Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 11 June 2019
850. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development if documentation, including a business case plan, submitted as part of an application by an organisation (details supplied) in County Donegal has been received; if his attention has been drawn to the need for these additional posts to be allocated in order to ensure that the organisation can deliver these initiatives; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23541/19]
View answerThe Community Services Programme (CSP) supports around 400 community organisations to provide local services through a social enterprise model, with funding provided as a fixed annual contribution to the cost of a manager and an agreed number of full-time equivalent (FTE) positions. Some €46m is available under the programme in 2019.
The organisation in question receives funding under the CSP as a contribution towards the cost of two FTEs. It sought additional support for a manager post and additional FTEs as part of the normal CSP Re-contracting Process in 2018. While the application did not demonstrate sufficient need for the additional support sought at the time, the organisation was given a one-year contract at existing levels with an opportunity to submit a revised business plan in 2019 to support its application for additional support.
A revised business plan was received by Pobal toward the end of May. It will be assessed against the normal CSP eligibility criteria, including the likely impact that the additional support sought will have for the community. I expect Pobal to complete its assessment and submit a recommendation to my Department for decision before end-June 2019.
