There’s been a cautious welcome to confirmation from Foróige that they will continue to provide services to young peole in Dungloe and Killybegs.
There was much upset after claims emerged yesterday that the service was to close.
In a statement, Foróige says, in line with Tusla’s plans to extend the availability of Tusla funded youth services in Donegal, Foróige was requested to broaden the reach of their services to cover a broader range of areas in the county.
In a statement to Highland Radio News today, Tusla says it has not reduced funding to Foróige or asked them to move premises or cease services in the Dungloe area.
They say they will continue to work closely with Foróige to ensure the continuity of service provision.
Parent Margaret Rose was speaking on the Nine til Noon Show today.
She says she met with a Foróige representative after which she believes the service will continue on a limited basis:
Statement in full:
Foróige would like to reassure young people, families and the wider community that we will continue to provide services to young people in Dungloe and in the broader South Donegal area.
In line with Tusla’s plans to extend the availability of Tusla funded youth services in Donegal, Foróige was requested to broaden the reach of our services to cover a broader range of areas in the county. While Foróige staff will work on an outreach basis to cover a wider geographical area, no local community will be left without a service.
Foróige recognises that there has been upset and confusion locally in relation to this issue. We want to reassure young people and families that we will continue to work with Tusla and local communities to ensure minimum disruption to the young people who get such deep benefits from the Tusla funded youth services in the area. We will continue to strive to provide the best level of service possible to young people right across Donegal.
TUSLA statement in full –
Tusla in Donegal has a lengthy and strong tradition of working in partnership with the community and voluntary sector in the county.
Over the past few years, Tusla has been working alongside its primary funded youth work partners, Foróige and Donegal Youth Service to reconfigure services, to ensure there are youth work services available across the county, particularly the North West area.
As part of this process, Foróige was allocated €125,000 to provide a service in the full North West Network Area, including Dungloe, to ensure that all communities in the North West have access to important youth services. Two spaces had historically been used by Foróige in Dungloe to provide its service to young people.
We are working with Foróige on the proposed closure of one of the Dungloe premises and this matter is subject to ongoing discussion. We want to reassure members of the community that Tusla has not reduced funding to Foróige or asked them to move premises or cease services in the Dungloe area. Foróige will continue to provide a service in Dungloe and the North West area and we continue to work closely with Foróige to ensure the continuity of service provision
