Community Forum

After a year of intensive hard work by its voluntary management Committee, Sligo County Community Forum is proud to confirm that there are now over 580 community and voluntary sector groups affiliated, making it the largest representative body for community and voluntary sector groups in the county.

It is estimated that at least 6000 community activists in the county are now linked into the County Community Forum.

REPRESENTATIONAL ACTIVITIES: LOCAL, REGIONAL AND NATIONAL

The 22 elected/nominated members of the management group have met on a monthly basis throughout 2006, and several subgroups have committed time to ancillary activities including the production of newsletters, production of an updated community directory, continued development of the five area Fora, organising conferences and seminars, recruitment subgroup, as well as participating in:

• County Development Board
• Four Local Authority Strategic Policy Committees
• Sports and Recreation Partnership
• County Childcare Committee
• County Heritage Forum
• Regional Drugs Taskforce
• Volunteer Bureau
• Regional Border Area Forum
• Regional Western Alliance Forum
• Social Inclusion Measures Group
• PEACEII Taskforce
• Play Advisory Forum
• ICBAN – Irish Central Border Area Network – Joining up Development Programme.
• Joint Policing Committee

Two members of Sligo Community Forum were elected to the executive of the National Forum in 2005 and in 2006 were elected to Vice Chairperson and Secretary of the National Forum and they bring regular updates to the local Fora on activities at National level.

Nominations from all community and voluntary groups in County Sligo were sought in November 2006 and elections subsequently took place throughout the county to form a new committee.

POLICY WORKER AND SUPPORT AND DEVELOPMENT WORKER

In May 2006 Sligo County Community Forum employed a Support and Development Worker to work with the Forum and its members. The salary and programme costs are funded from the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government’s annual community forum budget, with office facility support from the County Development Board and the Offices of Community, Enterprise and the Arts.

The work includes:

• Supporting the work of the Forum comprising of over 580 community and voluntary organizations.
• Supporting Executive Forum members in their role on the County Council Strategic Policy Committees and County Development Board.
• Implementing a revised work plan with newly elected members.
• Implementing communications strategy
• Organising seminars, information events of relevance to the community and voluntary sector
• Organising AGM, management committee meetings and Area Fora meetings
• Organising Forum elections
• Assisting in the development of the Area Fora
• Production of 4 newsletters annually
• Maintaining profile of the forum with media strategy
• Production of information packs on county forum and area fora
• Developing a 2-way information system to grass roots level
• Building linkages between the forum and County Council
• Assist in the development of a best practice guide on community consultation
• Supporting social inclusion cluster of the forum
• Supporting forum on various
• Overseeing development of website and IT strategy
• Identify funding opportunities

The work of the Support and Development worker is assisted through the LEADER CE Programme with the employment of a part time administrator. Sligo County Community Forum has a joined up partnership approach with support from the Community, Enterprise and the Arts Office and the Sligo LEADER Partnership Co ensuring the needs and issues of the community and voluntary sector in County Sligo are highlighted
and acted on.

AREA FORA

Area Fora meetings were held in each of the 5 electoral areas in the county in June 2006. Elections took place in each of the Area Foras in November 2005 and meetings will be held again in January 2007.

A strong Area Fora base is being established which will in turn ensure a strong Community Forum structure in County Sligo.

- Sligo County Community Forum members