SMAC Programme (2003-06)

Substance Misuse Action Coleraine

Headed up by Sharon Bingham this innovative programme focused on working with young people throughout the Causeway Area in addressing drugs and alcohol, and risky behaviours. The project forged strong links with the local PSNI Schools and Young Person Liaison Officers and Youth Diversion Officers, and gave birth to several very successful runs of a schools' based roadshow.

The programme also laid the basis for the current round of funding as the SMAC programme track record enabled CRUN to successfully bid for the funds which now support The LEAD project staff.


Here is an excerpt from the 2006 Annual Report (by Sharon Bingham)

Crazy year, can’t believe it has gone by so quickly. So much has happened and the project has gone from strength to strength. Last summer started off with a very interesting Ceramic MasterClass with Diane McCormick. This was incredibly interesting and ran over the month of July. We hosted an exhibition of the young peoples work in Flowerfield Arts Centre mid September. This was well attended and the young people all received Certificates for their hard work and input into the project.

There have been a number of young people working on the accredited Open College Network Courses this year – both the Drug & Alcohol Awareness and the Peer Leadership Skills Programmes. It has been especially exciting to see those young people developing through the Peer Leadership Skills Programme and to see them beginning to use their skills. One group in particular who completed the Peer Leadership Skills Level 2 programme have gone on to set up their own youth club in Ballymoney.

Our partnership with the Safer Dancing & Door Supervisors Committee continues to develop and has seen some interesting developments this year. We have completed two pieces of research in partnership with the Science Shop which has lead to the development and production of our parents leaflet – Parents Stop! Know the Score. We have placed these leaflets in a number of venues throughout the Coleraine Borough and distributed them through CRUN’s member database. As part of the funding received for this project from NDACT Small Grants Scheme we also took a group of young people away to Carlingford Adventure Centre for 3 days training around drugs and alcohol issues and for some team building activities which included rock climbing and canoeing.

The ‘Keeping Safe’ Roadshows continue to take place and we have visited 9 schools this year to date. This 3 year project was funded through the Community Safety Fund and draws to a close this academic year.

The Northern Ireland Drug and Alcohol Youth Forum had its second run this year following a successful pilot of the project last year. This is a regional project which draws on a partnership of Drug & Alcohol Projects from across Northern Ireland and involves approximately 120 students who represent various schools. We involved a group from the Causeway Institute in preparation work and then the debating day at Belfast City Hall. This went really well and the young people enjoyed their opportunity to debate in the City Hall Chambers.

Currently the project is in its last 6 months of funding from the Northern Ireland Drug & Alcohol Campaign and we are currently looking to new funding options for a similar project to run from October this year. We will keep you all posted as this develops and we hope to continue to provide a service within the borough. As a result of this I am hoping to meet up with the young people who have been involved in the project since it started and to see how they have progressed, find out what they are getting involved in and identify further training needs.


The Building Communities Project   (2005/06)

Here is an excerpt from the 2006 Annual Report (by Rose Donnelly)

This has been another very intensive year for the project with a lot of hard work being done by all of the communities involved in the project. In the Churchlands Ward I support the work of the Heights Community Association, Killowen Community Association, The Fern Festival, The Churchlands Golden Gloves Boxing Club and The West Bann Forum for Children and Young People. I have also started to work with three new groups this year: North West & District Mini Motos, Killowen and District Action Committee and a Football Team, Bertie Peacock Youth.

The groups who were involved in the project since its inception have evolved considerably through the past twelve months and have been very successful in attracting funding for their projects. The Heights Community Association now runs a very successful Youth club on Thursday nights in the Ropewalk Community Centre and has now affiliated with the NEELB Youth Service. The group were also involved in a very successful Health Promotion Project in partnership with the Causeway Trust to prevent slips and falls in the community and as a result a pensioner group has been formed in the area which meets on Wednesday mornings.

The Killowen Community Association has also successfully accessed funding and is now running a series of games nights for local youth and are currently organising a summer fun event for the community. Both groups are represented in the Neighbourhood Renewal Strategy Partnership and other local forums and initiatives. This year again the emphasis has been on partnership working with all of the groups participating in joint ventures.
continued……
A successful Application for funding from Coleraine Borough Council for a St Patrick’s Day Celebration which took place in the West Bann Building and was enjoyed by all members of the community. The West Bann Forum for Children and Young People has conducted an Audit on provision for young people 0-14
in the Churchlands Ward and is currently implementing a new project, which will see a Newsletter specifically designed for parents within the ward. This newsletter will be produced quarterly and should be a good promotional tool for organisations within the area.

The Churchlands Golden Gloves Boxing Club continues to go from strength to strength. Although still currently without a venue this group has achieved an enormous amount in a short period of time and have gained a lot of respect from the community for their work in setting up what has become a very successful club.

The Fern Festival continues to evolve and more groups are involved with the festival than ever this year. Funding continues to remain a challenge but the group are constantly exploring new strategies. This year again the group hope to have organised not only a weeklong programme for the Festival itself but have also applied for funding to organise a football summer scheme and costume and dance workshops. The underpinning ethos of the festival is to provide a platform for positive community relations and the management committee is working very hard to achieve this aim.

I also support the work of Articlave Community Association and this year the group organised a very successful community fun day. The group have also started a football team and despite the challenge of poor playing facilities the team enjoys a good attendance at training nights. The group hope long term to lobby for better playing facilities within the village. With the project now in it’s third year it is very satisfying to see the development of all of the organisations and the great strides that they are making in working to achieve their aims and objectives and I look forward to a busy summer in which the communities can reap the benefits of the hard work of their various community associations.


The Housing Estates Project   (2005/06)

Here is an excerpt from the 2006 Annual Report (by Claire Crawford)

The ethos of the Housing Estates Project was to establish good interpersonal relationships between statutory and voluntary agencies and the estates in the borough of Coleraine. The estates facilitated under the project were: - Windyhall, Millburn, Killyvally, Glenullin, Macosquin, Cross Glebe, Dhu-Varren, Mettican & Glebe, Drumadragh, Castleroe, Moneydig, The Fields Association, Clarehill, Portstewart, Castlerock, Portballintrae, Boveedy, Aghadowey Women’s Group and Movenis.

Throughout the three years the development workers who have worked on the project have assisted in the development and implementation of capacity building programmes with all participating estates. These programmes targeted the specific needs of individual groups e.g. senior citizens; parents and toddlers; women and young people.

The Housing Estates Project also held a support group on a bi-monthly basis. This provided opportunities for representatives from each estate to voice their particular issues, with the relevant statutory bodies i.e. DRD, NIE, DOE, NIHE, Coleraine Borough Council and PSNI. It also provided the opportunity for estates to network with one another and share common experiences.

Over the years the Project Officers have worked alongside training organisations to offer a variety of programmes to the residents. Last year (2005) saw the provision of a structured calendar of training.

This project has drawn to a close due to funding however groups which need assistance are encouraged to continue to contact CRUN.