Description (EN): Louth PEACE IV Action Plan will build on progress achieved under PEACE III in contributing to building positive relations, supporting reconciliation, tackling discrimination, prejudice & intolerance, developing shared spaces and services, and improving prospects for children and young people to live in a community that is free from hatred, intolerance and prejudice. It equips individuals, groups, organisations and communities with the skills and capacity to realise their vision of a peaceful Louth. It is informed by the Louth community’s own statement of needs and demands as articulated through the pubic consultation process that underpins it. These needs and demands resonate with the findings and conclusions of extensive research and analysis undertaken by Louth County Council and others in profiling the county and in describing the particular challenges facing Louth as a border county with a demographic that has been shaped by the legacy of the conflict and, more recently, by the social and cultural changes that come with the establishment of the new communities in Louth.
The plan’s principal reference sources include Louth County Development Plan, Louth PEACE III Action Plan, Louth PEACE III Post-Project Evaluation reports, Louth Local Economic and Community Plan (LECP), Louth Community Safety Strategy, the Louth Community Safety e-survey, Louth CYPSI, CSO statistics and the ongoing consultation process for the PEACE IV Action Plan, which indicate evidence-based need as reflected in its outputs and results.
The plan will be implemented within the governance structure of the Local Community Development Committee and PEACE IV Partnership The plan is calibrated to fit the specific needs of Louth as a border county. For this reason cross-border activities are a central element in implementing the Action Plan. They are overlaid with cross-community and intergenerational projects that will focus the impact of PEACE IV on the target groups as effectively as possible. The target groups in Louth include children and young people, older people, women, faith communities, victims and survivors, political ex-prisoners, people who have been displaced and those who live with disability as a result of the legacy of violence. These target groups are chosen on the basis of evidence and analysis of social, economic and cultural issues that need to be tackled to promote social development, peace & cohesion in our area, and by the priorities of the PEACE 4 Programme. Communities will be supported to address the legacy of conflict by participating in customised interventions, including the development and use of shared spaces and services, that will enable them to participate in activities that will be conducive to deepening mutual understanding, respect and reconciliation. Participation in these interventions will contribute an improved quality of life; improved skills and resilience; reduction in isolation, polarisation, division, prejudice, and stereotypes between/among groups; and greater practical understanding and awareness of, and commitment to, the factors that shape a peaceful, tolerant and just society. The LCC PEACE IV consultation framework prioritised the PEACE IV programme’s strategic priorities whose strategic objectives addressed the ambition of the Louth PEACE IV Action Plan. The public consultation has built on cross community consultation previously carried out in connection with the Louth County Development plan, the Louth Local Economic and Community Plan(LECP) which took place from September – March 2015/2016. The consultation findings were also influenced by the comprehensive consultation process and its findings undertaken for the formulation of the Louth Community Safety Strategy which was funded by PEACE III and engaged with many of the current target groups.; Louth CYPSI consultation and the Louth Development Strategy consultation. The consultation process was underpinned by extensive media coverage. 68 submissions were received in the consultation process; many of them supported by the need reflected in the Local Economic and Community Plan socio-economic profiling of the county.
The plan is structured around three themes: (i) Children & Young People (ii) Shared Spaces and Services and (iii) Building Positive Relations with emphasis on building capacity and skills in citizenship and leadership that support progress towards a peaceful Louth; creating spaces and services that enable people from diverse backgrounds and perspectives to improve mutual awareness & understanding, and to reconcile past differences; increasing opportunities for individuals, groups, organisations and communities to get involved in programmes and activities and that contribute to increasing understanding and tolerance, dealing with legacy issues from the conflict and current issues to do with racism, sectarianism and other forms of discrimination. Through a series of innovative projects and initiatives ranging across peace-building, the arts and participative and inclusive involvement, cross border initiatives including sport, intergenerational activities, youth civic leadership, capacity building of ethnic minorities and sustained engagement with victims and survivors from the conflict, targeting PEACE IV target groups with measurable outputs and results, the PEACE IV Action Plan has been designed to (a) build on the successful foundations laid by PEACE III (b) sustain progress in building better relations within Louth and its region (c) respond to needs and challenges identified in PEACE III that continue to affect Louth and (d) make use of learning, knowledge, experience and structures created under PEACE III to deal with the needs, issues and challenges. The PEACE IV programme will enable the PEACE IV partnership facilitate outputs via programme partner delivery to create conditions and opportunities for communities to progress towards greater mutual understanding, respect and tolerance. It focuses on minority groups and groups traditionally marginalised in civil society; allowing for greater integration and participation through the provision of shared spaces and more facilitative service provision. It encourages ethnic entrepreneurship. It addresses the needs of victims of the conflict and those bearing its legacy. It encourages young people to acknowledge and respect diversity. It fosters positive intergenerational contact, encourages interdependencies and a greater understanding between those who live with the memory of the conflict. It supports actions to ensure the full participation of women in leadership and local initiatives. It aims to further develop cross border relationships via reconciliation activities. The intended change will be attitudinal and behavioural, in line with the objectives of the PEACE IV Programme. An outline of proposed projects (Appendix 1) report and appendix of completed consultation process (Consultation Appendix) financial, governance details (Appendices 5H – 5K) are enclosed.
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