August News is out!

August News is out!

🌟 Hot off the press! Our highly anticipated and much-coveted monthly newsletter is here! From new business supports and grants to funding opportunities and festivals, we’re sprinkling magic like a bakery on opening day! We’ve got summer camps, Traveller men’s groups, fresh inclusion strategies, and more Humans of CLDC to introduce you to. Ready to dive in? Grab your beverage of choice, and prepare to be inspired and informed. ✨

Click here to read the newsletter!

Job Fairy! Roma Inclusion Project seeks Peer Support Health Link worker

Job Fairy! Roma Inclusion Project seeks Peer Support Health Link worker

CLDC’s Roma Inclusion Project in county Clare is recruiting a Peer Support Health Link Worker. Up to 6 hours a week.

The Peer Support Worker will work with the Clare Roma Inclusion Project team to deliver health information to the Roma Community, help with medical card and PPSN applications, and encourage and support Roma Community participation in groups, activities and events. 

See full job description and application below. 

For more info, or to submit application and CV, please email Iyabo Matthew at imatthew@cldc.ie. 

Job description:
Job Description Roma PHW 2024

Application:
Roma Peer Health Worker Application form 2024

Funding to establish Traveller Community Development Project Secured for Clare

Funding to establish Traveller Community Development Project Secured for Clare

Clare Local Development Company (CLDC) is delighted to announce that a collaborative application to the Department of Rural and Community Development’s Pilot Project Community Development Fund has been successful. This application was made on behalf of four organisations in Clare which include CLDC, Clare Women’s Network, Clare Public Participation Network and the HSE’s Mid-West Traveller Health Unit and endorsed by many other community and voluntary organisations around the county.

More than 120 projects around the country applied for this funding and the Clare collaborative group are delighted to have been one of only 7 successful applications to the one million euro fund.  Doirin Graham, CEO of Clare Local Development Company welcomed the news saying that this much needed funding would secure a Traveller specific initiative. ‘We want to ensure that Travellers are involved at every level of this project and are front and centre in the decision making roles. With our organisations’ support we can lend the institutional and governance guidance to help to get the project up and running and to support it until it is on a solid footing’.

The application itself highlighted the urgent need for a Traveller specific organisation in Clare and where effective methods of participation by the Traveller community in the decisions that affect their lives have not been established. One of the issues for the Traveller community in Clare is accessing funding available for training, mentorships, social enterprises, educational and political advocacy. Without a dedicated organisation there is no entity working with the community to support them to identify these needs and to apply for funding to respond to them.

It is this gap in targeted support that prompted the four collaborating organisations to apply for this fund. It is their explicit aim that over the proposed three years of the scheme the Traveller Community Development Organisation will become fully independent and Traveller –led and develop a strong grassroots voice to address social exclusion, poverty, and to advocate for Traveller’s Human Rights.

On hearing the news, Sarah Clancy of Clare PPN, noted that in recent years “Ireland has seen members of the Traveller community making huge strides in fields of education, literature, sports, music, politics, law and the art and she hopes that this fund will be a stepping stone towards equality for the Traveller community and that it will be able to build on previous work done by Ennis Community Development Project, the Traveller community themselves and other such organisations in Clare”.

It is hoped that the final details of the project will be finalised over the coming weeks and CLDC and their collaborating partners welcome people who would like more information to contact Darina Greene on 0879086561 or dgreene@cldc.ie.

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Clare Local Development Company through its SICAP program aims to reduce poverty and promote social inclusion and equality in Clare through supporting communities and individuals using community development approaches, engagement and collaboration.

Clare PPN is a network of community, voluntary, environmental and social inclusion groups from Clare. Its primary purpose is to facilitate the formal participation by the community sector in Clare County Council’s policy formation structures.

Clare Women’s Network supports and encourages the coming together of women’s groups and individual women in Clare. Its work is guided by women’s equality, inclusion, community development and feminist principles.

The Traveller Health Unit (THU) is underpinned by the social determinants of health that are at the root of Traveller health inequalities. This approach enables a holistic approach to health and wellbeing.

 

Implications of COVID-19 for Traveller & Roma transfer to and progression within Higher Education

Implications of COVID-19 for Traveller & Roma transfer to and progression within Higher Education

The Forum was organised by Pavee Point Traveller and Roma Centre and the National Traveller Women’s
Forum, in response to urgent COVID-19 concerns being expressed by Traveller and Roma students and parents and adult learners hoping to continue or commence third level education in Sept 2020. It consisted of opening and closing plenaries and six facilitated breakout sessions which provided opportunities for all to express their views. Read the full report here

Roma & access to social protection supports

Roma & access to social protection supports

The  EU Teixeira ruling means that the right of access to education also applies to the children of former migrant workers even if the parents cease to be workers at the start of the education of the child and that this right necessarily entails the Right of Residence within a member state for the children and the parents.  In addition, the Right of Residence is not subject to the condition of self sufficiency i.e. that the family have sufficient resources so as not to be a burden on the social welfare system in a country. 

This ruling is an important way of supporting Roma parents who have children attending school to access Social Protection payments