COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

MEETING OF SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

Monday, December 13, 2010

QUESTION NO. 15

QUESTION: Councillor W. Lavelle

To ask the Manager to outline all supports, other than the Innovation Enterprise Network, offered by this council to aide start-up enterprises in the county?

REPLY:

South Dublin County Council supports enterprise in the County across many of its functions and activites. Set out below is an outline of some of these actions :

• The strategic development of the County both in terms of physical development and quality of life issues. This of course involves the provision of transport infrastructure and services but also the strategic planning that attracts and delivers commercial opportunities. No less important is the community infrastructure that has also been delivered and managed in swimming pools, parks, community centres, libraries etc. that are vital to good quality of life.
• The Council has had direct involvement in provision/management  of Enterprise Centres. SDCC can continue to support same through site identification, planning issues etc.
• The Council partcipates in and supports the County Development Board and the County Enterprise Board.
• The libraries provide a learning enironment for residents in the County and are a major driver for knowledge, change and innovation in the County.
• Direct involvement with FAS/DSW in creating and supporting employment opportunities.
• Direct involvement with Enterprise Ireland, IDA in marketing the County, particularly the Council developments at Grange Castle.
•  Direct engagement with all relevant bodies in tourism, education, South Dublin Chamber etc…

It should be noted that the IEZ/IEN created a working partnership with FáS, Department of Social Welfare, South Dublin County Enterprise Board, local Partnerships and training bodiesand the Institute of Technology Tallaght, South Dublin County Council which led to the following opportunities:-

·          The Council provided physical space capacity, at no cost, to training agencies to facilitate training within its facilities.  These facilities included state of the art digital training suite and lecture room in the County Library, a multi media suite, performance/theater area, board rooms in the County Arts Building – Rua Red and various training suites, conference rooms and community rooms in the Council offices and Centres throughout the County. 

·          The Council directly targeted, with the help of the Department of Social Welfare, those high skilled individuals that were on the live register, with the aim of streaming these individuals into an online virtual and physical networking environment.

·          The Council developed the website www.iez.ie as a virtual social and business campus to encourage networking between unemployed high-skilled professionals.  The website was developed for the specific needs of the unemployed high skilled / professional.   Virtualisation is an important aspect of the initiative as allowed individuals to work and interact without being at a physical location.  The website contained a private, secure log-on area where members of the initiative share professional profile information and network using an online forum.

·          The Partnership of the agencies above, (and others: CPLN, Partas, Tallaght Partnership..), was formalised through a steering group supported by South Dublin County Council which met regularly to monitor and drive the project.

·          The Council set up a local one-stop-shop (Innovation Hub) in which the County Enterprise Board, FáS, Ryan Academy, Partnership Boards, Partas, all could cooperate to provide key essential information to unemployed high skilled professionals and SMEs.  This model of combined information availability has the capacity to be developed regionally in public buildings.

·                   The IEN is now being developed Regionally through the DRA.

Members will be aware the the CEB are now physically located in County Hall and he physical location of the SDCEB and the experience of and continuing existence of the network created during the IEZ process provides a platform to develop theconcept of shared service. The value of, and the need for, the synergy is clear. The overall aim of the Council is to gain maximum benefit and opportunity for enterprise in the County from all investment in the County, whether in the form of financial or other supports.