Galway City Partnership

The BRIDGE project seeks to promote the effective delivery of reception and integration supports (including advocacy and capacity building interventions) to asylum seekers and third country nationals living in Galway City and County.

The project is coordinated by Galway City Partnership and funded under the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF) and supported by the Department of Justice and Equality and funding partners; Galway City Council, Galway Rural Development, HSE, Youth Work Ireland, Galway and the Sports Partnership.
It is envisaged that this work will be carried out in partnership with existing stakeholders including Croi Na Gaillmhe SVP, Galway Roscommon Education and Training Board, Ard Family Resource Centre, Galway Integration Consortium Threshold and Direct Provision Centre representatives.

Project Aims are to;
• Develop and maximize the capacity and potential of those in the asylum process, refugees and third country nationals to engage with mainstream organisations and communities through the provision of information resources, skills and confidence, and
• Deliver a capacity building programme to improve referral systems, information provision and supports within/between mainstream organisations to assist them to meet the needs of the target groups.

Project Outcomes include;
• Increased information supports, resources, personal development and coping skills for those in the asylum process.
• Enhanced capacity and empowerment to access information and advocacy, cultural orientation, language/IT skills, education/ training and employment for refugees and third country nationals.
• Enhanced capacity and empowerment to access social, recreational, community supports and intercultural dialogue for refugees, third country nationals (TCNs) and those in the asylum process
• Improved collaboration, skills and capacities of public sector organisations and mainstreaming of good practices to address the needs of respective target groups.

In accordance with AMIF guidelines the project has 3 overreaching areas of work;

Reception/Asylum Supports
Outreach support to residents of direct provision centres: Providing information, advocacy/self-advocacy training and support, language training through IT skills, health/wellbeing and psychological care.
Integration Actions introducing TCNs to Irish society:
Language skills and multi-media orientation programme.

Actions focused on vulnerable and socially-excluded persons:
Community outreach/advocacy support centres will address this need through information, advocacy support centres and community based capacity building programmes.
Actions that promote mutual understanding between the host community and TCNs:
Pilot intercultural support programme with and between migrants and the majority population.

Capacity Building
Actions strengthening the capacity of public and civil society in providing services in a culturally-appropriate manner:
Delivery of intercultural and diversity training programme to frontline staff in public sector agencies and facilitate the roll out of the HSE Intercultural Awareness in Health and Social Care Programme.

The project has 4 part-time staff.

STAFF
Suzanne McKane Project Co-ordinator: Mondays Westside Resource Centre 086 043 3376 [email protected]
Katya Okonkwo Information & Advocacy Officer Mondays GCP 086 602 0580 [email protected]
Sabrina Commins Integration Support Worker Mondays Tuesdays Thursdays Various locations City East
City West County 087 930 3468 [email protected]
Obert Makaza Direct Provision Support Worker Mondays Thursdays Fridays GCP, 086 0470120 [email protected]

A CROWD FUNDING MEAL FOR PROJECTS IN GALWAY CITY
THURSDAY 28TH OF SEPTEMBER AT THE CORNSTORE, ST. AUGUSTINE STREET, GALWAY
Fund your Galway City community project with support from your neighbours. Attendees pay €5 for soup & bread and vote on which project they think benefits the community the most. The winner goes home with all of the money raised at the door to carry out their project. At the dinner, Galway residents and supporters connect, share ideas and community resources.
SUBMIT PROPOSALS by the 11th of September online or by email. See www.galwaysoup.wordpress.com or our facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/GalwaySOUP/ for details.
Schedule for the event: DOORS at 6pm PROPOSALS PRESENTED at 7pm FOOD and VOTING 8pm WINNER ANNOUNCED 9pm
FOR MORE INFO ABOUT GALWAYSOUP www.galwaysoup.wordpress.com

Local Organisations are asked to express interest in Community Services Programme (CSP) funding.

Galway City Partnership calls on Community Organisations to express an interest in a new round of funding under the Community Services Programme (CSP).  The CSP is operated by the Department of Social Protection (DSP) to support legally incorporated community organisations to provide local social, economic and environmental services through the application of a social enterprise model of delivery.

This programme may suit you if your Community Organisation is:

• A Company Limited by Guarantee or a Co-Operative.
• Able to show clear evidence that a service meets a community need and are serious about providing employment opportunities for those most distant from the labour market.
• Generating traded income as a social enterprise with at least one set of audited accounts. If the social enterprise does not have audited financial statements due to only recently commencing trading, an income and expenditure account signed by the Chair and Treasurer of the company, and trial balance sheet, for last year can be submitted.

Deadline to submit Expression of Interest (EOI) to Galway City Partnership is:
5pm on the Tuesday 4^th July 2017.

See our Website on www.gcp.ie for the EOI form and guidelines or contact Eileen at [email protected]  for further information.

The Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP) 2015-2017 is funded by the Irish Government and co-funded by the European Social Fund and includes a special allocation under the Youth Employment Initiative.

CSP EOI Form 2017 – 97Word
Guidance Document PDF 

More Info on CSP EOI

AMACH! LGBT+ and Galway City Partnership are trying to find out the needs of members of the migrant community who identify as being LGBT+. We have a developed a survey as part of this piece of work.

I would be delighted if you could spread the word and encourage people to complete the survey which can be accessed via the link below.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/3Q3W6G9