[Leading Cork to take its place as a World Class City] __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Safety Forums The Community Team supported the running of three online Community Safety Forums, corresponding with the three community policing areas. Safety Forums are an important collaboration between Cork City Council, An Garda Síochána and local safety forum chairs and represent a significant community engagement piece for the Community Team. Members of the public were invited to submit queries and concerns through the City Council’s portal and were addressed on the night. Typically, these forums have taken place in the form of in- person meetings. It is the hope of all partners that in-person forums can resume safely in 2022. Collaborative Town Centre Health Checks (CTCHC) The community section of the Community, Culture and Placemaking Directorate of Cork City Council have been working with a cross directorate interagency group to deliver Collaborative Town Centre Health Checks for Blarney and Tower. The working group contains Area Engineers; Operations (Roads) Directorate, and staff from Strategic and Economic Development, the Planning section, the Conservation Officer and the GIS Officer ICT Services of the City Council. External partners are UCC Centre for Planning Education & Research, Lecturer Jeanette Fitzsimmons, and research and Heritage Council of Ireland Collaborative Health Check Co-ordinator Alison Harvey. The local knowledge and working relationships with the interdepartmental team with the main community groups, business and stakeholders in the Blarney and Tower areas was key to the success of the Health Checks and specifically the two community consultations. The project followed CTCHC steps outlined by the Heritage Council of Ireland. A Land use Survey, a business survey and online community consultations were completed in Blarney and Tower in 2021 by UCC Planning students aided by all partners. The process has resulted in a successful collaborative engagement with community and business leaders and the reports, which are currently being peer reviewed, will paint a comprehensive picture of the areas and the recommendations and opportunities for development as indicated by the data and the community. The reports and can be used to guide Cork City Council and local groups to support funding applications to Central Government. The CTCHC programme is being funded by the Department of Rural and Community Development and Cork City Council under the Town and Village Renewal Scheme for Tower (2019 Scheme) and Blarney (2020 Scheme). Flags at City Hall Throughout 2021, a number of groups were facilitated to raise their flags in celebration of significant days for their communities. The Community team were delighted to welcome the Romanian Community in Cork, Cork Polish and the Traveller Visibility Groups at various junctures.
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