Annual Report 2023

Acknowledgements

Without the support of our funders, our board, partners and staff, we would not be in a position to undertake the range and scope of work outlined in this report, nor would we be able to achieve the significant positive outcomes experienced by the people we serve. The mix of projects funded and the complementary nature of the work undertaken has made a significant impact on promoting social inclusion and making a real and positive difference in the lives of so many of the clients and communities we serve. We would also like to acknowledge the support of all the statutory bodies, both nationally and locally, who contributed to the broader range of activities of the company during the year. On behalf of all the MID team and our clients, we say thank you.

The Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP) is co-funded by the Irish Government, through the Department of Rural and Community Development, and the European Social Fund Plus under the Employment, Inclusion, Skills and Training (EIST) Programme 2021 -2027. It is overseen locally by Monaghan Local Community Development Committee (LCDC) with support from Monaghan County Council

Mission Statement:  “Supporting Communities through Social Inclusion and Rural Supports”

Monaghan Integrated Development Board at 2023:  Front row from left to right: Gabriel O Connell CEO, Barry Mc Carron, Mary Mullen Chairperson, Jane Mc Connan, Alice Forde. Back row from Left to right: Fiona Mc Caffrey Jones, Daniel Hawthorn, Tommy Duffy, Christy Mc Kenna, Gerry Mc Mahon, Kathleen Ward. Missing from the picture above are: Cathal Grant, Sunday Abel, Orla Nugent, Fiona Duffy, Berndine Lynch, Deirdre Byrne, Carol Mc Geogh, Edel Treanor

Organisational Structure: diagram.

Chairperson Introduction: Mary Mullen

It is a pleasure for me as Chairperson of Monaghan Integrated Development (MID) to present the Annual Report for 2023 which provides a overview of the work undertaken by the company during the year. I am honoured to be part of our voluntary board of individuals who continue to be committed to working in partnership for the ongoing development of our communities in County Monaghan.

MID updated its Strategy during 2023 by launching a Strategic Plan 2023-2028 which provided a renewed focus for our work. The new Strategic Plan sets KPIs across six pillars of activity which will be closely monitored over the coming years. One of the key objectives of the strategy is to ensure complementarity of programme activities, maximising impact and working towards defined objectives. The SICAP 2018-2022 Programme completed another successful year with all Key Performance Indicator (KPI) targets met and budgets effectively allocated. The programme was extended nationally for 12 months up to the end of 2023 to facilitate planning for the successor SICAP 2024-2028 which is due to commence in early 2024. A tendering process for the new SICAP programme was commenced in July 2023. This process added a significant workload to the SICAP staff and management, as no additional funding was provided for the development of the new 5 year strategy and the SICAP Annual Plan 2023 also had to be delivered and no provision was made in it for this additional workload. MID completed its proposed strategy for SICAP 2024-2028 and submitted it by the deadline of 8th September 2023. The new SICAP strategy was finally approved by Monaghan LCDC and contracts signed on 19th December 2023. The MID board look forward to working closely with key agencies and stakeholder in the delivery of the new SICAP programme for 2024-2028.

The new Local Area Employment Service (LAES) is now up and running across counties Monaghan and Cavan. This is a 4 year contract from Department of Social Protection with the new service focusing on working with those who are long term unemployed. We have office locations in Monaghan and Cavan town(s) and outreach locations in each county as required.

Planning for the new LEADER Programme 2023-2027 started in January 2023 on foot of a Call for Expressions of Interest by DRCD in late 2022 to any groups interested in delivering LEADER. The LEADER 2023-2027 Local Development Strategy (LDS) was completed and submitted for consideration by a national Independent Evaluation Committee in July 2023. MID board felt that effectiveness could be better achieved by shortening the supply chain for LEADER funding to project promoters by MID becoming the Local Action Group (LAG) for county Monaghan for the 2023-2027 LEADER Programme.

MID continued the delivery of the TUS community employment scheme and the Rural Social Scheme (RSS) for County Monaghan which provides a very important support for our community based groups and charities who need the scheme staff to help deliver their activities.

At year end, the TUS and RSS schemes were providing 136 scheme workers to almost 100 community based groups supporting community activity across county Monaghan. Take up of opportunities for community employment on TUS and Rural Social Schemes for unemployed and underemployed remained strong, albeit with reduced referrals of eligible clients from DSP reflecting the current lower levels of unemployment. Many of the community groups using the TUS and RSS schemes indicate that they are being curtailed in their activities if they cannot fill these community employments opportunities.

The demand for and take up of Volunteers remained strong for 2023, with the Volunteer Centre project providing an important matching service for potential volunteers and community based organisations and charities who require volunteers to deliver their activities. The Volunteer Centre also promoted volunteering at community level and provided important training for groups in managing volunteers.

Across our programmes, significant support was provided to new communities in the county who were either in the refugee system under International Protection Applicants or as Ukrainian crisis Refugees seeking shelter in the county from the ravages of the war back in their home country. The effective and rapid response by Local Development Companies like MID and their programme staff to these emerging challenges was acknowledged at Departmental and political level as being very effective.

During the year we continue to collaborate on two exciting new projects. Retrofit Ready is a community led awareness raising measure for Home Retrofit scale up. The aim to achieve heightened awareness of technical & commercial questions so homeowners can engage with retrofit contractors and SEAI grants from a position of knowledge. Funded under the ‘Community Climate Action Programme: Climate Education, Capacity Building and Learning by Doing (Strand 2)’ the consortium consisting of of the ILDN, 4 member LDCs (Sligo Leader, Leitrim Local Development, County Cavan Development and Monaghan Integrated Development) PlanEnergy and ATU Sligo successfully tendered for funding under the Pobal programme.

We also co-delivered work on the National Walks Scheme with our colleagues in Cavan County Local Development, joints employing a Rural Recreation Officer who has worked with local farmers and community stakeholder and the Tourism Officer in both counties to help develop new walks in collaboration with the farming community.

The continued development of the Migrant Support Centre in Monaghan town and its outreach capacity under the SICAP programme is proving to be a very important support for new community members making county Monaghan their home, including Ukrainian crisis refugees, International Protection Applicants and members of the Roma community. MID were delighted to be involved in the National Ukrainian choir project brought together by Local Development Companies across Ireland, which released a version of Phil Coulter’s single, ‘Steal Away’, in collaboration with the singer. The choir is made up of 40 people including singer Olena Afanasieva from Clones, who fled Ukraine as a result of the war.

Effectively managing the integration of new communities and supporting crisis refugees in their time of need has become a key focus area for policy makers. This task requires joined up approaches at national and local level, leading to effective co-design of solutions and effective multi-actor collaborations. From a social inclusion perspective, the board of MID look forward to working with all relevant stakeholders and playing our part in this important task.

Finally I would like to extend my thanks to all my fellow board members for their commitment to MID and to express my thanks to Gabriel O Connell, CEO and all the staff for their dedication and commitment in carrying out all the various programmes within the company over the past year.

Mary Mullen Chairperson Monaghan Integrated Development CLG

Chief Executive Forward: Gabriel O Connell

 This report outlines the work of Monaghan Integrated Development CLG (MID) over the last year and reviews the main programmes. Core programmes like Social Inclusion Community Activation Programme (SICAP), LEADER and the new Local Area Employment Service (LAES), are very important interventions for MID and allow us the space to develop a suite of complementary services and initiatives.

The final year of the current SICAP programme was completed in December 2023, representing 6 years of a very successful programme which is funded by Department of Rural and Community Department through the Monaghan LCDC. The Key Performance Indicators for the programme were consistently met over the 6 year period and the SICAP team can be congratulated for the success in rolling out the programme and achieving the overall objectives. The Invitation to Tender for the new SICAP 2024-2028 was published on 17th July 2023 by Monaghan LCDC and the development of the new strategic plan was a significant undertaking.

The Local Area Employment Service completed its first year of operation by end of August 2023. The service worked with a caseload of 807 clients during 2023. All performance targets for Engagement starts and Personal Progression Plans were achieved by our LAES team for the year. The largest number of referrals were located in Cavan town, Monaghan town and Carrickmacross followed by outreach locations Castleblayney, Ballyconnell, Clones, Cootehill and Bailieborough.

The LEADER Programme 2014-2020 and Transitional Programme 2021-2022 are in the process of winding down as we approach end of 2023. The programme was extended nationally to the end of December 2023 to ensure maximum opportunity for funding allocation. As at end of 2023, all available project funding had been fully allocated with 152 project in receipt of €7.8 million for county Monaghan. MID as the Implementing Partner for LEADER 2014-2022, wish to acknowledge the support of the Monaghan LCDC and Monaghan County Council in the successful delivery of the programme.

Planning for the new LEADER Programme 2023-2027 got underway in late 2022 and early 2023, when DRCD undertook work on their selection process for LEADER Local Development Strategies nationally. Monaghan Integrated Development submitted an EOI which was approved in January 2023. We were invited by DRCD to advance to Stage 2 of the selection process and develop a Local Development Strategy (LDS) for LEADER 2023-2027 period for consideration as part of a competitive selection process for county Monaghan. Following an extensive planning and consultation process, MID submitted its proposed LDS on 16th February 2023. Following a competitive assessment process, MID were subsequently awarded the contract to deliver its LDS for LEADER 2023-2027 in May 2024.

The Volunteer Centre had a busy year with targets being met and exceeded. The number of new registrations with the service was 281 with 180 volunteers being placed in 65 community based volunteering opportunities. Referrals to the TUS and RSS projects remained constrained during 2023, reflecting the current lower levels of unemployment, while demand from community based groups for scheme workers remained very high. The Parenting Monaghan Strategy and website were launched in April 2023. The Strategy represents a collaboration of key agencies and support services in the county supporting parents. Minister Humphries and MEP Maria Walsh were in attendance along with other dignitaries from across the county.

In 2023, just over 2,000 individuals throughout the county were supported through the various programmes delivered by MID

During the year 102 individuals were supported into private sector employment and 257 people supported into Community Employment and a further 52 into new self-employment start-ups. A further 53 local existing small enterprises were also assisted during the twelve month period. In addition, 181 Community Groups were supported and 1,226 individuals supported to complete training course places.

Figure 1. and accompanying table below provides details of the funding distribution for 2023 and presents a break-down of the direct leverage funding secured and disbursed by Monaghan Integrated Development for the year which came to €3,037,056. This included significant additional levered funding for complementary programmes and initiatives which added value to the services of all our partner organisations and the individuals our programmes support.

[Figure 1 & table ]

Monaghan Integrated Development’s strapline is ‘supporting growth and opportunity’ and I believe that we have fully embraced this goal through our activities during 2023 and in our response to the different challenges encountered. As CEO I am privileged to lead a very energetic, vibrant and dedicated group of people who are extremely passionate about the work they do and about ensuring that their work makes a ‘real and positive difference’ to the lives of the people we work with. I want to acknowledge this commitment to the objectives of the company and to say a big thank you and well done to all our programme staff.

Finally, I want to express my appreciation to our Chairperson Mary Mullen for her continued support and commitment to the work of MID and to acknowledge all the board members for their continued commitment to community-led local development and to collectively working to create developmental opportunities for individuals and communities throughout County Monaghan. Without our board’s vision and drive for advancing the partnership approach to integrated development this innovative work would not be possible.

Through our work we continue to promote and embrace the partnership approach, working with all the statutory agencies and bodies in the county, assisting them to get closer to individuals and communities and in being more aware of the needs of specific target groups who may require specific approaches and interventions. On behalf of the MID Board I want to acknowledge the contribution of all of our funders and to thank them for continuing to embrace our community led local development model of integrated local development. Working together we all achieve more.

Gabriel O’Connell CEO

MID Programmes and Initiatives 2023

Core Programmes:

• SICAP—Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme
• LEADER
• Labour Market Programmes: Local Area Employment Service, Tús & RSS

Other Initiatives:

• Volunteer Centre
• Parenting Monaghan
• Fit for Work and Life
• Community Food Initiative
• Department of Children, Equality, Disability , Integration and Youth
• PoliRural

Monaghan Integrated Development MID delivers its programmes in an integrated manner. This means that the MID staff can cross refer clients and groups to the programmes and activities best suited to address their needs. It also enables better outcomes for the clients and groups engaged. In addition, the MID Board facilitates a partnership approach that is at the heart of all Local Development Companies. Collaboration with other agencies on a variety of activities is a regular feature of the local development work undertaken. This approach has resulted in the following overall outcomes being achieved from the programmes delivered in 2023:

• 2,010 individuals supported
• 181 groups supported
• 1,226 courses completed by individuals
• 102 jobs, 257 community employment
• 52 new enterprises supported
• 53 existing enterprises supported

Community Development Team

In 2023 the Community Development Team delivered the following:

• Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP)
• Health & Wellbeing projects:
• HSE Section 39: Older Persons Services
• HSE Section 39: Intercultural Health Supports. This project commenced in May 2023.
• Dept of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (CEDIY) – Intercultural Support Worker. Funding for this project ended in April 2023.
• Parenting Monaghan Supports
• Rural Recreation Officer*
• Retrofit Champion*

*These projects are joint projects with Cavan County Local Development (CCLD).

Ensuring continuity in service delivery is one of the more demanding aspects of work in the Community Development sector. Maintaining momentum is particularly challenging when a funding stream ends or if a staff member leaves.

This could have been an issue for the Community Development Team in 2023 as we had two vacancies within SICAP for a number of months and funding for our Intercultural Worker ceased at a time of rising immigration numbers. However, the entire team rallied to cover the gaps, ensuring that all services were maintained and all targets met whilst new staff were being recruited. Below are the outcomes and some reflections on the achievements of the Community Development team in 2023.

Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP)

SICAP delivers actions across 2 Goals. Goal 1 focuses on supports at group level, whilst Goal 2 provides support to individuals. It also has key performance indicators to reach and for 2023 these were 34 groups and 364 individuals (of whom 29% had to be from a disadvantaged area). The programme delivered support to 39 groups and 441 individuals (of whom 37% were from disadvantaged areas).

2023 brought the curtain down on the second iteration of SICAP (2018-2023). All budgets had to be spent out in full as the programme was drawing to a close and no carry over was allowed. Overall, the 2018-2023 programme enhanced the lives of many people in the SICAP target groups, supporting an average of 421 individuals and 38 groups each year.

As the old programme ended, the team supported preparation of the bid for a new tender, whilst still delivering on their existing work plan. A report on the final 12 actions delivered in the 2023 workplan now follows.

Goal 1 Action 1: Traveller and Roma Support

Travellers

In 2023 SICAP supported the meetings of Traveller Interagency Group (TIG) and the implementation of actions in the TIG one year plan. SICAP also developed a strong collaboration with Cavan Traveller Movement. This work has led to the following:

• The establishment of Monaghan Traveller Movement, a new countywide representative group for Travellers.
• The facilitation by SICAP of engagement of Monaghan Traveller Movement in the consultation processes for the new Traveller Plan for the CH01 area and the new LEADER Programme
• SICAP arranging Monaghan Traveller Movement to meet with Tus Programme, the new Traveller Public Health Nurse for Cavan/Monaghan and also arranging Community Health Checks by the Traveller HSE Nurse at Gortakeegan Park halting site.
• Participation in training
  • 3 Traveller Women completed a Community Development Course in Cavan
  • Organized a QQI Level 2 course for Traveller Women in Gortakeegan Community Building (Delivered by CMETB)
• Participation in Arts, Culture and other activities
  • Arranged a Play entitled ‘Its a Cultural Thing…or is it’ by Michael Collins as part of Social Inclusion Week in Garage Theatre
  • Organized a Traveller Youth Creativity Project in association with Monaghan Library Service and iRecovery College.
  • Displayed photographic exhibition in Iontas Centre
  • Arranged a Traveller Cultural Awareness Family Fun Day in Gortakeegan. 150 attended.
  • Arranged Go-Karting Trip to Newry for young male travellers
  • Funding secured for a HSE Traveller Health Unit project to employ a Community Development Worker to scope out the need for a Traveller Primary Healthcare project in Co Monaghan.
  • Production of a case study video profiling our SICAP work with Travellers.

Roma

Work with the Roma community continued in 2023, despite staff shortages for a variety of reasons. SICAP worked to overcome these obstacles and a basic service was maintained. SICAP continued to coordinate the Roma Interagency Group which finalised the Roma pilot research.

The programme also collaborated with the Monaghan County Child Care Committee to facilitate the engagement of Roma mothers in the community in Carrickmacross as a step towards greater integration.

This included supporting a mothers and children’s group to build trust with women within the community and facilitating the enrolment of three children in a local creche. The need for a female Roma family support worker was identified to help overcome cultural barriers that restrict engagement to further integration.

However, a funding application for such a worker to the National Integration Fund proved unsuccessful.  

Goal 1 Action 2: Intercultural Support

The Intercultural Support action in 2023 contained 4 measures.

Measure 1: Monaghan Migrant Support Centre

This action was designed to further build the capacity of the Monaghan Migrant Support Centre in Monaghan Town as a signposting service for migrants seeking information and support in Co. Monaghan.

The Monaghan Migrant Support Centre (MMSC), along with its outreach hubs in Clones and Carrickmacross served as a central hub for integration activities and support for migrants.

Key aspects of MMSC’s operations and initiatives included:

• Drop-In Facility: MMSC maintained a vital drop-in facility in Monaghan Town, operating from Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM. This facility provided essential information and signposting support to migrants in the area, addressing their immediate needs. The Centre assisted over 1000 people in 2023.
• Collaborative Integration Activities: MMSC played a pivotal role in fostering integration within the community by serving as a base for various intercultural and integration activities. These included the Cosmopolitan Women’s Group, the Little Cosmos activity pack program, and the Ukrainian Hub. MMSC organized and supported a range of events and activities, including Halloween workshops, trips to the garden centre, Christmas celebrations for families. In an effort to promote awareness about civic participation, MMSC collaborated with County Council on the topic of “The Right to Vote.” Information sessions were organized to raise awareness among migrants about their voting rights and the significance of elections as part of social inclusion.

Measure 2: Conversational English and Integration Supports

SICAP continued to support Failte Isteach English Conversation Classes in Carrickmacross, Clones and Monaghan throughout the academic year, recognizing their vital role in addressing language barriers and furthering social inclusion process. In September, Third Age provided training for all Fáilte Isteach volunteers.

• Monaghan: classes ran twice weekly with 15 volunteer tutors and average student attendance of 80 people per week.
• Carrickmacross ran weekly with 13 tutors actively involved as numbers grew from 5 students to an average of 28 students.
• Clones ran weekly with 5 volunteers and a normal attendance of 20 to 25 people.

Migrant Information and Support Hubs ran alongside all Failte Isteach classes. Failte Isteach students took active part in events and information sessions supported by SICAP.

SICAP collaborated with Parenting Monaghan to empower migrant mothers with essential parenting skills. By providing valuable parenting information within a dedicated Parenting Program to the Migrant Women’s Groups in Monaghan and Carrickmacross, the initiative enhanced their integration into the local community

SICAP also fostered integration and inclusion within the community.

• Continued supporting a weekly activity pack program for the Little Cosmos group (mothers and toddlers). Children were also supported to attend cultural events.
• Supported the Migrant Men’s Group. This group was formed to cater to the needs and interests of men from various backgrounds, including those residing in direct provision centres.

The Migrant Men’s Group actively participated in a range of activities including library induction, employment workshops, visits to the Citizens Information Centre, a town tour to familiarize themselves with the local area, and a team-building excursion to Carlingford Adventure Centre. The group had an information session with an Asylum specialist solicitor and were engaged in volunteering and Tidy Town’s initiatives.

Measure 3: Supports for the Syrian Community and other Migrant groups.

SICAP continued to provide essential support to the Arab/Syrian community in Clones, building upon the successes of the previous year. Some key initiatives and accomplishments were:

Intercultural Homework Club: Building on the needs analysis conducted in the previous year, SICAP continued to support an intercultural homework club at St. Tiarnach’s National School. This initiative assists children from new communities with their homework. The club ran four afternoons a week and had an average attendance of 35 children from new communities at each session.

Summer Camps and Extracurricular Activities: SICAP continued to support children from new communities in engaging with the wider community by facilitating their participation in summer camps and extracurricular school activities. A “Friday Fun Club” was also repeated in December to support Christmas activities for the children.

Community Trips: The Arab/Syrian community enjoyed several trips supported by SICAP, including an Eid trip to Airbound Dundalk, a visit to a garden centre for Halloween Pumpkin carving, participation in Christmas Celebrations for Families.

Arab/Syrian women in Carrickmacross were encouraged to join Failte Isteach classes and the Migrant Womens group supported by SICAP.

Measure 4. Support other migrant led, anti-racism groups as requested

In 2023, SICAP continued to demonstrate its commitment to promoting migrant-led initiatives and anti-racism efforts within the community.

Cultural Celebrations: SICAP supported cultural diversity activities and celebrated various cultures within the community in 2023. Events included: The International Women’s Day; Traditional Dance workshops; Intercultural Easter “EGGstravaganza”; African Day; and an Intercultural Christmas event.

Support for Individuals in Direct Provision: SICAP’s commitment to supporting individuals residing in direct provision and emergency direct provision centres remained steadfast. A series of wellness activities were organized for International Protection Applicants (IPA’s) to promote mental and physical well-being. SICAP supported women and childrens groups in Carrickmacross and Monaghan to participate in a Parenting Program provided by Parenting Monaghan.

Goal 1 Action 3: Target Groups & Disadvantaged Areas Supports

The key focus of Action 1.3 in 2023 was to deliver capacity-building support, based on need, to local community groups and the county’s DisAbility Network. 13 local community groups were supported including the Network. The following is a summary of SICAP capacity building support and how it helped groups progress.

County Monaghan DisAbility Network and its member groups and individuals were supported to build their abilities (as individuals, groups and a network) to advocate for the meaningful inclusion and integration of people with disabilities in all areas of community life. 14 individual members were supported to successfully complete 10 week social farming programmes. Funding for these places came from SICAP and CMETB (through MAEDF funding). Social farming supports inclusion, health and well-being and development of personal skills transferable to the labour market. Enhancing the skills of individual disability group members also has the desired effect of enhancing the overall capacity of their group and the Network.

The Network engaged in inclusion awareness campaigns and led Make Way Day in the county. Make Way Day is a national awareness day and part of a campaign to highlight the obstacles and barriers faced by people with disabilities in public spaces. These include obstacles on footpaths, e.g. street signs, cars, wheelie bins, poorly located disabled parking spaces, etc. The Network worked with Monaghan County Council to light public buildings purple, the colour for disability inclusion, on UN Day of People with Disabilities in December.

Monaghan County Council also recognised the Disability Networks inclusion work, presenting them with a Community Award at their awards ceremony in April.

In our experience of delivering support to local communities, we see many groups who struggle with the whole area of governance. This can leave them ill prepared to access funding and/or comply with a funders’ monitoring requirements. For groups registered as charities, Charity Regulators Governance Code compliance is a constant challenge.

In 2023, SICAP delivered governance support to 12 local community groups to help them build their skills in this area. This support included:

• Governance training, based on the Charity Regulator’s Governance Code to help groups maintain or continue their journey towards compliance.
• Help with developing the necessary skills to write successful funding applications.
• Group formation support, to help groups to put good governance structures in place from the offset. This involved helping groups to draft constitutions and hold inaugural AGMs.
• Training on how to get the most out of committee meetings and make them as effective as possible for volunteers.

All these supports were delivered on site to groups in their own premise and were tailored to suit the individual needs of each group.

Goal 1 Action 4: Social Enterprise

Social Enterprise supports were more limited in 2023 as the worker position was vacant from January until mid-September. However, SICAP still managed to deliver Business Development Supports on a smaller scale. These included:

• Providing mentoring support to two social enterprises on updating policies, procedures, and governance.
• Providing technical support to 1 social enterprise to improve their bookkeeping and finance management.
• Established a network for social enterprises in Co. Monaghan, sharing information on available funding opportunities and ILDN’s Social Enterprise IMPACT awards with 68 social enterprises. Assisted two social enterprises with their application submissions.
• Facilitated the SICAP Social Enterprise Grant process, awarding grants to two social enterprises to improve their businesses

The extremely high cost of audit fees (up to €6,000) for some SE cooperative structures was identified as an issue. This will be drawn to the attention of groups considering establishing an SE in the year ahead.

Goal 1 Action 5: Sustainable Communities

Measure 1: Support County Monaghan Sustainable Energy Community (SEC)

• The Sustainable Energy Community was supported to access technical support from the EU RECAH programme to identify key areas on the County Monaghan Energy Masterplan for implementation. The Technical Support consultant assisted the SEC members to examine the resources each could bring to the table. Once this was established, he broke down the Energy Master Plan objectives, including objectives achievable by the group in the short term using existing resources. These included some that could be supported by SICAP. The RECAH support was extremely useful, giving clarity on the way forward and highlighting new social enterprise opportunities that could be hugely beneficial to SICAP clients in the years ahead.
• Provided assistance to the Retrofit Ready project and County Monaghan SEC in conducting three home retrofitting and Warmer Homes information events, which benefited over 100 households and identified clusters of homes for energy efficiency upgrades.

Measure 2: Edible Estates – Supporting Sustainable Eating

In 2023 two groups were supported under this measure. Monaghan Allotments: SICAP supported this group to successfully apply for a SICAP LCG Grant for essential equipment to enable the group to expand their growing operations.

Goal 1 Action 6: Disadvantaged Estates

The focus of this action was O’Neill Park, Clones. According to Pobal HP deprivation index, O’Neill Park is an ‘area of disadvantage’. The O’Neill Park estate consists of 118 houses with three additional areas of housing, Carn Heights, Carn View and Roslea Terrace bringing the total to 161. The combined areas are all part of the local Residents Association, O’Neill Park and Area.

In 2023 SICAP supported this group to:

Complete a needs analysis for their area. The residents main issues of concern related to the risk that emergency vehicles would be unable to access certain parts of the estate due to narrow streets being blocked by parked cars, as well as to public lighting.

Apply for a SICAP Local Community Group Grant for a community summer event.

Progress with a community sensory garden project and meet funder reporting requirements. This project will be completed in early 2024.

Access Retrofit information and support for residents.

Goal 1 Action 7: Ukrainian Community Support

In late 2022 additional funding was received to support Ukrainian Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection (BOTPs). A support worker was engaged on a temporary basis to ensure that the Ukrainian community was connected and integrated with existing SICAP Intercultural supports and additional needs were addressed as necessary.

In 2023, the following supports were provided:

• A social media page (Ukrainian in Monaghan) to disseminate and share information of relevance amongst the community was opened. In 2023 the page had 128 members and they regularly shared information of relevance to the Ukrainian Community.
• Mapping of locations continued, identifying Ukrainian individuals residing across the county and establishing contact with those who had arrived via the IPAS system and those who had come to the county of their own accord.
• Transport to English classes (ESOL and Fáilte Isteach) in various locations. SICAP Failte Isteach English Conversation classes in Carrickmacross, Clones and Monaghan had approximately 75 Ukrainians engaged on a weekly basis. Ukrainian Hubs ran alongside these classes, providing information and support on a wide variety of issues.
• Education: Access to local schools (with additional in-school English language support) and access to online schooling from Ukraine.
• Clients were supported with transfer of qualifications to allow access to employment. E.g. a nurse and an English teacher had Ukrainian certification but this was not recognised in Ireland.
• Support with Interpreting at the dentist and GP clinics was provided
• Activities beneficial to physical and mental health (and also to enable the community to build connections with each other) were organised. These included:
  • A trip to GR8 in Castleblayney.
  • A peace walk in Monaghan town to mark one year of war in Ukraine.
  • Intercultural Easter event for Ukrainian and other communities in Co Monaghan.
  • Visit to the Battle of the Boyne site.
  • Transport to enable the Ukrainian community to attend a Women of the World event organized in collaboration with NWC Monaghan.
  • A trip to Irish national museum in Castlebar.
  • 2 separate day trips to Dublin Zoo to accommodate all Ukrainian families who wanted to come.

The worker also connected Ukrainians to existing SICAP Intercultural activities such as Fáilte Isteach classes, Cosmopolitan Womens Group and Little Cosmos Mother and Toddler group. 150 members of the Ukrainian community were also supported to take part in a SICAP Intercultural Christmas event.

Goal 2 Action 1: Personal Development & Training

Life Coaching: SICAP supported 40 individuals for one-to-one Life Coaching and feedback has been extremely positive. The sessions unearth issues, often complex, that the SICAP team can support the client to address and progress. These include need for mental health supports, skill deficits and training needs, aa confidence building etc. 18 +123-456-7890

Educational Disadvantage Fund: €16,330 was granted to support 52 clients to undertake skills development and training courses using the Educational Disadvantage Fund. This is a fund of last resort for clients who can’t access supports through other avenues. It is used to help a client to access training for immediate employment / a course or skill certification to make them more employable / or education and training that will move them towards employment.

Other Supports: Throughout the year SICAP also engaged with individuals with further personal development & training supports, including:

• Referrals to further education & training with CMETB, language supports
• Assisting people to access social, state and personal supports & services, as well as helping with CV support.
• Information sessions for migrant communities on supports available under SICAP and other supports available to them in the county.

Throughout the course of SICAP delivery, we have identified certain clients who are not suited to employment due to disability or capacity. They are caught in a cycle of moving between support services, e.g. CE, Tus, Support employment, National Learning Network and DSP. They require very intense levels of support, but have no clear destination after training and community employment schemes (and they are often unsuited to these as well).

Goal 2 Action 2: Youth Support

Don’t Pour Your Dreams Away: SICAP co-ordinated and delivered the Don’t Pour Your Dreams Away Programme. The programme delivered drug and alcohol awareness training to 1,020 second level students about to receive their Junior Cert results. SICAP staff supported delivery in all 12 schools in the county. An Garda Siochana, Monaghan County Council, CYPSC, Youth Work Ireland Monaghan, Fóroige, Monaghan NYP & Monaghan and Cavan Youth Substance Support Service all assisted with delivery. The programme was funded by Monaghan Joint Policing Committee.

Driving Support Programme: Driving support is a popular action which is unsurprising in a county where poor public transport is a common barrier for young people in accessing training or employment. 8 individuals under 25 years participated in the SICAP Driving Support Programme in 2023. They included 3 Travellers, 2 migrants, 1 LGBTQ+. All received 12 free driving lessons and driving test. We also secured additional funding from CMETB (Adult Literacy for Life) to support additional clients with Driving and Personal Development training. 1

Monaghan Town Boxing Initiative: There is a high interest in developing a Boxing Club in Monaghan town, however, sourcing a suitable venue is the main barrier at present. We investigated many possibilities in 2023 and were offered use of a premises on the edge of town, but ultimately it proved unsuitable. The search will continue in 2024 if the new programme allows.

Young travellers creativity/iRecovery college project: We worked alongside Monaghan Library Service and iRecovery College to implement a creativity project for a group of young travellers. Activities included team-building activities at Lough Muckno and learning photography skills with local photographer John Nutley. The initiative culminated with an event in the Iontas Centre, in which the young travellers displayed their photos of Rossmore Park. The project was very successful as it improved the mental health of the young travellers while also teaching them photography skills.

Planet Youth: SICAP is part of a County-wide collaborative group supporting the development of the Planet Youth project. Planet Youth is an innovative public health project being adopted in a number of counties, including Cavan and Monaghan. Its aim is to improve the health and happiness of young people in our communities and assist them in achieving their full potential. Planet Youth has the ability to provide statistical information in a useful and usable format (e.g. chart below) which shows the proportion of adolescents vaping has increased compared to 3 years ago. We can then use this information when dealing with young people engaged with SICAP.

Goal 2 Action 3: Resilient & Sustainable Households

Warmer Homes Scheme: 12 participants were supported to complete and submit applications to the scheme and are awaiting an outcome to their applications.

Grow it Yourself: Working with participants on Clones Grow Your Own Programme to assist with planting of beds for 2023. Looking at further supports needed to maintain the progress to date with Grow Your Own participants.

Budgeting support: Budgeting support was delivered to 14 Smallholder households. This support assisted clients to examine income and expenditure of their smallholding and draft up a budget sheet for their household. They needed to complete budget reports for both social welfare and revenue schemes.

Health and Well-being: 20 Traveller men completed a Health and Well-Being programme in which they examined topics including diet, smoking and alcohol consumption. In addition, they have been supported with gym memberships into local gyms to improve their health and well-being. This initiative was supported with funding leveraged through the Irish Cancer Society. SICAP also supported 5 Traveller Women with swimming lessons in Monaghan Leisure Centre. The women, who are involved in Monaghan Traveller Movement, found the sessions good for their physical health, and more interestingly, to be very beneficial to their mental health as well.

SICAP presented the main messages of the Fit for Work and Life Programme to the Women’s Health Fair in Monaghan Town organised by Dochas for Women in January.

Parenting Supports: SICAP supported a number of activities for Parenting Monaghan as part Co Monaghan Wellbeing Week (9th-13th October) and also to coincide with World Mental Health day on October 10th. Events included writing for healing, wellness walk, cookery demonstration for nourishment of body and mind, decluttering and style advice for wellbeing. There was also a presentation from mental health advocate Rory O’Connor of ‘Rory’s Stories’. All were well attended with most reaching full capacity.

Goal 2 Action 4: Self Employment Supports

Demand for Self-Employment supports remained constant during 2023. With the low unemployment figures and employers from all sectors citing difficulty recruiting staff this was surprising. Advertising of supports secured referrals from DSP, Job Path, LAES, ETB and self[1]referrals through friends and family.

Key achievements/outputs for 2023:

• 208 Individuals supported – 114 Male & 94 Female
• 8 Information Sessions delivered on SICAP supports for self-employment – 105 individuals attended
• Information Session for Ukrainians with limited English delivered with translator – 9 individuals attended
• 8 Planning for Self-Employment training courses (18 hours per course) delivered – 87 individuals completed
• Designated Ukrainian language Planning for Self-Employment training course – 23 individuals completed
• 208 individuals provided with One-to-One mentoring support – Pre start-up 152 & Post start-up 56
• 40 recipients of the BTWEA/STEA submitted applications for the Enterprise Support Grant. The main categories applied under were tools & equipment, advertising, Public Liability Insurance, accountancy and premises upgrade.
• 49 individuals referred to other agencies for mentoring, grant aid and training courses
• 52 individuals progressed into self-employment – Male 27 Female 25. Business Start-ups included: Hairdressing, Barber, Beauty & Alternative Therapies, Construction, Carpentry, Air Tightness Control, Handyman Services, Power Washing, Painting & Decorating, Counselling, Psychotherapy, Hypnotherapy Service, Landscaping/Gardening Services, Tattoo Artist and more!

Goal 2 Action 5: Ukrainian Trauma Support

Supports to individual Ukrainians took many forms and included:

• Purchase of materials and assembly into starter packs (i.e. boxes with various household items, e.g. bed linen, towels, plates, cutlery etc) which were distributed to families moving into pledged accommodation.
• Organised for 19 Ukrainian men in Co Monaghan to receive Safe pass and manual handling courses in Russian language. This gave an opportunity for those who do not speak English language to get a certificate for employment opportunity. First Aid and Mental Health first aid courses were also provided in Russian.

Individual supports also included:

• Interpretation between clients and HSE, potential employers, schools, landlords, council staff, dentist clinics and hospitals. Interpreting with the employers has been success and a number of the Ukrainian women and men are now in employment.
• Supporting Ukrainian individuals with the job interviews and access to driving lessons to support their employment.
• Supporting individuals with filling in the paperwork for jobseekers, invalidity payments, etc.

Health & Wellbeing: 90 individuals were supported with gym and pool taster sessions.

Allotment space was provided in Ballybay for those who were interested in gardening.

Cooking and knitting workshops were organized. Ukrainian community had a chance to learn how to cook Irish traditional bread, scones, savoury food and desserts. Likewise Ukrainian ladies were teaching others how to knit socks. Socks knitted were posted to Ukrainian soldiers.

Health & Wellbeing Projects

MID would like to acknowledge the support received from the HSE, Tusla and the Cavan and Monaghan Young Peoples Services Committee (CYPSC) towards the Health and Wellbeing Coordinator Role in 2023. This role has facilitated the delivery of the following supports.

HSE Section 39: Older Persons Services

Day Care Service Supports

Monaghan Integrated has been delivering Older Persons Supports for the HSE for the past 3 years. In 2023, 15 Day Care Services were supported with grants totalling €106,530, including one new service opened in Inniskeen. In addition, a Meals On Wheels service was funded in south Monaghan.

Visits were completed to a number of day care services. Activities were organized through Monaghan Sports Partnership and other providers for services as well. These included chair Pilates, Yoga and information talks from Citizens Information services and others.

South Monaghan Meals on Wheels (MoW)

In January we engaged a new support worker to assist with the South Monaghan MoWs. This service delivers hot meals to older people in Carrickmacross and surrounding areas. With the support of a pool of 12 Volunteer drivers and 2 RSS participants, daily meal deliveries were made, delivering over 5,000 meals to an average of 30 clients across the year. This was challenging work and ultimately the service and the delivery model were found to be restrictive to service growth. In December we commenced preparation for restructuring the service to deliver reheatable readymade meals in 2024.

HSE Section 39: Intercultural Health Supports

The community development team secured funding for an Intercultural Health Support worker from the HSE and in May 2023 the new worker assumed their position. Since then the worker has:

Visited all Direct Provision centres and Temporary accommodation centres in Monaghan to provide information on different health related events and supports in the local area. This includes weekly visits accompanying Suzanne Gunn from HSE to all centres that have clients with complex medical issues who need assistance (e.g. translating instructions on taking medicine; translating migrant medical history forms into English for GPs, etc).

• Assisted with booking GP and Dental appointments and translation at same, as well as helping Migrants in Co. Monaghan to get assigned GPs.
• Supported migrants with Medical card application forms and medical card renewal applications across Co. Monaghan.
• Assisted at Roma women’s weekly community meetings in Carrickmacross, providing information to the Roma about the health system and other supports available to them.
• Supported Failte Isteach Monaghan town and Failte Isteach Clones students with information and support regarding Health supports.
• In 2023 the worker dealt with 665 cases face to face, 104 cases through email and 187 cases over the phone.

Parenting Monaghan Supports

The Parenting Monaghan strategy and website were launched in April 2023 in St. Joseph’s boy’s school, Carrickmacross. Minister Humphries and MEP Maria Walsh were in attendance along with other dignitaries from across the county.

In 2023 the Health and Wellbeing Coordinator was able to access additional funding for Parenting Monaghan. This was made up as follows:

• €5,000 Healthy Monaghan funding. This enabled 55 parents to take part in Parenting training and allowed purchase of Facilitator manuals for delivery of a special needs parenting programme in 2024.
• €5,000 Reach funding from CMETB enabled training of 4 additional facilitators for Healthy Families, Special Needs and Parenting When Separated programmes
• €6,500 Parent Participation funding enabled 3 play events to be held (Clones, Ballybay and Monaghan) with over 250 parents attending, as well as allowing us to secure eminent public speaker Stella O’Malley, Psychotherapist and author to speak at a Childcare Conference in Latton in September.

As part of the funding a Parent participation group comprising 8 parents convened in Clones and met every 2 weeks. This group identified challenges for parents regarding parenting in Co Monaghan. The output from this group will inform Tusla activities in a range of areas moving forward. Various activities have been undertaken and selected by parents including beauty advice, creative writing and more are planned. Gym passes and beauty vouchers purchased for active participants. This work is ongoing.

€9,000 CYPSC Healthy Ireland Funding – 6 key parent support modules were identified, developed and delivered to IPAS parents in the Monaghan town area to meet the needs of parents living in direct provision. A small group of IPAS parents in Carrickmacross availed of aspects of this programme also. Additionally:

• 6 parent/child activity sessions scheduled for parents in Lisanisk house in Carrickmacross. Good attendance.
• Midterm activity places funded for 3 children from Lisanisk House, Carrickmacross.
• Halloween event arranged for IPAS parents in Monaghan and Clones area.
• Christmas functions were arranged in Monaghan and Carrickmacross

 €6,500 Tusla Parent Awareness Fund

• Voice overs of key Parenting Monaghan resources completed for uploading to YouTube.
• Reprint of key Parenting Monaghan publications – 1000 copies.
• 4 media advertisements of Parenting Monaghan events and information

Funding Applications: IFI funding application successfully approved to the sum of €113,615.96 for a Parenting Project to commence in south Monaghan in 2024.

Connecting for Life: The Health and Wellbeing Coordinator continued to be an active member of the Connecting For Life communication/campaigns working group for Counties Cavan and Monaghan and is working on a positive mental health communications strategy for the two counties. THE CFL group participated in Monaghan Wellness week (9-13th October) to coincide with world mental health day.

A number of wellness events were organized across the county funded by SICAP including:

• Cookery demonstration – 20 participants
• Rory’s Stories-75 +
• Writing for Wellness workshop -10
• Decluttering session -16
• Men’s wellness walk-6

Period Poverty

In 2023, €3,000 was secured from the HSE and a total of 1,116 packs of sanitary ware products were distributed to food banks across the county, to the Migrant Support Centre and other deserving locations.

Dept of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (CEDIY) – Intercultural Support Worker

Funding for this project expired in April 2023. However, right until the end of April the support worker assisted clients in Direct Provision with various issues including employment access, social welfare access and health interventions. The worker also organised Health & Wellbeing supports at group level by providing clients with access to activities in local parks and opportunities to learn about Irish culture.

Rural Recreation Officer & Retrofit Champion

The positions of Rural Recreation Officer (RRO) and Retrofit Champion are shared between Cavan and Monaghan Local Development Companies with Cavan acting as lead applicant and employer.

Rural Recreation Officer: Working closely with Monaghan County Council, the RRO successfully ensured that the Monaghan Way was listed with Sport Ireland on their register of Walking & Hiking Trails. This means that we should be able to apply to a future Walks Scheme to secure an RRO on a fulltime basis.

Retrofit Champion: The Retrofit Champion continued to hold events in Cavan and Monaghan to encourage people to apply for SEAI retrofit grant supports. Monaghan events were held in Inniskeen, Emyvale and Castleblayney. Working closely with the SICAP team, they ensured that disadvantaged areas and people were always considered and targeted when holding events. This included a leaflet drop to all homes in Drumillard when holding the Castleblayney event.

Monaghan Volunteer Centre

Registrations and Placements

The number of registrations increased 42% (up from 197 to 281) between 2022 and 2023. At the same time, the number of placements rose by 50% (120 to 180). Our move from being purely a referral service for VIOs to also directly running volunteer projects is driving this increase.

Volunteers continued to register mostly online and the numbers of potential volunteers ‘dropping in’ to register face-to-face in the office has remained low. This seems to have become permanent, rather than a temporary knock on effect from covid restrictions. We do offer face to face meetings if required but have moved to encourage people to do their initial registration online if possible. The aim is to give staff time to deal with the increased numbers and run migrant volunteer projects.

Key Figures [table]

Working with New Communities

This year brought the challenge of working with increased numbers of Ukrainians, applicants for International Protection and other migrant communities. The percentage of newly registered volunteers who are Irish fell from 67% in 2022 to 56% in 2023. Migrant communities face various barriers to volunteering and we have had to find new ways to create opportunities for them to get involved. Extra funding from DRCD for this work, collaboration with other MID services like the Migrant Support Centre and SICAP and with other local organisations have been important in our work. We are also trying to continue our more traditional work at the same time.

Photo: Liza and Grace with Migrant Men’s Group at the Sage Garden

Volunteer Projects

We ran projects to create opportunities for people who have difficulty in finding suitable roles to volunteer. Many of these were funded with the additional Ukraine and New Communities funding from DRCD.

Project: Monaghan Town Craft & Chat – in partnership with WCI Monaghan (previously Dochas for Women)

Target Group: Migrant women and Irish women of various backgrounds

Numbers involved: 50

Outcome:

• Produced Christmas gifts for clients of ALONE and Meals on Wheels, clothes for premature babies in Cavan Hospital, sensory toys for autism units of local schools and disability services and items for a local disability service’s fundraiser
• Experienced crafters taught others
• Project built connections between women from various cultures
• Reduced isolation
• Connected women to relevant services
• Inspired Monaghan Library to set up a similar group and we found them volunteer tutors.

Project: Tidy-up of Sage Garden at Crocus Cancer Support Centre with Monaghan Tidy Towns and Monaghan Migrant Men’s Group

Target Group: Migrant Men

Numbers involved: 6

Outcome: Garden was messy and overgrown, group did major tidy, including removing old tractor tyres, clearing weeds and painting fences and a shed. Following the clean up some of the migrant men started taking part in the regularly Tidy Towns litter pick each Saturday. The men received a “Community Hero” award for their efforts.

Project: Clones Tidy Towns

Target Group: Open to all but extra publicity to migrants – 19 of 20 participants were migrants

Numbers involved: 20

Outcome: Cleaned up the “Railway Gate” area, including painting railings and flowerpots and removing weeds. Led to Clones Tidy Towns starting a WhatsApp group to invite migrants to regular tidy ups.

Project: Clones Wellness Project

Target Group: Advertised for migrant men and women but didn’t get enough interest to run the men’s group

Numbers involved: 6 women

Outcome: Participants received 8 weekly exercise classes, weigh[1]ins, healthy eating advice. They volunteered at the Peace Link; received introduction to VC services; Some are volunteering in other roles

Project: Ballybay Tidy Towns

Target Group: Ukrainian migrants

Numbers involved: 20

Outcome: Litter pick carried out around Balllybay.

Project: Clones YWICM Mural

Target Group: Young people aged 15 to 18 – Syrian, Polish, Traveller, Lithuanian, Latvian and Irish.

Numbers involved: 15

Outcome: Created a mural with a “Welcome” theme. Helped to re-engage young people who were drifting away from YWICM service after the debs car accident in which two girls died.

Volunteer Awards

The annual Co. Monaghan Volunteer Awards attracted 24 nominations and about 120 people attended our event in the Garage Theatre, Monaghan on Sunday 12th November.

We received excellent, full-page coverage in the Northern Standard and one winner was interviewed on Northern Sound Radio. We also got a good response on social media. All the nominees were recognised at the ceremony, with details of their volunteering read out and opportunities to have photos taken for social media and our press release. We presented prizes in three categories:

Volunteer of the Year – Fergal McMahon

Volunteer Group of the Year – Board of the Down Syndrome Centre North East

Lifetime Achievement Award – Anne Jordan

[Photo: Down Syndrome North East Board Members with Fiona McCaffrey-Jones of the MID board and Sinéad Keenan of Monaghan Volunteer Centre]

 Varied Support for Non-Profit organisations

Monaghan Voluntary Centre receives a wide range of requests for help and assists whenever it can. Some examples include:

Collecting items knitted for Team Hope and the Cairde Centre and arranging delivery

Supporting a “thank you” lunch for Meals on Wheels volunteers

Hosting a “thank you” Christmas networking event for Failte Isteach volunteer tutors.

Publicity

Our goal is that everyone who might use our service is aware of what we offer. We try to achieve this through a variety of methods. During 2023, this included:

• 6 Northern Standard Articles
• 3 Northern Sound Interviews
• Outreach at libraries, schools, youth services and the National Learning Network.
• Attended networking events including local health promotion event, older people’s event and open days of local VIOs.
• Increased following on all social media. Instagram is growing most strongly, with followers up 20.6% between December 2022 and December 2023

Rural Social Scheme

We closed out the year with 63 positons filled and we are working with a number of eligible candidates to complete the starter process early in 2024. In terms of geographic coverage, there is 18 participants in North Monaghan, 20 participants in the West and the remaining 25 participants are located in the Mid-South Monaghan area.

There has been 42 community groups and charities supported in this year across the county. All supervisors have been working closely to develop and maintain good channels of communication with their local community groups, in order to enhance all the work carried out by the Rural Social Scheme and MID as a whole. We have improved our social media presence and are following a number of avenues to promote the RSS and increase recruitment through these channels.

As always, we endeavour to support all requests for training from participants and groups to allow them any opportunity for self-development and learning new skills while maintaining H&S requirements. Participants have attended a number of training classes this year. In light of some difficult times and situations for some of our participants we offered Mental Health training to our RSS participants and 23 took up the opportunity to attend, with extremely positive feedback. The breakdown of the remaining training and numbers who attended are as follows, Manual handling (13). First Aid (3) and Small Engines training (27) which are always well received.

We fed into a National Review of the RSS Scheme through surveys and submission of participant and group statements, we are awaiting to hear any feedback and recommendations which may come out of this process to enhance the running of the RSS in 2024.

Tús

The following statistics and summaries highlight the activities of the Tús Programme for 2023.

Based on the changes announced at the start of the year people who are on Disability Allowance are now eligible to participate on Tus and so far have 4 participants started under this change. We have not received many of the Ukrainian Refugees who qualify in our referrals yet but we have supported 1 person through the self-ref process. There were a further 7 participants who had their contracts extended by 6 months this takes us up to 12th January 2024.

Summary of Tús statistics for 2023

Participants employed on Tús in December : 73

Individuals who finished on Tús: 84

New starters on Tús: 67

Number of people referred by DSP: 123 + 30 Self Referrals

Community Groups Supported: 52

Referrals: DSP have introduced new system for continual referrals, which is expected to be once per month. We received 123 names through the random referral and 30 through the self-referrals process overall in 2023. All eligible people were interviewed and those who were not offered a Tús placement were encouraged to engage with other MID programmes where appropriate.

Training There were 54 training opportunities availed of in 2023. Manual handling is compulsory for all new starters and the remaining courses were at the request of individual participants apart, from Mental Health First Responder Training, which was offered to all participants and only some participated.

Safepass 1

Manual Handling 34

HACCP 1

First Aid 2

Forkilft Training 2

Mental Health First Responder 14

We continue to support requests for training from participants and groups where possible.

Progressions in 2023

The following lists the numbers of progressions from Tus in 2023

Full time employment 4

Part-Time Employment 1

CE 28

CE/ Childcare 1

RSS 1

Monaghan Cavan Local Area Employment Service (LAES)

Key information on the LAES

76 clients have employment outcomes for 2023:

• 23 clients have successful passed the 17 week period (JSF 17)
• 10 clients moved into full-time work but left before 17 weeks
• 30 clients have moved into part-time employment.
• 13 clients have started their own business with the back to work enterprise allowance scheme.

Delivery of the LAES in County Monaghan includes:

• Monaghan town
• Castleblayney
• Carrickmacross
• Clones

Delivery of the LAES in County includes:

• Cavan town
• Ballyconnell
• Bailieborough
• Cootehill

Other:

• We have delivered Work Taster Courses in Cavan town, Cootehill and Clones with employers such as Mr. James for Men’s Clothing, CavMac and Feldhues engaging with the groups.
• 47 Clients have benefit from the LAES discretionary fund for additional courses such as driving CPCs, security courses, life coaching, first aid and safe pass.

DSP/MID contracts meeting continue each month

LEADER Programme 2014-2022

As of the 31st December 2023 all available funds under the LEADER Programme 2014-2020, the Transitional Programme and EURI funding was allocated to projects across County Monaghan. This included the reallocation of project funds in December that had become available as a result of underspend on completed projects and small pots of money being de-committed. 2023 saw the LEADER programme move into the implementation stage of the programme with staff work focusing on working with approved project promoters to complete their projects and drawdown their LEADER funding.

In December 2022, Monaghan Integrated Development submitted an Expression of Interest (EOI) to the Department of Rural and Community Development to undertake the development of the County Monaghan Local Development Strategy (LDS) for LEADER 2023-2027. This was Stage 1 of a competitive process. MID were invited to Stage 2 of the Tender process and the first half of 2023 was busy with the preparation of a comprehensive LDS for LEADER 2023-2027.

A very widespread and engaged consultation process was undertaken in County Monaghan which included public meetings, focus groups, one to one meetings and online surveys. In total 840 consultees were engaged across a variety of meetings. MID in collaboration with MCA Consulting (engaged to help in the preparation of the LDS) took the information gained from the consultation, merged it with the in-depth area need analysis and their own professional and personal experiences and compiled a detailed and innovative LDS. This LDS was submitted to the Department of Community and Rural Development in July of 2023 and as 2023 draws to a close we are still awaiting an outcome of the Tender process.

Projects Completed in 2023

Projects completed and paid in 2023 have included the development of community infrastructure, the purchase of large industrial equipment, community renewable energy technology, environmental A&D and training projects. A sample of just a few of the projects that received full payment in 2023 are below.

Ceol Connected Ltd was approved €26,643.75 (75% rate of aid) to hire a branding agency to create a robust brand identity and strategy for their SongTales, which is a new high quality music and creativity box service for children ages 3-7 years. The project also included the services of a visual artist with experience of working with young audiences to research, develop and design the activities for the SongTales boxes. The project also funded the purchase of theatre lighting for the company’s live productions, workshops, performances, and festivals/events to ensure consistency in lighting quality and versatility for their lighting designs. The promoter writes ‘with SongTales, we want to spark wonder and joy in the imaginations of children that will last a lifetime. LEADER funding has helped us to achieve that.’ Thomas Johnston, Artistic Director, Ceol Connected. https://mysongtales.ie/

Millions of consumers around the world want to buy products from US-EU websites, but many retailers will not ship internationally, or will only deliver to a limited number of countries. Polar Express Ltd received funding of €18,357 (75% rate of aid) to assess the feasibility of developing a “buy in the US and EU and ship anywhere in the world” service that would be managed by Polar Express International in Co. Monaghan. The project set up the ‘Enigma’ software platform (website) for Polar Express International. The promoter engaged a web design agency to adapt the site for the target audience, implemented the re-design by the software developers, engaged a digital marketing agency to help devise a marketing strategy, engaged a digital consultancy to help guide the process, and conducted user and market testing for the software platform. The project also included drafting of a business strategy for the company, and writing a detailed business plan based on the outcomes above.

The promoter writes: “our brand is ZipKode. In December 2022, we launched our website, opening a US virtual address in Delaware. Service is available to over 220 countries. Our initial pilot digital marketing campaign has focussed on US to UK B2C ecommerce and we will expand our campaign to cover several niche growth markets in Africa & Asia in Q2 2023. So far, we have seen good uptake and interest and we build on that day by day. We plan to launch UK and EU virtual addresses in London and Paris before the commencement of Q4 2023. Along with myself, currently we have one person employed part time in customer service. We expect the customer service position to become a full time position in a few months and intend to fill a position in ecommerce/tech/digital in Q3. These roles will all be based in Carrickmacross”.

The promoter adds: “we would like to sincerely thank the team at Monaghan Integrated Development and the Monaghan Local Action Group for firstly listening to us and for supporting our business concept. We’ll be working hard to grow and develop the business and look forward to reporting back successes in the coming months and years!” Niall Carolan, MD & Group Business Development Manager, Polar Express Ltd. https://zipkode.delivery/

Enda Keenan Stainless Steel is a well-known name in stainless steel pipework having been in the business over 30 years. Much of their work involves bespoke and onsite work including breakdown repairs, modification to existing plant and installation of new equipment on customers sites. Enda Keenan Stainless Steel’s niche is that they design and create solutions that quickly get customer projects completed with as little down time or disruption as possible. Due to the bespoke nature of the work, most of the parts need to be fabricated to suit existing parts and plant. LEADER part-funded the purchase of a Laser Fibre Cutting Machine (€200,000) which allows the promoter to fabricate and weld bespoke pieces in-house. This is dramatically increasing their turn-around times and increasing the efficiency of the business.

The promoters state “The overall project has injected a renewed appetite in the business to continue our journey investing in more efficient machinery in order to push ourselves to be market leaders in our field. We would like to thank LEADER and Monaghan Integrated Development for the opportunity and investment, without whom this step forward for our family business would not have been possible”. Laura Gillespie, Sept 2023

MID Internal/In-House LEADER Projects completed in 2023

Biodiversity Plans: MID commissioned Flynn Furney Environmental Consultants to work with 12 community groups throughout Monaghan to complete bespoke biodiversity plans for their community. The funding was approved at a rate of 90% with each community group contributing the 10% balance. Flynn Furney visited and surveyed each location noting the existing biodiversity and landscape. They met with group representatives from each group and discussed ideas with a view to developing three year Biodiversity Action Plans for each area. Feedback from the groups about their plans was very positive and they stated that the reports were easy to understand. It is hoped that the community groups will implement the actions over the next 3 years.

Energy Audits: MID engaged Eco Merit Ltd to complete objective energy audits for 10 community facilities in County Monaghan. The funding was approved at a rate of 90% with each community group contributing the 10% balance. With the rising cost of energy and focus on energy reduction measures, there was a strong demand for the energy audits among the community. Each energy audit involved the analysis of energy bills prior to a site visit to see the facility and talk to the group. Eco Merit than completed the draft Energy Audit and submitted this to the group for comments and feedback. After this Eco Merit arranged another meeting with the group to talk through the energy audit, identified actions and address any outstanding queries that the group had. These energy audits provide the groups with valuable data and an informed action plan for their community facility.

Innovating Communities – Designing our future. €174,222.56 per LAG area (6 LAG areas – Monaghan as lead partner, Louth, Leitrim, Sligo, Donegal and Cavan) and is primarily a training project, with a smaller element being equipment and branding. The purpose of the ‘Innovating Communities, Designing our Future’ is essentially about building the local capacity of community and voluntary groups and individuals, to tackle difficult local issues and to problem-solve in new and exciting ways. 2023 saw the completion of the training element of the project and a final count totalled at 188 active challengers, 559 group training hours, 556 individual training hours in County Monaghan.

The Innovating Communities Learning Showcase Event was held on 21st April 2023 at the Iontas Centre, with a variety of speakers and programme participants from the six partner areas who shared their learning and highlighted opportunities for regional community development in the coming years. The event was attended by Minister Humphries and also live streamed around the world.

Animation during 2023

While the shift in focus of the LEADER programme moved from animation and project approvals to project implementation, quite a bit of animation took place.

• Jan to March 2023: Advertising continued in seeking expressions of interest from community groups interested in participating in the MID internal project Biodiversity Plans for Community Groups Phase II until all of the places were filled.
• February to June 2023: Advertising for the MID LEADER Public Consultations for the development of the Monaghan LDS commenced in early February with series of events across the county in Tydavnet, Castleblayney, Monaghan Town, Ballybay, Clones and Carrickmacross. The LEADER team also met with a range of interest groups. An online survey was also available for those who could not attend a consultation event.
• April 2023: The Innovating Communities Showcase event was held in the Iontas Centre in Castleblayney that highlighted the work and achievements of the project.
• April 2023: The Parenting Monaghan 3 Year Strategy was developed with support from the LEADER Programme and the Strategy was launched by Minister Heather Humphries at an event in Carrickmacross
• May 2023: Cahans Meeting House held their official opening in May 2023 with Minister Heather Humphries and MID was represented by Mary Mullen and Gabriel O’Connell who spoke on behalf of MID.
• September 2023: MID attended the National Ploughing Championships to showcase and share the learning from the Innovating Communities project. Representatives from 4 of the 6 border LAG areas that participated in the project formed a discussion panel in the ILDN tent and fielded questions from the public.
• September 2023: Lough Egish Community Development CLG held its official opening with Minister Heather Humphries for the new Multi Use Games Area developed with support from LEADER (alongside other works delivered via other funding streams). MID was represented by Marianne McEneaney.
• The LEADER team continued to field enquiries and support potential promoters interested in developing LEADER projects under the next programme.
• Promotion of LEADER funding through social media was ongoing via Facebook and Instagram. 38

Looking forward to 2024

In 2024, the LEADER Team look forward to continuing to support promoters across County Monaghan, with the main areas of focus to include the:

1. Finishing out of the LEADER 2014-2022 Programme, EURI Funding and LEADER Co-operation, including the processing of claims and drawdowns. All projects must be completed and invoices paid by 31st March 2024.
2. Securing funding to deliver the 2023-2027 LEADER Programme.

Monaghan LEADER Contact Details: Further information about LEADER is available on the Monaghan Integrated Development CLG website at www.midl.ie, or email Marianne mmceneaney@midl.ie, Rita rkillian@midl.ie, or Gabriel goconnell@midl.ie.

Monaghan Local Action Group (LAG) is administering the LEADER RDP 2014-2022 in County Monaghan for the Department of Rural & Community Development and the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development. The County Monaghan Local Community Development Committee (LCDC) is operating as the LAG for the County. Monaghan Integrated Development the Local Development Company for County Monaghan is the implementing partner and Monaghan County Council is the lead financial partner.

The Irish Language Act

MONAGHAN INTEGRATED DEVELOPMENT is committed to meeting all its obligations under the Official Language Acts (2003 & 2021).

A member of SENIOR MANAGEMENT has been appointed to oversee performance and report on MONAGHAN INTEGRATED DEVELOPMENT’S obligations under the Official Languages Acts (2003 & 2021).

The following actions were taken by MONAGHAN INTEGRATED DEVELOPMENT during the year 2023 to ensure compliance with the Act:

• Community Development Team Leader Francis McCarron was appointed at the end of 2023 to oversee performance and report
• Staff training – Francis McCarron will undertake awareness training in the year ahead.
• A review of advertising was undertaken.

MONAGHAN INTEGRATED DEVELOPMENT CLG DIRECTORS’ REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

The directors present their annual report and financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2023.

Principal activities

Monaghan Integrated Development is a Local Development Company funded by the Irish Government and charged with the delivery of a range of programmes whose aim is to support specific target groups with a view to making a positive difference in their lives. Monaghan Integrated Development was set up in late 2008 (formally County Monaghan Partnership Ltd) as part of the process of restructuring of the local development sector nationally.

A core role of Monaghan Integrated Development is to promote social inclusion, encourage enterprise development and employment creation, support access to education, training and lifelong learning for specific target groups and assist community and voluntary groups to play their part in tackling disadvantage and supporting volunteerism.

Monaghan Integrated Development implements the LEADER programme on behalf of Monaghan LEADER LAG & the Minister for Rural & Community Development. The core aim of the LEADER programme is to improve the quality of life of people in rural areas and to diversify the rural economy through a range of supports designed to help make rural areas economically and socially more sustainable.

The company also holds the contract to deliver the Social Inclusion Community Activation Programme (SICAP) on behalf of Monaghan Local Community Development Committee and the Minister for Rural & Community Development. SICAP supports increased access to services for specified target groups and engaging with local communities in developing their areas. The programme focuses largely on facilitating skills development, lifelong learning, job placement and on supporting enterprise.

Building on the two core programmes above, MID works to secure additional complementary funding from other sources which has the effect of working to achieve overall company objectives. A range of complementary programmes are delivered (ie. Local Area Employment Service, Volunteer Centre, TUS, Rural Social Scheme, HSE Section 39 Funding, Parenting Monaghan, Healthy Ireland and other small complementary funding) with a common theme of improving the lives of participants/clients. In addition, MID may, from time to time, also deliver a range of ad hoc and/or once off initiatives which supports the core role and objectives of the organisation.

The main object of Monaghan Integrated Development as an Integrated Local Development Company as outlined by our governing articles is to promote, support, assist and engage in (a) social development, (b) to alleviate unemployment through employment support and employment generation, (c) enterprise development to facilitate rural and urban regeneration, (d) the development of the environment, culture and heritage and (e) community development, designed to benefit and promote the welfare of local communities or to deal with the causes and consequences of social and economic disadvantage or poverty.

The company has staff employed by the company under the TUS & RSS programmes but administered and paid directly by Pobal. The average number of such employees in 2023 was 136 (2022: 153). The gross pay for these employees in 2023 was €2,062,181 (2022: €2,249,190) and the employer PRSI in 2023 was €33,762 (2022: €35,246).

The Company is a non profit making organisation. The Company is registered as a charity (No. 20071486) with the Charities Regulatory Authority .

Directors and secretary

The company is limited by guarantee and therefore the directors do not hold any interest in the company.

Alice Forde

Barry McCarron

Mary Mullen

Jane McGorman

Patrick Harte (Resigned 20 April 2023)

Gerard McMahon

Orla Nugent

Kathleen Ward

Fiona Duffy

Cathal Grant (Resigned 27 November 2023)

Tommy Duffy

Deirdre Byrne

Sunday Abel Ayoeji

Daniel Hawthorne

Christopher McKenna

Fiona Mccaffrey Jones

Carol McGeough

Edel Treanor (Appointed 20 April 2023)

Maura Garvey (Appointed 20 April 2023)

Bernadine Lynch (Appointed 24 August 2023)

Sean Blackwell (Appointed 31 January 2024)

Accounting records

The company’s directors are aware of their responsibilities, under sections 281 to 285 of the Companies Act 2014 as to whether in their opinion, the accounting records of the company are sufficient to permit the financial statements to be readily and properly audited and are discharging their responsibility by employing qualified and experienced staff, ensuring that sufficient company resources are available for the task and liaising with the company’s auditors/seeking external professional accounting advice.

The accounting records are held at the company’s business premises, Unit 9 Drumillard Business Park Castleblayney Co Monaghan.

Auditor

 In accordance with the Companies Act 2014, section 383(2), DBA Accountants Ltd continue in office as auditors of the company.

Statement of directors’ responsibilities

The directors are responsible for preparing the Directors’ Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable Irish law and regulations.

Irish company law requires the directors to prepare financial statements for each financial year. Under that law, the directors have elected to prepare the financial statements in accordance with Companies Act 2014 and FRS 102. The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (Generally accepted Accounting Practice in Ireland) issued by the Financial Reporting Council. Under company law, the directors must not approve the financial statements unless they are satisfied that they give a true and fair view of the assets, liabilities and financial position of the company as at the financial year end date and of the surplus or deficit of the company for that financial year and otherwise comply with the Companies Act 2014.

In preparing these financial statements, the directors are required to:

 select suitable accounting policies for the company financial statements and then apply them consistently;

make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;

state whether the financial statements have been prepared in accordance with applicable accounting standards, identify those standards, and note the effect and the reasons for any material departure from those standards;

and prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the company will continue in business.

The directors are responsible for ensuring that the company keeps or causes to be kept adequate accounting records which correctly explain and record the transactions of the company, enable at any time the assets, liabilities, financial position and surplus or deficit of the company to be determined with reasonable accuracy, enable them to ensure that the financial statements and Directors’ Report comply with the Companies Act 2014 and enable the financial statements to be audited. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

Statement of disclosure to auditor Each of the directors in office at the date of approval of this annual report confirms that: so far as the director is aware, there is no relevant audit information of which the company’s auditor is unaware, and the director has taken all the steps that he / she ought to have taken as a director in order to make himself / herself aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the company’s auditor is aware of that information.

This confirmation is given and should be interpreted in accordance with the provisions of section 330 of the Companies Act 2014.

The entity has availed of the small companies exemption contained in the Companies Act 2014 with regard to the requirements for exclusion of certain information in the directors’ report.

On behalf of the board

Mary Mullen Director

18 April 2024

Alice Forde Director

MONAGHAN INTEGRATED DEVELOPMENT CLG INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE MEMBERS OF MONAGHAN INTEGRATED DEVELOPMENT CLG

 Opinion

We have audited the financial statements of Monaghan Integrated Development CLG (‘the company’) for the year ended 31 December 2023, which comprise the income and expenditure account, the balance sheet and notes to the financial statements, including the summary of significant accounting policies set out in note 1. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is Irish Law and FRS 102 The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland issued in the United Kingdom by the Financial Reporting Council.

In our opinion the financial statements:

give a true and fair view of the assets, liabilities and financial position of the company as at 31 December 2023 and of its surplus for the year then ended;

have been properly prepared in accordance with FRS 102 The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland;

and have been properly prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2014.

Basis for opinion

We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (Ireland) (ISAs (Ireland)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the company in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of financial statements in Ireland, including the Ethical Standard issued by the Irish Auditing and Accounting Supervisory Authority (IAASA), and the provisions available for small entities, in the circumstances set out in Note 12 to the financial statements and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements.

We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

Conclusions relating to going concern

In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the directors’ use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.

Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the company’s ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from the date when the financial statements are authorised for issue.

Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the directors with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.

Other information

The directors are responsible for the other information in the annual report. The other information comprises the information included in the annual report other than the financial statements and our auditor’s report thereon. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in our report, we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon.

Our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the course of the audit, or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether there is a material misstatement in the financial statements or a material misstatement of the other information. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact.

We have nothing to report in this regard.

Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2014

In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of the audit, we report that:

The information given in the directors’ report for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared is consistent with the financial statements; and The directors’ report has been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements.

We have obtained all the information and explanations which, to the best of our knowledge and belief, are necessary for the purposes of our audit.

In our opinion the accounting records of the company were sufficient to permit the financial statements to be readily and properly audited, and the financial statements are in agreement with the accounting records.

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

Based on the knowledge and understanding of the company and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified any material misstatements in the directors’ report.

The Companies Act 2014 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion, the requirements of any of sections 305 to 312 of the Act, which relate to disclosures of directors’ remuneration and transactions, are not complied with by the company. We have nothing to report in this regard.

Responsibilities of directors for the financial statements

As explained more fully in the directors’ responsibilities statement, the directors are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements in accordance with the applicable financial reporting framework that give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the directors determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

In preparing the financial statements, the directors are responsible for assessing the company’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, if applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless management either intend to liquidate the company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the company’s financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor’s report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (Ireland) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.

As part of an audit in accordance with ISAs (Ireland), we exercise professional judgment and maintain professional skepticism throughout the audit. We also:

• Identify and assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to fraud or error, design and perform audit procedures responsive to those risks, and obtain audit evidence that is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion. The risk of not detecting a material misstatement resulting from fraud is higher than for one resulting from error, as fraud may involve collusion, forgery, intentional omissions, misrepresentations, or the override of internal control.
• Obtain an understanding of internal control relevant to the audit in order to design audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances, but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the company’s internal control.
• Evaluate the appropriateness of accounting policies used and the reasonableness of accounting estimates and related disclosures made by the directors.
• Conclude on the appropriateness of the directors’ use of the going concern basis of accounting and, based on the audit evidence obtained, whether a material uncertainty exists related to events or conditions that may cast significant doubt on the company’s ability to continue as a going concern. If we conclude that a material uncertainty exists, we are required to draw attention in our auditor’s report to the related disclosures in the financial statements or, if such disclosures are inadequate, to modify our opinion. Our conclusions are based on the audit evidence obtained up to the date of our auditor’s report. However, future events or conditions may cause the company to cease to continue as a going concern.
• Evaluate the overall presentation, structure and content of the financial statements, including the disclosures, and whether the financial statements represent the underlying transactions and events in a manner that achieves fair presentation.

We communicate with those charged with governance regarding, among other matters, the planned scope and timing of the audit and significant audit findings, including any significant deficiencies in internal control that we identify during our audit.

This report is made solely to the company’s members, as a body, in accordance with Section 391 of the Companies Act 2014. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the company’s members those matters we are required to state to them in an auditor’s report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the company and the company’s members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.

Bernadine Gormley

 For and on behalf of DBA Accountants Ltd

18 April 2024

Accountants & Business Advisors

Statutory Auditor

27 North Road, Monaghan, Co. Monaghan

BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2023

These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to companies subject to the small companies regime and in accordance with Financial Reporting Standard 102 ‘The Financial Statement Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland’.

The financial statements were approved by the board of directors and authorised for issue on 18 April 2024 and are signed on its behalf by:

Alice Forde Director

Mary Mullen Director