Sion Mills Community Forum

Public benefits

We believe our 3 purposes satisfy the elements of the public benefit requirement as follows: Purpose 1: Relieve poverty, sickness and the aged The direct benefits which flow from purpose 1 include access to affordable services e.g. childcare, social inclusion which leads to improved mental health, education and raised awareness around health issues

(mental and physical health) and the increased participation and involvement of the older people in our community. These benefits are demonstrated through both written and verbal feedback and through formal and informal evaluation gathering qualitative and quantitative information. Purpose 2: To advance education The direct benefits which flow from purpose 2 include; access to low cost, high quality education which participants may not otherwise engage in, the provision of accredited and non-accredited training which is affordable and delivered locally in a safe and warm environment, and the skills development of the local community. These benefits are demonstrated through feedback from participants and other organisations, completed evaluations and attendance records. Purpose 3: To provide facilities in the interest of public welfare The direct benefits which flow from this purpose include; implementation of a programme of activities based on the identified needs of the area within our area, the provision of a base for a variety of activities, events, services and facilities for the local community and the wider community, the local and wider community having the opportunity to participate in a range of activities which enhances their quality of life, raises self-esteem, reduces social isolation and encourages community participation. These benefits are demonstrated through records of the activities/ programmes etc which are run through in our local hall, attendance at these events/ courses etc and the value placed on these services/ facilities by statutory and other agencies. The beneficiaries of our organisation are those living within the Sion Mills village and the wider district area of Sion Mills. Users of the Hall directly benefit through participating in the various activities provided. The children who attend our community activities directly benefit by having access to a local, low cost facility. The wider community benefit indirectly through our base being used as an outreach facility to tackle specific issues e.g. health, education and environment. The parents of children attending our Projects indirectly benefit through the knowledge that their children are being cared for in a secure and caring environment. The provision of affordable Projects also allows the opportunity for parents to return to work and/ or avail of training opportunities either within the base/Hall or the wider area, which enhances their own lives and the lives of the families. Our community Forum are represented on a number of different committees, which ensures we have a voice and that our needs and issues are being listened to and met. This also allows us to have an impact on decisions being made which affect us. This indirectly benefits the public and the wider community as our Forum listens to and represents the whole area. The wider community benefits as the profile of the area is raised through the work of the community Forum which has a positive impact on the wider community and its environs. There is no harm related to any of these benefits.

What your organisation does

Our Forum addresses local issues and represents local residents at various Agencies, our Projects that we run cater for the Youth and Older residents, also our engagement with the PSNI helps reduce our ASB figures in the area and wider district