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£760,000 peace funds handed out by Partnership

Bomb site 'flagship' project gets biggest slice
MORE than £760,000 worth of grants have been allocated by the Omagh District Partnership to community projects throughout the area, it was announced this week,
And, with additional funding from other sources, the district is set to benefit from a total investment of £4.5 million.
The largest single amount of money awarded by the partnership in this, its second tranche of Peace and Reconciliation funding, has gone to the proposed new Community House in Omagh, which is being hailed as a "landmark" scheme for the body,
A total of £168,000 has been allocated to the scheme, which is to be built on the bombsite on the corner of Market Street and Drumragh Avenue.
The partnership has singled out the community house as its 'flagship' project, and it has also applied for up to £1 million of Peace and Reconciliation flagship money for the scheme.
"We are hoping to hear if that bid is successful in the very near future," Mr. Harry Parkinson, project manager for the partnership, said.
The entire community house scheme is estimated to cost up to £1.5 million.
Mr. Parkinson outlined the grant allocations at the public launch of the Tranche II funding in Omagh Library on Monday night.
Over the past two years, the partnership has allocated in the region of £1 million to around 100 small projects.
However, for this latest tranche, it was instructed by the Northern Ireland Partnership Board to become more strategic, and distribute a larger percentage of money to bigger projects.
A total of £760,800 has been allocated by the local partnership. Of this, £577,000 is for 14 major projects and the flagship project -representing 76 per cent of the total. A further £126,300 has been set aside for 26 small project grants 17 per cent of the total. And £57,500 has been allocated to cross-border collaboration projects seven per cent of the total.
Strategic
"We had to become more strategic and look to bigger projects so as a body we would be more sustainable and would hopefully attract more funding in the future," Mr. Parkinson said.
He added: "With other funders coming into some of the projects, we would estimate that the total spend would be close to £4.5 million."
Referring to the community house project, he explained that a cocktail of funding was needed to get the scheme up and running. And he said if additional money became available, the partnership would put that into the community house.
While plans for the house are still being finalised, the scheme will take up the top floor of business premises on Market Street, and will extend back towards the river, in a three-storey building, on the site of the former public toilets, owned by the district council.
The main entrance will be off Drumragh Avenue, and the facility will form part of the council's riverside development scheme, funding for which is expected to be announced in the coming months.
The project will house a variety of community groups under the one roof, such as FOCUS, Omagh Independent Advice Centre, Victim Support, Western Routes, the Omagh Women's Area Network and others.
"The whole ethos is to have a more sustainable community involvement in the town, by having the community sector in the one place. It will be a 'one-stop shop', where people can access the various community services," Mr. Parkinson said.
He added that some of the £900,000 heritage lottery funding allocated to assist in the rebuilding of Market Street would also be used to redevelop that corner of the town.
Major projects Among the 14 other major projects to receive money is Enterprise Ulster's programme for those physically disabled and/or those with learning disabilities. This, along with four other projects, comes under the category of marginalised and vulnerable groups.
The partnerhsip has allocated £26,900 to the Enterprise Ulster scheme, which will go towards the establishment of a computer network as part of a training programme for disabled home-bound people and their carers.
Omagh Volunteer Bureau, a consortium of local voluntary groups, is to receive £30,000 towards a salary and running costs of a volunteering bureau.
Mr. Parkinson explained that it was hoped that the Northern Ireland Voluntary and Development Agency would come on board to help set up an office in Omagh.
"The local consortium is trying to attract more volunteers in the local district, such as young people who want to help in a voluntary capacity. A register would be drawn up of volunteers and these would be matched to the needs in the area to help community and voluntary groups fulfil their obligations," he said.
A total of £70,000 has been set aside towards a project to help victims of the Troubles, including ex-prisoners.
The money will go towards commissioning a study consulting with victims' groups throughout the district. A list of prioritised actions and recommendations on a way forward will then be drawn up after the summer.
Omagh Early Years Centre has been allocated £23,500 towards an ambitious project to provide a comprehensive early years service in the area.
Mr. Parkinson said it was hoped that a further £250,000 from the Peace and Reconciliation childhood fund would be obtained for the project.
A grant of £20,000 has been allocated to Omagh Homeless Action Consortium towards the implementation of a preventative programme for the homeless. This will include a counsellor/befriender to work with those who are homeless.
Under the category of targeting investment in more sustainable development, Omagh Forum for Rural Associations has received a grant of £15,000 towards an administrative service for community and voluntary groups.
And the Omagh Traders' Association Consortium has been allocated £20,000 towards the purchase and installation of CCT cameras in the town.
Mr. Parkinson said it was expected that around another £100,000 would come from other funding sources for that scheme.
A grant of £44,000 has been allocated to the the Western Drugs Co-ordination Team towards educating young people and those at risk from drug and alcohol misuse.
And a total of £12,000 has been awarded to an innovative Citizens' Juries pilot programme.
The money would go towards setting up a citizens' jury, which would examine issues of public concern and make recommendations to the relevant authority, Mr. Parkinson explained.
In the Respect for Cultural Diversity category, various rural Protestant community groups have been allocated a total of £35,000 towards improvements to their premises.
And the Sperrins Cultural Partnership has received £25,000 towards the development of cultural tourism.
A further £10,000 has been allocated to the Western Routes Consortium towards training 'ambassadors' to work in and between communities.
In the Productive Investment and Employment category, a consortium of Omagh Chamber of Commerce and Omagh Traders' Association has been allocated £50,000 towards the setting up and running costs of town centre management and development.
It is expected that more than £100,000 will also be made available from the district council and DoE, and the private sector for the scheme.
And Tyrone Training Services has received a £27,500 contribution towards IT related training for the unemployed.
Commenting on the entire funding package, Mr. Parkinson said: "We feel we have made a difference in promoting a lot of good schemes, and believe that they will help promote peace and reconciliation in the area given time."
He added that, once matters had been finalised for the next round of Peace and Reconciliation funding, the partnership would be going out to consultation next year for new projects.
Mr. Drew Baxter, chairman of the partnership board, welcomed the grants for the various projects in the current tranche of funding.
"The evaluation process over the past six months or so has been long and difficult, but at the end of the day we feel that the total package of actions targets social need and promotes peace and understanding between out two communities," he said.
"Perhaps, most importantly, the funding decisions have been taken by a local partnership board to be implemented by local people for the benefit of local people on the ground."