IRVINESTOWN COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP
Irvinestown Community Partnership is an umbrella organisation for 33 local voluntary and community groups' active in the North Fermanagh area. The Partnership promotes communication and co-operation between its member organisations and assists local people in creating a positive vision for their community. It also seeks to ensure that the views and needs of local people are heard by policy makers.

IRVINESTOWN COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP
"It is neither the strongest nor the most intelligent of the species who survive, but those who are most responsive to change."
Charles Darwin.

In 1908, Irvinestown Fairs and Markets Trustees were established - 14 trustees with a cross community remit to improve the lives of the people. As time passed and community development capitalised on its opportunities, other initiatives followed. ITEC (Irvinestown Trustee Enterprise Company) responded to the opportunities offered by European Programmes, provided workspace and employed a development worker. In 1996 ICP (Irvinestown Community Partnership) was formed to concentrate on more social issues, to support groups and to work on joint projects.  New work has continually developed to meet new needs.  New ways of organising have found ways of sustaining the community development approaches.

STRUCTURE
The structure of the partnership is central to the process.  Monthly meetings with a representative of each member group provides a unique mix of people, from those with a direct and intimate knowledge of need on the ground, through to those with project and management based experience. This mix facilitates an exchange which keeps the community development process progressive and needs based.

PEOPLE
People are the key to any community development process and to sustainability.  In Irvinestown they can be volunteers or paid staff.  Every committee project, partnership and shared ways of working makes heavy demands on the time of paid and unpaid workers.  We are fortunate that the giving of volunteer time is so much part of our culture.  Volunteers in all capacities give countless hours of commitment, and exist in an environment where the only constant is change. This "Human Capital" is celebrated at the annual Margaret Wilson award for outstanding voluntary endeavour.

FINANCE
In Irvinestown the original Fairs and Market Trustees had the foresight to buy land. ITEC have over 30,000 square feet of workspace that will, when loans are paid off, provide the group with substantial development revenue.  Principles on which their financial sustainability is based are: demonstration of need; creativity of approach; value for money; sound evaluation; conceptual and transferable ideas.

EXTERNAL RELATIONSHIPS
Communities do not survive in a vacuum, and neither does community development.  ICP ensures that good relationships are maintained with relevant public bodies, taking responsibility for letting them know what ICP's business is, and how it is done. 

Also, ICP ensures that it is represented on external bodies to maximise the opportunity for the community's voice to be heard.

LOCAL OWNERSHIP AND NEEDS DRIVEN DEVELOPMENTS
Local people best describe need and creative responses.  ICP, and the individual groups working in Irvinestown, make sure that the community voice is captured, that workers facilitate and do not dictate, that committees are open.  Therefore the widest possible local ownership is ensured.  All of this is part of the demands for change and for sustainability in the Irvinestown experience.  However, in Irvinestown people are confident that remaining flexible and adapting to change should ensure Irvinestown will never run out of options. 

• PARTNERSHIP INSPIRED PROJECTS
• THE ARC HEALTHY LIVING CENTRE
• RURAL DRUGS AWARENESS INITIATIVE 
• RURAL TRANSPORT PROGRAMME
• RANGE OF CHILDCARE SERVICES:
• CHERISH PROJECT
• AFTERSCHOOLS PLAY CLUB