The Kerryman (South Kerry Edition)
‘DIGITAL HUB WILL SAVE SNEEM’
CREATION OF I.T. FOCUSSED EMPLOYMENT TO CREATE 34 JOBS AND THE PROSPECT OF MORE IN THE PIPELINE
NOT ALL OF THE PEOPLE ON THE LIST LIVE HERE NOW BUT THEY WANT TO MOVE HERE... THESE ARE HIGHLY SKILLED PEOPLE
IN the 1950’s there was 61 families living in Direenclaurig in Sneem – there are three living there now.
“These are startling statistics but this is what has befallen the parish. It is true of all rural Ireland,” says local man, John V O’Sullivan.
“It is a pity but it still can be reversed before it’s too late.”
Rural depopulation is a key fear of communities across Kerry and Sneem is no different in this regard.
“People are leaving the village because there is no employment here but the village has a lot to offer. There is fantastic quality of life here with a great school, créche and cheaper housing, all we need is jobs for people,” says John V.
John and the local community are determined to save their village and prove that rural Ireland can fight back. Their solution is the development of the Sneem Digital Hub – a place to provide secure employment all year around and help rebuild the village.
In just over two months it is hoped to open the doors of the centre which John says will bring 34 jobs to the rural village and possibly more with expansion in the future.
The project has been in the pipeline for more than three years led by chairman, Niall Scott, who is a regular visitor to the village and is chairman of Scott Tallon Walker Architects – a leading Irish architectural firm.
His drive and support have helped get the project off the ground but it is a local community project, driven by locals to help locals.
Once the idea was mooted the IDA was approached for advice and the requirements sought by the IDA for the project included a skills register with no less than 120 people on it, providing a highly qualified workforce for companies.
This is a key component of the project and one that proved easier than expected as 126 skilled individuals who want to live and work in Sneem are now on that list – awaiting jobs. The minimum wage for these employees is set at €40,000, a requirement of Sneem Digital Hub in order to attract high end jobs.
“Not all of the people on the list live here now but they want to move here. Some want to live near the sea, some want to move from other parts of Ireland and some want to move from abroad. These are highly skilled people in languages and IT,” explains John V
The development of the skills register, led to Starwood Hotels and Resorts, who employ over 400 people in Cork, set up a base in the local hotel, employing five people which proved to be a success.
However, Starwood Hotels and Resorts wanted to hire more staff but with no space to cater for these in Sneem they moved their remote base to nearby Kenmare. But now the Sneem Digital Hub space is available for any company wishing to have a base in Sneem.
The Sneem Digital Hub is located in the former ballroom or dance hall on the Killarney Road and renovations have been taking place in this building which was handed over on a long-term lease from local businessman Louis Moriarty, another supporter of the project.
The cost is €500,000 – most of which came from grant-aid but the local community has also rowed in behind the project to raise almost €100,000 through fundraising and donations.
A mock wedding event, staged by the local community, and featuring TD Danny Healy Rae, was a huge boost to the fundraising efforts.
This, combined with donations from locals and supporters of the project, helped raise the necessary funds.
More than €100,000 worth of professional fees were also waived as part of fundraising efforts including engineers and architect fees and other professional services provided by volunteers to get the project off the ground.
The final works are now taking place which includes the IT infrastructure – the tenders for this closed earlier this month and work begins this week.
High-speed broadband is key to the entire project and without it the project would not get off the ground. Fibre optic broadband will be in place by December – according to a Government commitment – and as with many rural communities across Ireland, this will be the final step in a much needed and vital future for Sneem.
The Sneem Digital Hub will open on July 1 with hot desks in places – allowing for solo workers or mini companies to rent office space. The search in the interim is also on for large companies seeking a skilled workforce and office space in Kerry. This will be undertaken in conjunction with the IDA who are supporting the project. A business manager is also being sought for the centre to help run it.
Another huge boost to the project and one which will hopefully help get companies into the building is a link with the Guinness Digital Hub – the biggest one in the country and which has links with Kerryman Luke Moriarty.
This hub has a fund for entrepreneurs and will provide funding to entrepreneurs who want to set up in Sneem.
“We have a strategy in place and we’re hugely confident that this will save Sneem and secure all our futures,” John concluded.