lopment in action
Award win for Dungarvan CDP It was the third year in which the Co. Waterford Community and Voluntary Awards took place. Chairperson, Nora Delaney, accepted the award on behalf of the CDP’s management and staff. Management Committee members of Dungarvan CDP were presented with a framed certificate from the Waterford Community Forum in February to further mark their achievement.
DUNGARVAN CDP was the winner of the Glanbia Social Support Community & Voluntary Award 2007. The Glanbia award recognised the valuable work being done by Dungarvan CDP. The project worked last year on, among other issues, the Back to Education Initiative, men's development, the Women's Support Group, the County Waterford Childcare Initiative, and the Presentation Resource Centre.
Teen band launches ‘Orchard Groove’ by: COLM WALSH A CD of original material has been produced by a group supported by LINK CDP and it is hoped another similar project will be organised this year. ‘Orchard Groove’ performed songs at their launch night in the Orchard Community Centre in December and the CD sells for ?5 from local outlets. The ‘Orchard Groove’ was a pilot project undertaken by Link CDP to encourage and support music in the community. The aim of the project is to get young people in Cherry Orchard involved in playing music. The shared experience of playing music and contributing to a collective creative process has
huge potential to strengthen community bonds and to build up new community relationships and strengthen existing ones. The project involved workshops where song writing and musicianship was developed collectively with the encouragement of professional songwriters. In Cherry Orchard, the youth population (those aged 19 or younger) as a percentage of the overall population (47.6%) is much larger than the average percentage for Dublin city (22.8%) as well as for the country as a whole (29.1%) (Source: 2002 CSO Census Data). While youth facilities in the area are quite well developed, there has been little emphasis to date on activities directed towards young people with an interest in music. The "Orchard Groove" initiative seeks to address this deficit. There has been a large body of research carried out into the area of "community music"learning music in the community setting- and its potential for both personal growth and development, and for community development. It gives people an opportunity to learn music outside of the confines of an institutional setting, meaning the learning environment is the local environment. It is process-driven, in that participants are encouraged to have direct input into the learning process rather than simply being consumers of learning. (Koopman, 2007). The process of learning being employed is activity-based and aims to work to a practical
and collaborative model, rather than an academic one. There has for many years in Ballyfermot been a wealth of musical heritage, and this spark is being kept alive in the younger generations by community and youth groups who actively encourage the local youth to pick up instruments and play music for fun. The age of the young people who took part in this LINK project ranged from 13-19 yrs and their talent and creativity shows the huge potential that we have in our local community. For further information, contact Colm Walsh, Development Worker, Link CDP, Orchard Community Centre, Cherry Orchard Grove, Dublin 10. T: 01-6235204.
LINK CDP has 15 years’ experience THE LINK CDP is a company limited by guarantee and is also a registered charity. The project was established in 1992 following an application made by the Cherry Orchard Development Council and the Orchard Community Centre and is the only CDP operating in Cherry Orchard. LINK networks with a broad range of community projects and initiatives to promote the positive development of the area. Its remit is to build the capacity of Cherry Orchard in partnership with local community, voluntary and statutory groups. changing ireland
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The project, which is based in the Orchard Community Centre, has had a central role in the establishment of a number of successful projects in the area, including the Equine Centre, the Local Employment Service, the Cherry Orchard Festival Committee, Residents Network, St Ultan’s School along with the Cherry Orchard Community Childcare Service Ltd. The Project is managed by a Voluntary Management Committee consisting of the project coordinator and local people. Members are elected on an annual basis at the AGM. www.changingireland.ie