Have Your Say on Community Funding in Newry

The Newry District Electoral Area (DEA) Forum is inviting the local community to have its say on how funding is spent in their area as part of the Communities Leading Change campaign.

Projects that will receive funding up to £750 have been put forward by community groups and are designed to build community connections in the area.  

Newry, Mourne and Down District Council Chairperson, Councillor Charlie Casey said, “I am committed to working with all local communities, putting them at the heart of local service delivery and local decision-making. Engaging our citizens, particularly those who are hard to reach and seldom heard, helps the council and its partners to understand local issues and develop innovative solutions to improve the quality of life for everyone.

“Through the process of community planning, we are doing things differently and we are doing things better, and participatory budgeting marks a dramatic change in the way we usually work. We believe that local communities will protect and develop what they have helped to create, which is why we have named the campaign ‘Communities Leading Change’. 

The event to decide which groups receive funding will be held in the Bank Bar, Newry on Saturday 16 November at 10am. The groups will pitch their ideas and at the end of all the pitches everyone attending will decide which projects are their favourites. The votes will be counted at the end of the event and the projects with the most votes will be awarded funding.

Councillor Casey concluded, “This is your opportunity to lead the way and be the change you want to see in your local area. This is the second round of participatory budgeting events to happen in the district and we will be running these initiatives throughout all the DEAs in the coming years.