COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

south dublin county council crest

MEETING OF SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

Monday, April 12, 2010

QUESTION NO. 8

QUESTION: Councillor W. Lavelle

To ask the Manager, further to the motion agreed at the December 2009 meeting, if he would present an update on the council’s ongoing research work on the development of social economy initiatives in the county and the potential role of social finance lending organisations in supporting future community development projects?

REPLY: The Council research into the development of social economy initiatives is ongoing, and has most recently manifested itself in its involvement with the WINSENT project - the Wales Ireland Network of Social Entrepreneurs. This project involves a range of partners including  local authorities such as South Dublin County Council, Fingal County Council, Isle of Anglesey County Council (Wales) and Denbighshire County Council (Wales). The project is led by PARTAS and also includes BASE enterprise Centre from Fingal. Its purpose is to indentify would- be social entrepreneurs and to nurture, encourage and facilitate their realisation of innovative social enterprises run on a proper business model. The project was successfully launched in Cardiff in February 2010 and is making progress in both countries. The project is funded under the European Interreg Programme, with the various partners supplying matching funding through staff time. It will run over a three-year period and it is expected that it will have  very tangible and positive effects on the local economies in Dublin and North Wales.

In addition to the WINSENT project, the Council is also examining a number of other options which it is hoped may lead to the implementation of a range of initiatives across the County. The Council is in discussion with several people with a view to developing ideas into social enterprises. The discussions involve issues such as benefit to the community, the long-term sustainabilityof the project, as well as financial and human resources issues and the availability of suitable land or premises.

While social finance institutions are operating  to facilitate community groups, they are not intended to lend directly to state agencies such as the local authorities. However, the social finance institutions appear to be operating in a complementary manner to the services provided by the Council, particularly through community support structures such as the Community Grants Scheme. For example, one of the older community centres has applied for and secured funding from ClannCredo social finance, while the Council has been able to supplement the funding to allow substantail refurbishment works to be carried out. 

Community Development Programmes may also benefit from social finance institutions although while the CDPs are adapting to their new governance and roles under the Area Partnerships, it is likely to be some time before a clear picture emerges as to how significant a role the social finance institutions will play in helping to assist the CDPs.