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Pictured at the signing of contracts for the 2018-2022 Social Inclusion Community Activation Programme, seated l-r: Moira Murrell (Chief Executive, Kerry County Council), Cllr Niall Kelleher (Chairperson, Local Community Development Committee (LCDC)), Niamh O’Sullivan (Chief Officer LCDC, Kerry County Council). Back l-r: Maura Walsh (Chief Executive Officer, IRD Duhallow), John Stack (Chairperson, North East and West Kerry Development), Eamon O’Reilly (Chief Executive Officer, North East and West Kerry Development), Noel Spillane (Chief Executive Officer, South Kerry Development Partnership), Michael Scannell (Director of Services, Kerry County Council), Ann Marie Fitzgerald (Community Unit, Kerry County Council).
THE Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme 2018 – 2022 (SICAP) follows the previous SICAP 2015 – 2017 Programme, which saw an overall investment of €4.8 million in social inclusion projects throughout Kerry between 2015 and 2017.
Among the many projects which have benefited from SICAP include the ‘Steps to Success Programme,’ the Kerry Social Farming Project, the Men’s Sheds and Revamp projects.
The new SICAP Programme, which came into effect on January 1, 2018, will continue to focus on reducing poverty and promoting social inclusion and equality through supporting communities and individuals using community development approaches, engagement and collaboration.
SICAP 2018 is based on the current programme with a number of key changes. The redesigned programme reflects Ireland’s changing social and economic landscape, including the context of reduced unemployment and a general economic recovery. The new programme design has been informed by the results of a national consultation process which took place in the first half of 2017. This consultation process was designed to give a wide range of stakeholders the opportunity to identify areas for development and improvement.
The programme has reoriented itself to be better placed to respond to national needs and priorities, as well as local needs as identified by Local Community Development Committees (LCDCs) through their Local Economic and Community Plans.
The tender process for the appointment of Programme Implementers has been completed and the award of the contracts was approved by Kerry’s LCDC in November 2017.
The funding agreement with the successful Programme Implementers, namely North East and West Kerry Development, South Kerry Development Partnership and IRD Duhallow, was signed recently at County Buildings.
