First Draft Newry, Mourne and Down Community Planning Framework Underway

First Draft Newry, Mourne and Down Community Planning Framework Underway

Newry, Mourne and Down Community Planning Partnership met on Thursday 23 June to draft the first framework for the District’s Community Plan following a year of engagement with the general public, community and voluntary groups, Youth Council, older peoples’ groups and others.

Community Planning is a new duty for Council that has been taken on as a result of local government reform in which it must facilitate a process of better, joined up working to improve the economic, social and environmental wellbeing of the citizens of the District. 

Over the past year, the Council and its partner organisations, including representatives from the statutory, business, and community and voluntary sectors have listened to what services people throughout the District believe are working, to suggestions on how services can be improved and which they believe should be prioritised. This information has then provided the basis of the Community Planning framework.

The Community Planning framework is designed around four key themes of Economic Development, Regeneration and Tourism, Environment and Spatial Development, Health and Wellbeing and Safety and Good Relations. It will support how the Council, Police, Housing Executive, Health Sector, Education Sector, Invest NI, Sport NI, Libraries NI, and Tourism NI along with local voluntary sector partners, work better together.  It will also be used to inform these agencies how to use their budgets in a better more coordinated way.

The planning process has highlighted that some citizens may need more help than others to fulfil their potential and enjoy better health and wellbeing.  In agreeing what is important and working better together, it is hoped that the wellbeing of everyone living and working in the District can be improved, especially the most vulnerable. This first draft will be agreed by Partners over the summer and made available to citizens in the autumn for comments.

Newry, Mourne and Down District Council Chairperson and Chairperson of the Community Planning Partnership, Councillor Gillian Fitzpatrick said, “I am encouraged that so many partner organisations from the statutory, voluntary and community sectors participated in the event and demonstrated a willingness to work together for the good of the citizens of Newry, Mourne and Down. We know that community planning is not a magic wand but I believe it is an opportunity for us all to shape our own cities, towns and villages by working better together.”