Taughmonagh Community Forum

The Open Door project seeks to increase learning opportunities and promote well being in the communities of Annadale, Benmore and Taughmonagh. The Project builds on the relationships between the 3 communities established over the past 3 years and the experience of Taughmonagh Community Forum in delivering successfully training and community capacity building programmes linked to health, education and adult learning.

The 5 year programme costing £999K will engage with residents from these communities through the delivery of classes, groups and mentoring to help local residents achieve their full potential linked to the dual themes of health, well being and educational opportunities. Each community shares a traditional working class identity, in communities where there is significant affluence around them. They also contain significant ethnic minority groups, elderly residents, victims of the troubles, isolated families and ethnic minority families with limited English.

The programme will be community centred and people driven based in 4 community centres in Benmore, Taughmonagh, Annadale Flat and Annadale Crescent. Through these centres the programme will be delivered by 6 staff with experience in educational development including essential skills, community health initiatives and working with ethnic groups. Classes will be relevant to local needs and people focused and will include local history, cooking, information sessions, health awareness, literacy, numeracy, basic computer skills and good relations. A central theme to the programme is the interaction between the communities and the development of joint initiatives such as training initiatives, celebrations, pensioner tea dances and cultural awareness events.

The partners supporting the programme are Annadale and Haywood Residents Association, Finaghy Community Centre Committee and Taughmonagh Community Forum Limited. Each is well established in their respective area and seek to support the programme through their attendance and contribution to bi monthly committee meetings, supporting volunteerism and supporting links between this programme and existing groups in their area.

The programme will also have a number of associated partners which will include the South Belfast Round Table, Belfast City Council Good Relations Unit, Business in the Community, Queens University, Chinese Welfare Association, DEL, Engage with Age and South Belfast Health Trust. These groups will support the staff and the management committee in the development of initiatives, the provision of additional resources and expertise.

Through the use of these links and the localised delivery of training opportunities and health and well being programmes we will the target communities where there is still significant social need, where there are aging populations many who are at risk, isolated, families and the growing ethnic minority population. The programme will support the social regeneration of Annadale, Benmore and Taughmonagh, build confidence, provide new opportunities and build new relationships.