Clones Family Resource Centre

2009-2019

Celebrating our first decade - looking forward to our next!

Clones Family Resource Centre CLG

Unit 5, Technology Park, Clones, Co. Monaghan

Telephone: 047 52919 / 086 1785710

Email: coordinator@clonesfrc.ie

www.clonesfrc.com

Company No. 462846

Charity No. CHY 18772

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Report written by Angela Graham and Martin Kennedy

May 2019

Clones FRC is based on the first floor of Clones Technology Park

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Table of Contents

1. Introduction - Angela Graham, Coordinator

2. 100 years ago - a prosperous Clones. And then…

3. How well-off is Clones now compared to other parts of the country?

4. Cross-community relations

5. Clones today - family numbers

6. A community spirit that never died

7. The overall work of Clones Family Resource Centre

8. Supporting individuals and families

Counselling service for adults and young people

Family Mediation (Mediation Border Counties)

Beacon Family Support

Drop- in service

Panic buttons for older people

Second Time ‘Round Charity shop (social enterprise)

9. Community development projects

International Fund for Ireland Peace of Mind - cross community, peace impact programme

Clones Men’s shed

Clones Hens Shed

Baby and Toddler group and Parenting group

Cross-community choir -Different Keys

Circle of Friends women’s group

10. Promoting the interests of Clones with national and international agencies

11. Clones FRC sources of income

12. Clones FRC staffing levels

13. Some further statistics on Clones relevant to the FRC

Population changes, one parent families, age dependency and education levels

Local authority rentals and unemployment

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Other population trends

1. Introduction

By Angela Graham, Coordinator / Manager of Clones Family Resource Centre CLG

Photo of Angela Graham speaking at a recent community event. (Photo Alec Watson)

It is my privilege to write the introduction to Clones Family Resource Centre’s 10th

Anniversary Report. On behalf of the Voluntary Board of Management and the staff we wish to thank all of you who have supported us and availed of our various services over the past 10 years. The FRC started in a small way in Clones in 2009 and over the years has gone from strength to strength. We are a registered charity and our ethos is to treat everyone equally, with respect and empathy while valuing difference and cultural diversity. We meet people at the point of their need ……… whatever that may be. Although there is a committed and able staff team in place, we are heavily dependent on local volunteers for management of the FRC, staffing the charity shop and assisting at our annual summer camp to name but a few areas. We wish to thank Clones Chamber of Commerce Community Employment Scheme and Monaghan Integrated Development TÚS schemes for their ongoing support, and for all the great people they have placed with us over the years. Thanks also to Framework for their support behind the scenes from the early days.

Through time our role has changed greatly from general community development into the more specialised area of family support. But whether it is help with a form that you need

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filled, a social welfare enquiry, or help with a grant application, we are here to help. A warm welcome awaits you when you step through our doors at the Technology Park.

“Alone we can do so little, together, we can do so much.” Quote from Helen Keller

Let’s Meet the Family Resource Centre Team

Current Voluntary Board of Management Directors 2018/2019

Left to right: Jim Flanagan, Stephen McKenna, Elaine McDermott, Peter McAleer, Arthur Bray, Angela Mulhall, Deirdre Smyth and Allison Cleary. (Photo by Julie Corcoran)

Arthur Bray, Chairperson Stephen McKenna, Secretary Angela Mulhall, Treasurer Peter McAleer, Director Alice McBride, Director Elaine McDermott, Director Jim Flanagan, Director Alison Cleary, Director

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Deirdre Smyth, Director

And now the staff……..

Alzheimer’s Vintage Tea Day, April 2019

Left to right: Brendan Coyle, Anne Davey, Angela Graham, Dara MacGabhann, Sharon McGovern and Colm Laighneach. Missing from photo, Annmarie Fryers. (Photo by Barbara Griffith)

Angela Graham, Coordinator / Manager Colm Laighneach, Development Worker / Beacon Family Support Worker Annmarie Fryers, Financial Administrator Dara MacGabhann, IFI Networking Officer Sharon McGovern, Beacon Family Support Worker

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Anne Davey, Receptionist (CE) Brendan Coyle, Caretaker (CE)

2. One hundred years ago - a prosperous Clones. And then…

As it entered the twentieth century, Clones was comfortably situated, with a well-established market and railway communications with Belfast and Dublin. The Diamond in the centre of the town and its many fine buildings give a sense of the prosperity of the town a hundred years ago

This was the situation until the partition of Ireland in 1921 changed the importance of Clones. It became a border town with its commercial hinterland almost sliced into two halves

A once-prosperous market town was ruined by one disaster after another coming in waves: partition, the economic war, the border campaign, railway closure, the conflict, cratering of roads and the break with sterling

In more recent times the economic recession hit Clones hard. And now Brexit?

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3. How well-off is Clones now compared to other parts of the country?

For a number of years now records have been kept of how well-off local communities in Ireland are based on measuring a number of factors. These include population size and age, education, employment, housing, income levels and percentage of lone parents. (See appendix for details on Clones)

The graph below shows the different categories of communities based on these measures, ranging from affluent to disadvantaged, and it shows where Clones fits in.

Roughly 16% of communities in Ireland are disadvantaged, and roughly 16% are in the affluent categories. 34% are slightly above average and 34% slightly below.

Clones Rural comes in at below-average. And Clones urban is worse off - it is in the disadvantaged category, which puts it in the bottom 16% of

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communities nationally. And parts of Clones urban are in the very- disadvantaged category, which places them in the poorest 3% of communities nationally.

4. Cross-community relations

Orange procession in the Diamond, Clones 1912 C. Russell’s Emporium sign is visible in the background, recently re-discovered. Photo courtesy of George Knight

The creation of the border and subsequent events impacted hugely on populations in the border area. The Protestant population was especially effected. 1n 1861 one in four persons in county Monaghan was Protestant. In 1991 this had fallen to one in twelve

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1861 19910%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Protestant Other

The population of Clones in 2016 was 85% Roman Catholic

The 30-year troubles created a very difficult situation for the relations between Protestants and Roman Catholics. This is a challenge for the whole community. The Family Resource Centre is playing its role in building cross-community relations, particularly through its International Fund for Ireland Peace Impact Programme

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Pictured above is a page from the Handbook and Souvenir of Clones Parish Church Bazaar dated 11/12th June, 1912. (Photo courtesy of George Knight)

5. Clones Today - The Families

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How many people in the Clones area? 2467How many households? 976How many families? 641How many children under 18? 567

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6. A community spirit that never died

Summer Camp Outing to Tanagh Outdoor Centre, Cootehill

Despite the many setbacks over the decades there was always a community spirit in Clones. There have been many people who cared about the community enough to commit huge time and effort into initiatives to promote social and economic development

A powerful example of this spirit in action is the group of dedicated volunteers that formed Clones Community Forum

Over the years these people have been responsible for a wide range of initiatives including

Ionad na nOg youth centre The Peace Link (with Monaghan County Council) Development of Cassandra Hand Centre Clones Family Resource Centre

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7. Clones Family Resource Centre - An Overview

Following initial work by the Community Forum a voluntary committee was established in 2008 to put in place a Family Resource Centre in Clones. This committee was supported by Framework, a Government funded support agency now operating through TUSLA. In 2009 the FRC started up with a coordinator, part-time administrator, and a Board of Directors consisting of eight volunteers.

The aim of the Family Resource Centre is to help people in the community to help themselves. We want to help people in their efforts to improve their quality of life and sense of wellbeing. We want to address the difficult legacy of our past in Clones. This includes a challenging social and economic situation. It also includes the need to build cross-community relations.

We seek to work at three levels:

1. The bulk of our work involves us in supporting individuals and families on a one-to-one basis. This includes

A low-cost counselling service A family mediation service Beacon family support project A drop-in and information centre for individuals seeking support Second Time ‘Round charity shop to provide low cost goods for all

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2. A second area is the community development work of bringing people together through training and education, and the forming of core support groups. These include the Men’s Shed, Baby and Toddler Group, Parenting group, Cross-community dialogue, Hens’ Shed, Different Keys community choir, and Circle of Friends women’s group.

3. Our third broad area of work is promoting community interests with national and international bodies, including pursuing funding for Clones development projects.

8. Supporting individuals and families on a one-to-one basis

Low- cost counselling service for adults and young people Family mediation for separating couples Beacon family support, a helping hand to local families Drop-in service 2nd Time ‘Round Charity shop

Low Cost Counselling Service for Adults and Young People

The counselling service is one of the newer services that Clones FRC has got funding for from Tusla and is readily available for those who require it locally. All our counsellors are professionally trained and accredited. A few examples of issues covered are anxiety, bereavement, depression, relationships, self-esteem etc. The service is for adults and young people aged from 12 to 18 years of age. Appointments can be made by ringing the office. There are no waiting lists and it is a confidential service.

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Low Cost Family Mediation Service for Separating Couples

Mediation Border Counties

Clones FRC is now providing a family mediation service for separating couples. The service covers both counties Cavan and Monaghan. All our family mediators are professionally trained and accredited with the Mediators’ Institute of Ireland. A panel of 14 mediators are available to provide appointments locally, all you have to do is call the FRC office. Mediation is a compassionate and sensitive way of settling disputes and is an alternative to court proceedings. No decision is imposed, your agreement is required. This is a confidential service.

Drop-In Service at the FRC

A drop-in service is provided for local people who need help with social welfare issues, housing, education and training, form filling etc. Staff also download forms, photocopy and print documents as required for members of the public.

The office is open Monday to Thursday from 9.00 am to 5.00 pm and closed for lunch from 1.00 pm to 2.00 pm. On Friday the office is open from 9.00 am to 1.00 pm.

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2nd Time ‘Round Charity Shop

Staff from 2nd Time ‘Round Charity Shop

Pictured left to right: Jannet Dillon, Pauline Breen, Bridget Bray. Ala Norkeviciene and Kate Smith (Photos by Eugene Hamill)

Clones FRC’s very own charity shop, called 2nd Time ‘Round, is based at the Diamond, Clones. It is staffed by a great group of willing volunteers backed up by a CE worker and a TUS worker. The shop will be open six years this June. The shop is open five days a week from 10.00 am to 5.00 pm and is also open at lunchtime. It stocks pre-loved goods for men, women and children. As space is limited, we stock a small amount of household goods. There are many bargains to be had and well-known labels to be discovered on the rails. Call in, have a chat with our staff and see for yourselves!

Panic buttons for older people

Staff in Clones FRC apply for grants for panic buttons for older people in Clones, Smithborough, Newbliss, Drum and Scotshouse. If you, or someone you know aged 66 or over, would like to know more about the scheme please call to the office or call 047 52919.

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Beacon Family Support Project

The Beacon Family Support project is funded by Tusla and is a relatively new area of work for Clones FRC. Families are given a helping hand and support by our workers with the consent of each family. The FRC has two special family support workers under the Beacon project, namely Colm Laighneach and Sharon McGovern, who work directly with local families. The families are referred to us either by Tusla or the FRC can recommend families for the programme. The project covers a wide area from Clones town to Cootehill in County Cavan. We are currently working with 12 families.

A special Beacon Clinic is available at the FRC every Monday morning from 10.00 am to 12.30 pm for individuals and families who need a bit of help with various matters in their lives. So call in for a cup of tea and a chat, you will be made very welcome.

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9. Bringing people together - Community development initiatives

Different Keys cross community choir Baby and Toddler group Parenting group Men’s Shed Hen’s Shed Circle of Friends women’s group Decade of Commemoration group - cross community

history and heritage project

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Members of Clones Hens Shed (Photo Eugene Hamill)

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Different Keys Community Choir

Photo by Eugene Hamill

Clones FRC’s very own choir, “Different Keys” is part of our IFI peace and reconciliation project and has proved to be a great success. The 35 members come from diverse community backgrounds and from across the border in County Fermanagh. The choir is much in demand for public performances and has a full diary of engagements for the autumn / winter period. The musical director is Lynn Sullivan with Catherine Sheridan on the keyboard. We wish to thank Ballybay Clones Municipal District for the use of the Courthouse for choir practices. We are recruiting for new members in September 2019.

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Clones Men’s Shed

Clones Men’s Shed is based in the Machinery Yard, Lower Fermanagh Street, Clones. The Shed welcomes men of all ages from 18 years up. The group has its own voluntary committee and constitution. The premises is open for drop-in three days per week, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Activities include computer classes, boat building and day trips to places of interest. New members always welcome.

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Clones Baby and Toddler GroupClones Baby and Toddler group meet each Wednesday from 9.30 am to 12 noon during the school term in Clones Day Care Centre, Roslea Road, Clones. It is open to parents, grandparents and carers of babies and toddlers. The group is friendly and inclusive and caters for children from birth to four years of age. The group is run by a voluntary committee of parents with guidance and support from Clones FRC. The group aims to provide a fun, social and educational environment which enables children to develop key skills such as sharing, fine motor skills and language development. It’s also a social network for parents and carers to meet, chat and share information which is beneficial to their mental health.The committee plan a monthly programme of events and a typical session includes the following: Stay and play, sensory activities, arts & crafts. Each month a special guest speaker is invited along to provide an activity or give a talk on topics such as healthy eating or speech development. New members always welcome.

Clones Parenting GroupClones Parenting group is run by a small group of dedicated volunteers. It is open to parents with children aged from five to twelve years of age. Small grant applications are made each year and the group uses this to subsidise special day trips or events such as an Easter Egg Hunt, a bus trip to the zoo or seaside and a Christmas party. Meetings are held in the FRC and new members are always welcome.

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Clones Women’s Groups

Circle of Friends

The Circle of Friends is a women’s friendship group who meet in Clones FRC on a regular basis. The members enjoy the social aspect of the group and enjoy outings or day trips, usually in the summer months. The group has been in existence for a number of years.

Clones Hens Shed

The first meetings of Clones Hens Shed were held in September 2018 and there was great interest from local women from the start. At this stage the group have over 80 members on their books. They have their own steering committee who meet on a regular basis to organise the various speakers and activities, supported by Dara MacGabhann in her role with the IFI. The group meet each Wednesday morning from 10am to 12 noon in the Youth Centre, Church Hill, Clones. There is a weekly programme in place which includes talks on health and beauty, safety in the home, self-care, DIY, flower arranging, baking to name but a few. Plans are underway for an outing to the Botanical Gardens, Dublin in June. Benefits of the group include the forming of new friendships, support for each other, being part of a new and exciting group and opportunities to learn and have fun. New members always welcome.

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International Fund for Ireland “Peace of Mind”

Peace Impact Programme, Building positive relations across the community

Dara MacGabhann, Networking Officer Annmarie Fryers, Financial Administrator

Clones FRC’s peace project funded through the International Fund for Ireland has proved to be a wonderful success at a number of levels. This is due in no small part to the dedicated and experienced staff members who work on this project. Dara MacGabhann is the Networking Officer and Annmarie Fryers is the Financial Administrator. Peace and reconciliation lie at the heart of all the activities, leading to understanding of diversity and difference among the people who live in our border area. Local organisations supported through project include Clones Baby and Toddler group, Clones Parenting Group, the Men’s Shed and the charity shop staff. Seven local people have been trained in a conflict resolution programme and are now fully-fledged family mediators volunteering with Mediation Border Counties. Almost 40 women took part in personal development training called “Dream, Dare, Do” and went on to form the very successful Clones Hens Shed, the first Hens Shed in County Monaghan.

The Decade of Commemoration dialogue group has gone from strength to strength and have enjoyed speakers on subjects such as World War I and its impact on County Monaghan, the Monaghan Soviet, women’s emancipation to name but a few. Organised history and heritage tours have formed part of this project. The facilitator is Martin Kennedy. The recently formed Different Keys

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choir practice regularly, and give their time and energy performing at various community events.

10. Networking and sourcing funding for Clones Family Resource Centre

IFI Women’s Cluster Event held in Clones, Dundalk and Clones Groups April 2019. (Photo Alex Watson)

Networking and representing Clones FRC at local, regional and national meetings and events are an important area of work for the Resource Centre. Board and staff members are involved in the following:

Tusla Networking in County Monaghan Regional Family Resource Centre Group (Cavan, Monaghan, Louth,

Meath) Monaghan County Childcare Committee Children and Young People Services Committee (CYPSC) Connecting for Life Suicide Awareness & Prevention Steering Group

(HSE) Monaghan Women’s Network Peace Campus, Monaghan Peace IV Partnership Board Clones Credit Union

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Clones Town Committee.

Clones FRC has successfully drawn down funding from several sources including our annual core funding from Tusla, Child and Family Agency, and the funding to run our recently established counselling service also comes from Tusla.

Another very important source of funding stream comes from the International Fund for Ireland (IFI). This funding started in June 2016 and our current contract with IFI runs until December 2019.

Funding has also been drawn down from Monaghan County Council for various community projects including our annual Children’s Summer Camp. Other funders include Pobal who cover the grants for the panic buttons for older people, HSE National Lottery and Age and Opportunity Go for Life programme.

11. Our income to support our work

This graph shows the level of income of the Family Resource Centre since its foundation. With an initial figure in 2009 of €81,000 the following six

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0

50

100

150

200

250

3002009201020112012201320142015201620172018

years showed income stuck at around €110,000 per annum. The last three years have shown substantial increases to the 2018 figure of €266,000.

About two thirds of our income now comes from Tusla. This money is for our support work with individual families.

About one quarter comes from the International fund for Ireland (IFI) which funds our community development work

The remainder of our income comes from a variety of small grants and income from our shop.

12. Staffing levels between 2009 and 2019

00.5

11.5

22.5

33.5

44.5

5 20092010201120122013201420152016201720182019

Staff levels have grown from one to the current level of five fulltime.

Staffing levels up to 2016 were low - the coordinator and a part-time administrator, and a part-time development worker.

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Since 2016 the administrator and community development worker have become fulltime, a full time Networking officer was employed through the International Fund for Ireland (IFI) peace project, and this year a full- time family support worker under Beacon was added to the team

13. Some further statistics on Clones relevant to our work

Population changes in Clones

The population of Clones town has fallen greatly over the last forty years, from nearly 1,800 in 1981 to only half of that in 2016.

The population Clones rural electoral area has remained largely stable over that period, increasing by only 6.5%

During that same period the population of County Monaghan rose by 20% and the population of the state as a whole grew by 38%

Clones urban Clones Rural0.00

200.00

400.00

600.00

800.00

1,000.00

1,200.00

1,400.00

1,600.00

1,800.00

1981 1986

1991 1996

2002 2006

2011 2016

Population Clones urban Clones Rural

1981 1,748 1,4681986 1,598 1,5641991 1,488 1,4491996 1,335 1,455

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2002 1,105 1,4842006 974 1,4572011 960 1,6162016 904 1,563

Lone-parent families

The percentage of lone-parent families is used as one of the measures of affluence and deprivation in a community. Generally the higher the numbers of lone parents the greater are the economic difficulties.

The strongest point in the table below is that Clones town has a very high level of lone-parent families compared to the county and the State.

With over 30% of all families in the town headed by lone parents Clones is almost twice the county average, and over one and a half times the State average.

In total there are 130 lone-parent families in the whole Clones area.

Percentage of families headed by lone parent 2016

Clones rural Clones urban Co Monaghan State0

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10

15

20

25

30

35

Lone parents

Clones Rural

Clones Urban Co. Monaghan State

21.71% 31.67% 17.1% 19.9%

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Age dependency and the population of working age

This figure tries to capture the numbers of people of working age in a community compared to the numbers under-15 and over 64

Broadly the picture in the state as a whole is that two-thirds of the population is of working age, supporting the one-third which is not

The stand-out figure for Clones is in the rural hinterland, where the percentage of people in the 15-64 age-group is much lower than the national average

The age-dependency figure for Clones Urban is influenced by the high number of relatively young non-nationals. While there is roughly the same high proportion of older people in both Clones urban and rural the higher numbers of young non-nationals in the town give it a lower age-dependency figure

Clones rural Clones urban Co Monaghan State31

32

33

34

35

36

37

38

39

40

41

Age dependency

Clones Clones Co State

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rural urban Monaghan

Age dependency 40.39% 36.87% 36.7% 34.5%

Education levels in Clones - low but improving

This chart shows that education levels in Clones are lower than the State average.

In the town and rural areas almost one quarter of the population has primary education only, almost twice the State average.

And while over one third of adults in the State has a third level qualification, the figure for Clones urban is less than half that.

These education figures for Clones are changing indicating strong second-level education the area. The percentage of people with higher educational achievement has substantially grown over the last ten years.

Clones rural Clones Urban Co Monaghan State0

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10

15

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Primary school education only

3rd level qualification

Clones rural

Clones urban

Co Monaghan

State

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Primary school education only

23.29 22.67 17.8 13.0

3rd level qualification 27.52 16.30 26.5 35.9

Local Authority rented housing

This is another indicator of relative levels of affluence and deprivation. While the figures for Clones rural and Co Monaghan are close to the

national figure, Clones urban is well above that average. And some of the housing estates in the town belong to the very

disadvantaged category. These are among the poorest 3% of local communities in the whole country.

Clones rural Clones urban Co Monaghan State0

2

4

6

8

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Local authority rented housing

Clones rural

Clones urban

Co Monaghan

State

Local authority rented 10.85 19.71 12.4 12.2

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housing

Unemployment in Clones

These figures again are indicators of deprivation. While Co Monaghan was in keeping with the State average in 2016

Clones was well above that average. Clones rural had higher male unemployment than the county and

national average. But Clones urban had significantly higher levels of unemployment. The Clones Urban figure for female unemployment stands out at over

twice the national average.

Clones rural Clones urban Co Monaghan State

0

5

10

15

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Male unemployment

Female unemployment

Clones rural

Clones urban

Co Monaghan

State

Male unemployment 19.16 25.10 13.6 14.1Female unemployment 13.96 27.35 12.4 12.2

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Some other population trends

Professional workers - Clones urban is well below the national average, almost at one third

Non-nationals - over one quarter of the population of Clones urban is non-national, twice the national average

People over 65 - both Clones urban and rural have a higher than average older population

Clones rural Clones urban Co Monaghan State0

5

10

15

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Professional workers Non-nationals

People over 65

Clones rural Clones urban Co Monaghan

State

Professional 31.0 14.7 29.3 36.2

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workersForeign nationals

8.9 26.2 12.2 13.0

People over 65

20.7 17.6 14.0 13.4

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