The work of the community in Doughiska/Merlin Woods to develop social, educational, health and recreational facilities and services for saw the area receive a Pride of Place award at a gala event last weekend.
The area was recognised in the cities category, for communities with a population of more than 1,000, for the work of the Doughiska, Roscam and Ardaun Community Development Company and local residents in turning the neighbourhood into a vibrant community.
“With a growing population now in excess of 7,000 this community has shown a remarkable capacity to cater for the needs of a diverse, multicultural population, which totally lacked basic social, educational, health, and recreational facilities and services,” the awards judges said in their citation. “The umbrella community development company recently acquired a modern, but closed down, hotel premises and transformed this into a multi-purpose community facility. This partnership provides strategic direction and empowers the local community to provide a range of services and programmes locally. This project demonstrates best practice in co-operation, collaboration, integration, and social inclusion of the highest calibre.”
The annual IPB Co-operation Ireland Pride of Place Awards, which took place in Ennis, Co Clare last weekend, also saw communities in Galway’s West End, Belclare/Sylane, Claregalway, and Chonamara Láir receive runners-up prizes in their categories.
Galway’s West End was runner up in category 1 of the cities competition. Belclare/Sylane was runner up in category 3, a category for communities of populations between 750 and 1,000; and Claregalway was a runner up in category 4, for communities of populations of between 1,500 and 4,000. Chonamara Láir was runner up in the Islands and Coastal Communities category, and the area was also nominated for a LivCom Award. These awards are the world’s only awards competition focusing on international best practice regarding the management of the local environment, and the winners will be announced in 2015.
