Programme Update and context of day

The Local and Community Development Programme

Pobal is a not-for-profit company with charitable status that manages programmes on behalf of the Irish Government and the EU.

Contents

Current Programme context; Programme Progress in 2011/12; Key current issues:

– Programme Review– Budget 2013

Structural issues – alignment; 2013 planning and priorities.

Current Programme context

Major challenges are being faced right across public and publically-funded service delivery in Ireland.

This is particularly true for LCDP, where available resources are significantly reduced in recent years.

Work to support education progression is especially challenged by the large scale increases in demand for services and by the on-going re-organisations underway within the wider sector.

Progress in 2011/12

In the face of these challenges, LCDP continues to show real and substantial outcomes.

The recent 2011 LCP Progress report highlighted the degree to which the programme is meeting its goals and equipping large numbers of beneficiaries with new skills and helping them into employment

Current levels of 2012 outputs point to a continuation of these successes in the current year

Key Programme Issues 1: Programme Review

• In order to define and analyze programme progress, the DECLG have asked the Centre for Effective Services (CES) to carry out a programme review.

• This interim review will assist in offering a clear view on progress and learning

• It will be of real assistance to defining what the programme has done, defining some key learning and in informing the design of follow-on work to the current programme.

Budget 2013

All Departmental budgets will be under real pressure in 2013;

We can anticipate real budget reductions for LCDP; No final decisions have yet been reached on the

overall or individual amounts of reductions; The DECLG is still looking at a number of options on

how individual LDC cuts are to be operationalised.

Structural issues - Alignment

The DECLG have informed Pobal that they expect the final report on the alignment process to be before Cabinet next week;

The interim report gave a strong indication of the path likely to be proposed and of some issues to be addressed;

It can be expected that a core component of final recommendations will involve a greater role for Local Authorities within local development

2013 Planning and Priorities

Pobal anticipate requesting 2013 plans as soon as budget information is available;

We hope that the 2012 process can be built upon to allow the speedy finalisation of plans.

We hope, in particular, that the retention of proven, existing projects will both simplify planning and assist in the maintenance of high quality services.