary sector across the country in terms of developing a whole of society response to refugees arriving from Ukraine.”

The Minister was met by Annette Meacle and Cllr John Leahy of Mid-Offaly Housing Association at Ard Aoibhinn. Annette is Chairperson of Mid-Offaly Housing Association and she said the role of the Association is to develop, offer, maintain and manage social housing for people in need in the greater Offaly area. She said Ard Aoibhinn was opened in 1991 and 90 residents are housed there. Many of them are living in 22 houses which surround a community centre. The minister visited this community centre where he saw the Social Food event.

Cllr Leahy said the Minister was looking at the benefits of schemes such as the Community Employment Scheme and the Rural Social Scheme, initiatives which are vital in communities.

“The community centre's activities are greatly appreciated by those using them. They come here for music, a social, a bit of chat.”

Annette said a Lunch Club also meets in the Centre once a week, another deeply appreciated event in people's lives.
Cllr Leahy said that with the easing of Covid restrictions the return of these social occasions means a massive amount to people. Annette said twelve of the houses surrounding the Centre are being lived in by OAPs.

“There are also four new houses on the village's main street,” she added, “and three other houses out the country.” The Chairperson said there's an Acquired Brain Injury rehab facility in Ard Aoibhinn as well.

Cllr Leahy commented that the government is very positively disposed towards essential schemes such as the CE and the RSS, which could mean more upgrading, more improvements, to the schemes.

Minister O’Brien also visited Green Offaly, meeting its members at Fiesta Hall in Kilcormac. Green Offaly is involved in a €1.4 million project which will transform the Hall into a Green Headquarters for the region. The proposed transformation of Fiesta Hall is a Just Transition funded project. The Minister also met members of the Offaly Public Participation Network (PPN) at the Hall. (The PPN is a network which allows the local authority to connect with community groups).

Rebekah Keaveny, Project Development Officer of Green Offaly, told The Tribune that the Fiesta Hall project aims to facilitate the Green Regeneration of Offaly through the involvement of the people who live and work in the county.

Rebekah said Green Offaly is working in partnership with Offaly Local Development Company (OLDC) to deliver two key goals in OLDC's 17-goal plan. These two goals are – Creating sustainable communities; and combatting climate change.

She said Green Offaly and OLDC are focussed on transitioning Offaly to meet “both the ambitious decarbonisation targets of 2050 and the full implementation of Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. Achieving these ambitious goals is going to mean that we will all have to take partnership working to an unprecedented level. It is reassuring to know that such effective partnerships for the goals are already embedded here in Offaly.”

Róisín Lennon, Rural Development Team Leader of Offaly Local Development Company, told the Tribune that the Fiesta Hall project is in the planning process. It's expected that the project will get planning permission during the first quarter of 2022, and the building work should start during the second quarter of 2022. It's hoped the revamped premises will open its doors to the public by the second or third quarter of 2023.

There will be a coffee shop at the front of the building. Offaly's new Green Headquarters will be devoted to climate action research, green business enterprises and sustainability training programmes. Bridie Costello of Green Offaly emphasised that the Green Headquarters will be very much a community-focussed enterprise.

Rebekah said one exciting project could be seeking UNESCO Biosphere status for Offaly's peatland region. She cited the fantastic success story of the Galloway and Southern Ayrshire Biosphere in Scotland. This special designation means that the areas chosen have been recognised internationally as a world class environment for people and nature. It recognises an area's fantastic array of landscapes, wildlife, cultural heritage and learning opportunities; all qualities which communities, businesses and visitors can experience and celebrate in a sustainable way. Biosphere status brings no new rules or regulations but rather encourages people to work together to create a better future for people and nature.

Minister O'Brien continued to Faithful Fields, Offaly GAA’s Centre of Excellence, where he met the Secretary of Offaly County Board and those participating in the Rural Social Scheme (RSS) and TÚS scheme who maintain the grounds that provide a range of high quality facilities for training and games, as well as a walking track for use by the community. Cllr Leahy told the Tribune that the Faithful Fields wouldn't survive without the Rural Social Scheme and the TÚS scheme. He praised the six workers under the RSS and TÚS who do such excellent work in the maintenance of the grounds and building.
Finally, on Thursday, the Minister visited an activity project for Asylum Seeker Direct Provision Centre residents funded under SICAP (Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme). He met with Community Development Workers who have been assisting residents integrate into the community and helping them overcome barriers that prevent them getting jobs.
The next day, Friday March 4th, Minister O'Brien spoke at the ILDN (Irish Local Development Network) Council meeting at the Tullamore Court Hotel before formally opening the new Offaly Volunteer Centre in Tullamore.