Did you know that there are 580 community groups charting their own path to success in Co. Sligo? Do you want to know their secrets? In this blog post, I share seven ways to make your community group a success in Ireland.
Running a community group is a big responsibility, especially considering that many people are volunteers. With such demands on people’s time, a lack of resources, and a need for specific skills and specialised knowledge, it can be tricky to navigate the community and voluntary sector in Ireland. With 580 community groups in our network, we are learning everything there is to know about growing a community group.
#1 Find the best funding sources
Are you sick of missing out on funding opportunities or realising the deadline for submissions is the next day? Being aware of relevant funding opportunities and being given enough time to dedicate to them is vital for community leaders. In Ireland, there are
Did You Know: Sligo PPN, is a central repository for funding in Ireland. We work in partnership with The Wheel and Sligo County Council to centralise funding information and to organise it on a calendar basis to allow you to build making applications into your ongoing work
#2 Apply for funding – With increased demands for funding and a shrinking pool of money, groups need to try and make sure that they can access as many funding streams as possible to enable them to undertake development for their group.
To apply for any funding that is administered through the local government sector you must be a member of Sligo PPN
#3 Promote your group
The battle for visibility in the digital age is more difficult than you think. Social media has provided us with amazing opportunities to communicate to a mass audience and for free, however, everyone is doing the same thing. To be really successful at promoting your community group you need to build up a captive audience who will be your online champions.
Did You Know – At the clock of a button, Sligo PPN can get your message across to a large growing audience. By joining and engaging with Sligo PPN on social media
#4 Connect with like-minded groups and individuals. You can be sure that practically every other group out there has faced the same difficulties, challenges and obstacles as you and that they have used a variety of ways to get around this. Other groups probably also share your values and interests so why not connect with them to find ways you can learn from each other and share experiences instead of doing it all by yourself.
Did You Know – Sligo PPN has over 500 registered community groups from all walks of life. We can make connections across our network and support groups to work together to ease the pressure of running a community group in modern society
#5 Training and skills development – It is important that groups keep their skills up to date to remain relevant and compliant. There are so many changing demands on community groups from becoming social media savvy, getting GDPR compliant and enforcing good governance that it can be hard to keep up.
Did you Know – Sligo PPN works in partnership with key training providers around the county to ensure that we tailor training programmes to specifically meet the needs of groups operating in the county. By being a member of Sligo PPN you will get to inform and influence the types of training that is delivered in Sligo.
#6 Choosing the right leader
#7 Be central to local decision-making
What’s next?
If you are a community group that wants to elevate your activities and be successful, register for free with Sligo PPN where you get access to all our knowledge, resources and expertise.