Move to maximise full potential of Mayo community futures initiatives

A MOVE is being made to explore new funding streams for community futures programmes.

Mayo County Council has managed the initiative for the last 20 years.

The authority is now looking at the programme’s achievements and how it can be developed to maximise its full potential.

Mayo Community Futures is a bottom up, community led process that assists with the preparation and development of a five-year action plan for communities across the county.

All members of the community can take part in the process and give their views on how they would like to see their area develop going.

There are currently two staff employed through an SLA (Service Level Agreement) with South West Mayo Development Company and there is also a management committee overseeing the roles.

Deirdre Finnerty, head of Community Engagement with Mayo County Council, said: “It has a positive impact on local democracy and community engagement.

"You can see it when you go the various launches and the amount of people who attend. However, now is the time to take a review of delivery and their outcomes.”

Independent Councillor Patsy O’Brien appealed for greater government funding of the programme.

“From what I can see, most of the plans are very ambitious and rightly so. However, there is no real direct investment from government in relation to this.

"A lot of this work falls back to the councillors and GMA (General Municipal Allocation). It can sometimes lead to false hope for some communities on what can be delivered and this can lead to a loss of momentum. We could make a submission to government for more funding.”

Deirdre Finnerty said that there is a wide range of potential sources of funding available for communities to explore.

“There are a range of potential funding sources available for the projects, rather than saying ‘we need community futures funded.’

"There are opportunities from different types of funding packages. For example, if a community wanted a community centre development – they could apply through the Community Centres Investment Fund.

“Pauline Brennan Vahey is part of the Community Capital Team and one of her roles is to look at what’s going on in the Mayo communities and where we can look at various different funding sources that are out there. Any extra funding that we can get to the county is positive, but there are already funding sources out there that communities can tap into to.”

Fine Gael Councillor Gerry Coyle believes that a development officer is needed to help communities apply for Community Futures Funding.

“Communities need help with the application process and that is why I think a Development Officer should be there to help with the funding process. The development officer could help communities access insurance for their projects as well. Unless we get that kind of help for rural areas, then we are going nowhere.

“There are a lot of good people in the communities who have great ideas, but they just don’t have the time to commit to major projects and that is why we need a development officer.”

Director of Services Tom Gilligan said a collaborative approach is needed when it comes to community futures.

“These plans have been highly successful in local development and supporting grassroots initiatives and fostering meaningful partnerships.

"Some of the projects have also contributed to sustainability, protecting local assets, and promoting environmental and responsible local actions.

“The programmes do encourage active participation and give communities a stronger voice in shaping their future.

"While the ambitions of communities remain strong, the availability of funding remains a key challenge. It is important to manage those expectations and recognise that not every objective can be delivered immediately.

"Despite this, the partnership approach between communities and the council ensures that progress continues and focuses on achievable outcomes. By maintaining this collaborative approach, we will keep communities at the heart of planning and driving positive change.”

* Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.