Socially deprived areas priority

ON March 26 the signing of the Social Inclusion and Community Activation programme 2018-2022 (SIPAC) contract between Wexford County Council, Wexford Local Community Development Committee and Wexford Local Development took place in County Hall.

The meeting heard that its purpose is to tackle poverty, social exclusion and long-term unemployment in the county through local engagement and partnership between disavantaged individuals, community organisations and public sector organisations.

The contract was signed by CEO Tom Enright, Kathleen Codd Nolan, chairperson of Wexford Local Community Development Committtee and by Michael Wall, chairperson and Brian Kehoe, CEO of Wexford Local Development. Cllr Malcolm Byrne said: ‘We haven’t seen evidence of areas of social deprivation and exclusion being tackled like this. What measures are we, as a council body, putting in place at the end of this programme? Yes, money will be spent but in a number of disadvantaged communities we won’t have seen money spent. It’s very easy for some communities to be able to access resources, while others can’t.

‘While congratulating Wexford County Council on the contract what measures of success do we have in place once this programme is finished and will we see real progress?’

Director of Services John Carley said the whole area has to be looked at. ‘ There were some disappointments (under the previous programme). We will be putting robust measures in place to ensure everything is successful in areas that are socially deprived and in areas where there have been no improvements in.’