Job Advertisement – BREEZEMOUNT HOUSING AND COMMUNITY PROJECT WORKER (part-time)

The Community Association wish to appoint a part-time Housing and Community Project Worker until 31^st March 2011 (subject to funding).

Location – Breezemount Learning & Resource Centre, 21 Breezemount Park, Conlig

Hours – 25 per week

Salary Scale – point 24 £20,858 per annum pro rata (working out at £14,093)

Application forms along with a job description and personnel specification may be obtained by sending an SAE (A4) or calling in to – Mrs Lynette Mahaffy, North Down Community Network, Resource Centre, 5 Castle Park Road, Bangor.

The closing date for completed forms to be returned to the above office is 12 noon, Friday 23^rd July 2010.

Peace III Partnership – Public Consultation Events

The overall objective of the PEACE III Programme is to reinforce progress towards a peaceful society and promote reconciliation in Northern Ireland and the Border Region of Ireland. Building on the success and lessons of the PEACE I (1995-99) and PEACE II (2000-06) Programmes, the PEACE III Programme will have a continued emphasis on reconciliation and will specifically focus on acknowledging and dealing with the conflict, building positive relations and contributing towards a shared society.

At a local level the three Councils of North Down, Ards and Down District have come together to establish a PEACE III Partnership which will develop and implement a Phase II PEACE III Plan (2009 – 2013) for the area, which aims to;

“Build Positive relations at the local level by challenging attitudes towards sectarianism and racism and to support conflict resolution at the local community level”.

In order to develop the Plan, the PEACE III Partnership has begun consultation with communities and key stakeholders to identify the needs and issues of the Cluster area, in relation to sectarianism and racism.

The following Public Consultation events have been arranged:

Thursday 8^th July at 7.30pm in the Marine Court Hotel, Bangor

Monday 26^th July at 7.30pm in Sketrick House, Ards

An online survey will also be available for completion on each of the Councils web-site.

If you would like any additional information, please contact the PEACE III Programme Manager, North Down Borough Council, Town Hall, The Castle, Bangor, BT20 4BT

Phone 028 91 27 80 28 or email jan.nixey@northdown.gov.uk

NORTH DOWN COMMUNITY NETWORK Annual General Meeting

The Management Committee of the North Down Community Network cordially invite you to attend their Annual General Meeting.

Monday, 28th June 2010 at 3pm

At the North Down Community Network Resource Centre

There will be light refreshments available, so please let us know if you will be able to attend by emailing: ndcn@hotmail.com or Telephoning 9146 1386

Report from the Networking and Planning for Change Three Conference.

Available now on our Events Page is the report from the North Down and Ards Communities “Networking and Planning for Change Three Conference” held on Friday, 26 March 2010 in the Somme Heritage Centre, Newtownards.

Information on the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland

The new Charity Commission for Northern Ireland have a temporary web page on-line to keep interested parties informed of the upcoming changes to the Charities Act and registration process.  Should any of our groups be interested in moving to Charity status, or are currently involved in that process, you will find regularly updated details on what’s involved at http://www.dsdni.gov.uk/ccni.htm

April’s Network News Now Available.

The latest copy of our Network News is now available for download in PDF format on the Downloads Page of the site.

Planning for Change III

The Conference held on Friday, 26th March 2010, was the third in a series of events organised to update the community and voluntary sector on Community Planning.

The series of planned Network Conferences is organised by Ards Development Bureau, East Down Rural Community Network and North Down Community Network, in partnership with Community Places. Each Network is a support organisation: their main priority is to develop, co-ordinate and encourage an inclusive, active, informed and confident community, empowering them to achieve positive change.

At the previous two Conferences, workshops looked at the structure of the new Council and the background to Community Planning. Presentations were provided by the Chief Executives of both the Ards and North Down Councils giving an overview of the Transition Committee, its’ role and makeup.

The third Conference started with an overview of community engagement process to date and introduced the newly appointed Manager for the Transition Committee, Andrew Scott. There followed a presentation by Andrew on his role as Transition Manager and an update of where the Transition Committee is at present.

Groups provided feedback on what priorities they feel the Councils should focus on over the next few years, and what priorities the three Networks should focus on. Also, each of the groups were asked how they identify the needs in their own areas, how they use this information to influence decision makers, and how they keep their local community informed and involved in the process of Community Planning.

For further information on the Conference or to find out more about any of the Networks, please contact: Ards Development Bureau & Community Network (Cathy Rice), Tel: 9181 4625; East Down Rural Community Network (Frances Hughes), Tel: 9182 8884; North Down Community Network (Lynette Mahaffy), Tel: 9146 1386; and Community Places (Annie Clarke), Tel: 9023 9444.

The photo includes, from left to right: Annie Clarke, Community Places; Lynette Mahaffy, North Down Community Network; Councillor Leslie Cree, MLA; Cathy Rice, Ards Development Bureau and Community Network; Andrew Scott, Transition Manager; Frances Hughes, East Down Rural Community Network; Ashley Boreland, Chief Executive, Ards Borough Council; and Councillor Angus Carson.

Welcome to the new NDCN web site..

Our new web site for 2010 has arrived and contains information on NDCN and the facilities and training we can provide to local community groups.  More content will be added as we go and if you have any suggestions for information you’d like to see here let us know.  Don’t forget to subscribe to our news feed opposite for the latest news to be delivered to your inbox.