Community groups appeal funding withdrawal

THE MAJORITY of almost 30 community development projects deemed “non-viable” by the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs have appealed the decision to withdraw their funding.

The groups had until yesterday evening to counter the results of a review of performance carried out by the department which found they should no longer be funded.

The department will save €7.1 million on its budget by axing the projects.

Two-thirds of the groups affected by the review come from Dublin, including Traveller support project Pavee Point, the Northwest Inner City Women’s Network and the Crumlin Community Development Project.

Two projects have been dropped in Galway and one each in Monaghan, Tipperary, Clare, Waterford, Cork, Louth and Mayo.

Some 150 other projects around the State will continue to be funded under a new programme, but with altered conditions.

Speaking yesterday, co-ordinator of the Crumlin project Harry Murphy said the community was devastated when they were notified they were “non-viable” last Wednesday.

The project, which services a catchment area of 5,000 people, was receiving funding from the department to rent office space and employ one full-time and two part-time staff. It applied for grants from various other organisations to keep the project operating.

A senior citizen group was run through the project, as well as a youth club, boxing club, women’s group and a family support group. There were also basic support services and training programmes for the unemployed.

“The killing part is they don’t take any heed of the voluntary work done,” Mr Murphy said. “We have helped the community in so many ways. You can’t measure that in money.”

He said there was nothing else in Dublin 12 for people. “I don’t know what will happen if these services go. People will be devastated.”

Mr Murphy questioned the selection process. He said no one came out from the department to assess the work of the project.

“It’s like the way they select a horse in the Grand National; as though they just stuck a pin in a page,” he said.

The Crumlin project has appealed to the department and will know within four weeks if it will get a reprieve.

The Community Workers’ Co-operative, an umbrella body for community development groups, called on Minister of State for Community Affairs John Curran not to withdraw funding to the most disadvantaged communities. Ann Irwin, national co-ordinator of the group, said the review process had been deeply flawed and produced “spurious and inaccurate results”.

“It is not good enough that the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs decides to close projects without even informing them that they were being reviewed,” she said.

In a statement yesterday, Mr Curran said a review was carried out of all projects under the programme and a new programme had been decided.

The aim of the new programme was to tackle poverty and social exclusion. All projects deemed non-viable had the right to appeal, he added.