by Sarah Clancy | Sep 2, 2020 | Members News, PPN News |
Help us imagine a better Clare for future generations
Fill out our short ‘Vision for Community Wellbeing’ survey about what your area needs – and you could win a prize for you or your organisation
How can we make Co Clare the best it can be for this and future generations? We want to hear what your vision is for a community in which all people can thrive. Complete our short survey for a chance to be one of four winners of a €100 voucher or a €500 for an organisation.
Here at Clare PPN we are excited to be undertaking a really important project – we want to hear the views of people and groups from across the county to produce a Vision for Community Wellbeing. This will be a kind of proclamation for Co Clare, setting out our shared vision for the kind of community we want to live in, a document that will guide us when we engage with the local and national policies and plans that affect all our lives.
You can play a key role in creating this vision by taking some time to think about what you value most about your area and community already, and about what your area and community needs to make it the best it can be for the many generations to come. When you’ve given it some thought we would like to invite you to take a few minutes to fill out our survey.
The survey is anonymous and confidential, although we will publish the findings and use them to inform Clare PPN’s work. However, to help encourage people to take the survey we are offering great prizes and if you would like to be in the draw for these prizes we need your email address.
Prizes: one person in each of Clare’s four Municipal Districts will win a €100 voucher for a local outlet of their choice. And one person will win our bumper prize of €500 for an organisation of their choice. You can nominate any PPN member organisation in the final question of the survey.
No one will be identifiable from any report or publication arising from the survey.
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Clare_Wellbeing
What is community wellbeing?
We often think about wellbeing in terms of good physical and mental health, but it can also describe the wider conditions we need as individuals and communities to have a better quality of life, a healthier environment and increased prosperity. Some of these are things we can easily measure, such as the number of pre-school places, or how quickly an ambulance can get to a sick person. Others are less easily measured, such as our pride of place, our heritage and the way in which we all look after each other. All aspects of community wellbeing are interconnected and that’s why our survey includes questions on a variety of topics. For example, if our natural environment is poor, it can affect our mental and physical health as well as our economy.
Why is the Vision for Community Wellbeing important?
The Vision for Community Wellbeing will set out the hopes and aspirations of people in Clare and of the members of Clare PPN. It will be a written statement that we can use to base our suggestions and submissions on when we engage with local and national bodies. It can help us as the PPN to take a longer term view of how Clare might develop into the future. The PPN and all our voluntary representatives will use this Community Wellbeing Vision as their mandate and work towards having it recognised and supported by all the bodies we engage with.
By considering all aspects of society, people, the environment, economy and democracy together, wellbeing can help us to identify and prioritise positive actions that can be taken by local and national governments, as well as by communities. Communities themselves need to participate actively in setting out their shared view of what their community would be like if it were the best that it could be.
How will this process work?
We are inviting you, the people and community organisations who live in Clare, to shape this Vision for Community Wellbeing, under headings such as health, social and community development, the environment and public participation. See diagram below.
We had planned to hold public consultation workshops in each of Clare’s four Municipal Districts. However, this has not been possible, due to the Covid-19 and the restrictions it has imposed on us and so instead we are beginning the process with an online survey. After the survey is completed we will organise online meetings to discuss the results for each Municipal District and gather any further ideas from those. The results of the survey and meetings will help to create a Vision for Community Wellbeing statement for each Municipal District and one for the county as a whole.
You can help to shape the future of life in Clare by filling out our short survey about your or your organisation’s hopes and aspirations for your community:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Clare_Wellbeing
The survey will close on Tuesday, October 6th. We look forward to hearing from you!
by Sarah Clancy | Mar 20, 2020 | Members News, PPN News |
Survey for Clare community groups on response to Covid-19
Clare PPN and Clare Volunteer Centre are working together to make the best uses of our resources during this Covid-19 outbreak.
We are fully aware that community and voluntary groups in County Clare provide essential services to vulnerable people in our communities and that many of the people who provide these services are already working at full capacity.
We are conducting a survey of community groups so that we can see where voluntary support might be needed over the coming weeks and months.
We would really appreciate it if you could complete the short survey at the link below, as soon as possible, to let us know who you are currently serving in the county and what your organisation might need in terms of supports.
by Sarah Clancy | Mar 27, 2019 | Current, Members News, PPN News |
March 27th 2019 Notice of elections for four roles on Clare PPN Secretariat
Nominations are open for four positions on the Secretariat. The secretariat is a group of people elected from community and voluntary groups in Clare who manage the Public Participation Network between plenary meetings of its members. Four of our current secretariat members are due to step down and so we are opening nominations for their replacements. They have been brilliant and have brought Clare PPN from an idea to a network with 280 member groups, 2 staff and its own premises. We are looking for nominees to carry on their work of building Clare PPN into a thriving network which is inclusive and has the capacity to engage with all local government and national decision making bodies that affect the wellbeing of people’s lives in County Clare.
Only groups who were members of Clare PPN on March 27th 2019 are eligible to vote in these elections.
The secretariat must keep to the following composition:
One representative for each municipal district in the County – there are currently four municipal districts in the County – West Clare, Ennis, Killaloe & Shannon. 2 X representatives from each ‘college’ of the Clare PPN – there are three colleges in the PPN – Environmental, Social Inclusion and Community & Voluntary. Each of are member groups is a member of one of these colleges.
What are the vacancies we have at present:
Election 1:
2 Community and Voluntary Secretariat seats are open for the Community and Voluntary College member groups from every area of Clare to nominate and elect-. If your group is a member of the Community and Voluntary College you can nominate and vote for both of these positions. Nominees must be members of a community and voluntary group that is a member of Clare PPN and must be nominated by a Community and Voluntary group that is a member of Clare PPN. People can nominate themselves so long as that decision is agreed by their group. Every C&V member of Clare PPN can nominate one candidate for each of these two positions which means that this time C&V groups can make two nominations.
Election 2:
1 Environmental Secretariat seat is open only for member groups of the Environmental College to nominate and elect. Nominees for this position must be members of an Environmental member group of Clare PPN and must be nominated by an Environmental member group of Clare PPN. Each environmental member group of Clare PPN can nominate one person for this role.
Election 3:
1 Municipal District Seat is open to all member groups from the Shannon Municipal District to elect whatever college they are in. Nominees for this position must be a member of a Clare PPN member group from any college that has an address in the Shannon Municipal District. They must be nominated by a member group of Clare PPN with an address in the Shannon MD. Every member group of Clare PPN with an address in the Shannon MD can nominate and vote in this election.
Nominations will open March 27th and close on April 8th
How to nominate a candidate:
Groups wishing to nominate a candidate must seek their consent first and then must send us an email to admin@clareppn.ie with the following information on or before Monday April 8th at 5.00 pm:
-Name of Community Group.
-Position number for which they are nominating a candidate.
-Name of proposed nominee(s).
-Contact details of proposed nominee- phone and email.
-A short paragraph (up to 200 words) detailing the nominees’ suitability and experience for the role- this will be shared on social media and on our website in advance of voting.
-A photo of your nominee which we may share with our members and social media followers.
-Clare PPN will confirm receipt of nominations by email.
Elections will then be held by survey with voting open until April 17th. These surveys will be circulated to all eligible groups via our mailing list.
*Please note that irrespective of how many groups a person is a member of, no individual may vote more than once for any single position. No individual can hold more than one secretariat position.
What is involved?
A minimum of six meetings per year held usually in Ennis
Email or phone contact for decisions in between meetings
Willingness to be a director of Clare PPN (company)
Attendance at other PPN events depending on availability and interests.
Willingness to work in a ‘flat structure’ with decisions taken by consensus or by vote
Possibility of being part of financial subgroup or staff liaison sub group
What are the benefits?
Opportunity to be a part of a growing positive movement in Clare.
Opportunity to help grow participation and civic engagement in Clare.
Opportunity to help provide valuable support to the community and voluntary sector.
Out of pocket expenses paid.
Training opportunities.
Diversity: Clare PPN is committed to working to represent all communities in Clare and as such we would especially welcome nominations to our secretariat from communities who feel under represented. We particularly welcome nominations of young and older people for any of the above roles (the majority of our representatives are between 35 and 65), members of the Travelling Community, those who might themselves experience social inclusion, people with disabilities, LGBTQ, and ethnic minority groups. All nominees who step forward will be subject to election by the relevant PPN member groups.
by Sarah Clancy | Nov 22, 2017 | Current, Members News, PPN News |
Clare Public Participation Network and Clare Local Development Company invite you to Rural Rejigs- a day of ideas and discussions on how our communities can thrive.
When: Saturday December 9th 2017
Where: Corofin Community Hall
What time: 09.30 – 5.00 pm
Tickets are free and you can register at this link:
https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/rural-rejigs-tickets-39708599490?aff=efbeventtix
Please note that children are most welcome and there will be childcare and activities for children during the day but please book a child ticket at the link above for each child. This venue is wheelchair accessible.
Clare Public Participation Network and Clare Local Development Company are holding a community think- in this Saturday December 9th in Corofin Community Hall. The day which is free of charge and open to the public will provide an opportunity for people from all over Clare to discuss and learn from each other’s efforts in building vibrant thriving communities. There will also be invited guest speakers from organisations such as award winning start up social enterprise FoodCloud, Social Farming Ireland, Loop Head Tourism, Wild Kitchen, Feasta, Clare County Council, the Leader Programme in Clare and others.
The day’s events will be chaired by Clare based journalist and author Michael McCaughan, who during his time as the Latin American Correspondent for the Irish Times and Guardian Newspapers reported extensively on communities’ efforts to organise themselves in places such as Bolivia, Colombia and Mexico. There will also be music from internationally renowned Palestinian percussionist Raed Said who will discuss the role of art and culture in communities under pressure.
Speaking on the plans for the day Clare PPN Coordinator Sarah Clancy said;
‘Very often people involved in community development don’t get a chance to get together to think or plan, we have to keep reacting, keep chasing funding and deadlines and trying to provide services on a shoestring. Even though community groups and activists are vital to the survival of all that is good about rural Ireland they are under a lot of pressure now and Clare PPN wants this day to be a break from that- a day at the end of the year to regroup, to think, and to imagine what is possible for us to achieve working together in County Clare.
Clare PPN and Clare Local Development Company invite everyone with an interest in building sustainable thriving and inclusive communities to come and join us in Corofin on Saturday. The only request we have is that attendees come with open minds and a willingness to share their experiences and to listen to others.
Lovely vegetarian lunch will be provided by Moonbear Catering and childcare and activities will be available.
Guest speakers joining us include:
- Micheal McCaughan, Journalist and author
- Stephanie Jaeger of Social Farming Ireland
- Dr Mark Garavan, Applied Social Care Lecturer GMIT
- Oonagh O’Dwyer – Wild Kitchen
- Eoin MacCuirc Founding Director of award winning social enterprise FoodCloud
- Cillian Murphy, Loop Head Tourism
- Raed Said- Master Percussionist from Palestine
- Leonard Cleary- Acting Director of Rural Development Clare County Council
- Gloria Callinan, Clare Local Development Company
Programme for the day:
by Sarah Clancy | Oct 9, 2017 | Members News, National, PPN News |
NATIONAL PUBLIC PARTICIPATION NETWORK CONFERENCE
THURSDAY 19th OCTOBER 2017, SLIGO
The first National PPN Conference will be held on Thursday 19th October 2017 in the Clayton Hotel, Sligo. It is being hosted by Sligo PPN in conjunction with the Department of Rural and Community Development (DRCD).
Who should attend?
The Conference is targeted at PPN Secretariats, PPN Members, Resource Workers, Volunteers, Elected Members, Local Authority staff supporting the PPN structure, Partnership / Local Development Companies and LCDCs.
Topics
Development of PPNs; Statements of Wellbeing; Developing Policies and Models of Best Practice. The Conference will also provide excellent opportunities for networking and reviewing the strengths, challenges, opportunities and threats encountered to date.
Conference Programme / Speakers
The conference will focus on the progression of PPNs at local and national level, how they can influence policy, develop collaborations between PPNs and Local Government and strategising and building for the future.
There will be input from the DRCD, breakout sessions giving voice to individual input on issues around Social, Economic, Democratic and Environmental themes and an overview of PPN Models of Best Practice.
Inspirational guest speakers on the day will include Mr John Lonergan, Former Prison Governor and Management Expert; Mr Michael Ewing, Co-ordinator of the Environmental Pillar.
Registration
https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/national-public-participation-network-conference
To encourage participation and access there is no conference fee applying
Queries to Sligo PPN Office on 071 9114430; e-mail: ppn@sligococo.ie
