Community Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Community Development

Helen O’Sullivan and PJ Murphy representing IRD Duhallow at the OECD Local Development Forum Local Initiatives Market Place event in Cork City Hall.

Community Elections

The Board of IRD Duhallow consists of 25 voluntary directors. Of this 25, 8 seats are reserved for community representation. Each of the 4 regions, North Eastern, South Eastern, Western & Mid Cork all have 2 seats allocated to them. This structure allows for the democratic election of community volunteers who have an interest in sitting on a LDC board and also allows a great spread of community activists from all across Duhallow. We would like to take this opportunity to thank Annette O’Mahony for her term on the Board representing North Eastern Duhallow and we welcome Paul Murphy to the Board from Newmarket.

Discover Duhallow

Discover Duhallow is produced by a small team and circulated every second Friday. 4,000 copies are sent out across the region, and the focus is on Duhallow, its news, and its residents. The magazine is also placed online and boasts a readership across a number of countries. Community is the focus of each piece, and everyone within Duhallow is encouraged to send in their news – nothing is too small. During Christmas, the team released a bumper edition that included everything from photos sent by the community to a pull out Christmas recipe book. Social media has become a part of the effort to reach the community, and this has proved beneficial to both the team and the community.

Smart Villages

Smart Villages are communities in rural areas that use innovative solutions to improve their resilience, building on local strengths and opportunities. They rely on a participatory approach to develop and implement their strategy to improve their economic, social and/or environmental conditions. Smart Villages benefit from cooperation and alliances with other communities and actors in rural and urban areas. IRD Duhallow in conjunction with Kilkenny Partnership and Galway Rural Development Company came together to develop an inter territorial project to develop a curriculum for Smart Village training. The tender was awarded to ETownz and through this programme a number of communities have taken part in the pilot programme, where they learnt the skills to develop their SMART village strategy. This will now be rolled out across all communities in Duhallow in the Autumn of 2022.

The Discover Duhallow Team of Tadgh Curtin and Caleb O’Connor who design the community magazine inhouse and work closely with local communities and businesses for content. Community representatives with PJ Murphy of IRD Duhallow taking part in the LEADER funded SMART Villages Training Programme

Community Food Initiatives

A Community Food Initiative Box of ingredients received by families as part of Remote Cookery Programme. The CFI Programme encourages participants to closely follow the recipe as part of the Programme

IRD Duhallow was one of 14 initiatives to receive funding through safefood’ s Community Food Initiatives (CFI) 20192021; the aim of the CFI programme was to positively influence the eating habits of families with children in lowincome communities. The CFI programme uses a community development approach in promoting availability and access to healthy foods. IRD Duhallow helped families make healthy food choices, learn about preparing fresh food and create healthy rituals around the consumption of food ultimately bringing families together to lead happier healthier lives. IRD Duhallow held a 3week Healthy Eating Practices Webinar Series covering topics such as Trying New Foods and Establishing Eating Rituals, Mindful Eating and Food Waste Reduction, Meal Planning, Savvy Shopping & Budgeting Tips. As well as supporting 24 families through two 4 week Remote Cookery Programmes where families received all ingredients, recipes, videos and support required for 3 meals a week.

LEADER 2014-2020 in Duhallow

Maura Walsh, CEO of IRD Duhallow cutting the ribbon with Brian Maloney of Taurbeg Windfarm at the official opening of the LEADER funded Rockchapel playground.

The 2014-2020 programme is now complete, and we have entered our second year of interim funding from EURI and the Irish exchequer. We have been fortunate that the government has recognised the need to continue to provide funding for the Local Development companies, but unlike previous programmes, funding has been allocated for projects also during this period of interregnum.

IRD Duhallow ’ s LEADER 14-20 budget consisted in total of €3.6m across our three LEADER LAG areas of South Cork, North Cork and Kerry. While all funds are now committed, we are continuing to work with promoters to complete projects and get the grants paid out.

We have some budget remaining in interim funding and our Development Officers are working with communities and local business to complete the programme requirements and submit their applications.

Evaluation of LEADER

The European Commission carried out an evaluation of the Impact of LEADER on Balanced Territorial Development for the programme period 2014-2020. The findings highlighted that LEADER:

• Is an effective programme for local development • Helps social development • Contributed to the green development • Adds value through its involvement with local actors.

The evaluation highlights that the seven features of LEADER foster a uniquely integrated, relevant and coherent approach to local development. These key features are; Bottom Up, Area Based, Local Action Group Partnership, Integrated, Networking, Innovation and Cooperation are required. The evaluation found that“Local level decisionmaking was essential to LEADER and required independence, balance and operational clarity that was not always given to LAGs by Managing Authorities. Case studies and surveys show LEADER features were implemented more effectively and with greater impact where LAGs had sufficient autonomy to tailor measures and funding conditions to meet local needs. A good balance of actors in LAG governance was vital: where this was compromised (for example in Romania, and with concerns raised in Ireland), project scope and impact were limited. Achieving wide participation, via application of the bottom-up principle and local animation, was important. A large proportion of LAG survey responses and all case studies showed LEADER enabled participation by actors who would otherwise not be involved in developing their territory. Networking was identified as the most effective mechanism to stimulate social benefits. The LAG survey and case studies showed a clear correlation between LEADER’ s reported effectiveness and LAGs ’ ability to apply the seven LEADER features. Lower implementation of any single feature reduced LAGs ’ effectiveness. ”

In Ireland there are only four independent LAGs in the current programme, with the majority, including Duhallow in County Council Sub Committees, while the Programme for Government commits to independent LAG.s.

Knocknagree Community Playground Group members Yvonne Brosnan, Mairead O’ Sullivan and Noreen McSweeney at the signing of their contract in IRD Duhallow Offices, with Cllr Bernard Moynihan, Chair of North Cork LAG and Triona Dennehy, IRD Duhallow Deputy Matt Carthy, Sinn Fein spokesperson for Agriculture with Liadh Ni Riada visited the offices of IRD Duhallow last December. We got the opportunity to discuss many issues including the need for Local Development Companies to be reinstated as the LAG for the implementation of LEADER across the county. Pictured with staff members Eileen Linehan, Maura Walsh, Triona Dennehy and Board members Padraic O’ Connell and Michael Twohig.

LEADER 2021-2027

The Rockchapel Community Council paid tribute to IRD Duhallow with a list of all the LEADER funded projects in the village since 2010. Maura Walsh CEO with Development Officer and new Rockchapel resident, Louise Bourke Curtin!

Planning for the next LEADER programme is well underway at National and EU level. While our government and Minister acknowledge the major contribution of Local Development Companies in the delivery and rollout of the LEADER Programme to date and the fact that LEADER is a key intervention in rural Ireland, the funding continues to fall short of what is required for a sustainable rural Ireland.

LEADER 2014-2020 in Duhallow

Minister Heather Humphries, with staff from North Cork LCDC, IRD Duhallow Board member Michael Twohig and staff member Eileen Linehan on her recent trip to Duhallow. The Minister visited a number of projects funded by the LEADER programme including Kanturk Playground.

An indicative budget of €180 million has been allocated to the LEADER Programme for the 2023-2027 period as part of the new CAP Strategic Plan. This is less than half the amount sought by ILDN, our National Network from the Department and would mean a further halving of LEADER funds nationally.

24 of the 27 LAGs in Ireland are LCDC’ s, Local Development Committees which are sub committees of the County Councils. This has chipped away at the LEADER ethos, something that is central to its success and importance in rural areas. IRD Duhallow as a member of ILDN our National Network, has been pressing for the reinstatement of Local Development Company ’ s as the independent LAG. Further validation of this requirement, is The European Commission ’ s feedback to the Minister for Agriculture on Ireland’ s CAP submission for the next round of funding, and ILDN has highlighted the following issues for LEADER which were raised by the Commission:

LEADER funded training in the recording of stories associated with the historical graveyards of Duhallow is currently ongoing in local communities, with many interesting accounts being documented. Trainee Mr. John Sheehan, is interviewed on camera speaking in relation to the historical graves of Clonmeen Graveyard, Banteer. Also pictured are fellow trainee Mr. Paddy Buckley and project tutor Mr. John Tierney.

Obv188.

“Ireland is requested to ensure that all the principles of the LEADER approach will be put into practice. LAG structure currently is a sub-committee of the local authority.

OBV 194. The Commission has also invited Ireland ‘to set out the delivery mechanism more clearly, detailing the tasks of the local action groups, the Managing Authority and the Paying Agency.

OBV 192-193. Ireland is also invited to explain ‘how it will be ensured that each Local Action Group brings forward innovation in the local context’ and ‘how it will be ensured that each Local Action Group participates in networking and cooperation (at national or transnational level). ’

OBV 187. The Commission has invited Ireland “to explain the added value - in terms of building social capital, improving local governance and achieving better projects/results - that LEADER is expected to generate in Ireland, compared to a situation where similar projects would be funded without using the LEADER approach. ”

Billy Dennehy and John F O’ Connor at the Kiskeam Walking trail which was partially funded under the LEADER programme Members of Kanturk Community Astroturf Committee at their fundraising draw that was held to raise funds for the new Astroturf Development

All of these observations by the Commission support the need for a return to independent LAGs.

OBV 17.

“With regard to the CAP’ s general objective of strengthening the socioeconomic fabric of rural areas, Ireland is invited to reflect on whether the budgetary resources and the instruments proposed are in line with the high number of needs identified and whether other policies outside the CAP are called to contribute.

The small budget earmarked for Ireland’ s LEADER Programme has been highlighted to our government over the past few years, including the 201420 programme which represented a 70% cut in funding for Duhallow compared to the 07-13 programming period.

Despite the challenges of budgets and structures, IRD Duhallow continues to work with our communities and businesses to support them to identify the potential of their area and facilitate and support them in accessing funding, through animation and capacity building. The next round of LEADER has a focus on the concept of Smart Villages.

Duhallow Gymnastics, located in Newmarket was supported by LEADER funding to purchase additional gymnastics equipment. This LEADER enterprise grant will allow Duhallow Gymnastics to grow its membership, create new jobs in the town, and enable local children to experience the many health benefits of gymnastics. The club was originally established in 2014 and has grown from strength to strength and this expansion will allow them to meet the huge demand for gymnastics in the Duhallow region.