40th AGM for Confederation

Last week saw the 40th Annual General Meeting of the Confederation of Community Groups taking place at Ballybot House.

Confederation Chairperson, Mr David Cunningham, welcomed all in attendance and offered a warm welcome to Mayor Michael Ruane and thanked him for his and Newry & Mourne District Council’s continued support.  

He began by quoting the old saying “life begins at 40” and said that he would like to thank all those who have contributed to the Confederation over the years. He paid particular thanks to the current Board members for their contribution throughout the   year and said he wanted to publicly acknowledge the work undertaken by the staff of CCG. He spoke of the commitment of the staff to the principles of the Confederation and congratulated them on winning the Newry Chamber of Commerce & Trade’s “Best Social Enterprise” Award.   

Mr Cunningham then acknowledged the services of former staff and board members who had passed away during the year and offered his condolences to family members. 

Mayor Michael Ruane advised that he was delighted to attend this milestone event in Ballybot House. He said “the work carried out by the Confederation of Community Group’s and the community & voluntary sector in general plays an essential role in the development of our local communities and as Mayor of Newry & Mourne District Council, I would like to publicly acknowledge your contribution to that development” 

Mayor Ruane went on to discuss the long standing partnership between Newry & Mourne District Council and CCG and congratulated the Confederation for the services provided and the achievements documented in the Annual report. He spoke of the difficult times being experienced by communities at present but assured the large attendance that NMDC will continue to support and work with the Confederation in the delivery of services in these difficult times.

The Mayor ended by saying “I would like to thank the Confederation for the invitation to speak tonight and wish you every success in the future”.

Chief Executive, Mr Raymond Jackson presented the 2012-13 Annual Report and commented that CCG had increased partnership work, met project targets and added new services. He highlighted programmes undertaken throughout the period and paid particular thanks to the many volunteers involved in those programmes.  

He advised that revenues from Ballybot House & An Stóras play a vital role in overall sustainability while offering subsidised rental and back office services to the Com/Vol sector.  Mr Jackson thanked all those who had provided funding and paid particular thanks to the Department for Social Development and Newry & Mourne District Council for their on-going support and continuation of their core funding. He said “we use core funding to lever Project funding, and to this, we add our own generated funding. Without all 3 sources of funding we simply could not deliver the programmes we are currently providing”. 

Referring to current and future challenges in terms of RPA, Charity legislation, funding constraints, Welfare Reform and the implementation of Transforming Your Care he stated “the Confederation and all in the Com/Vol sector need to constantly review our role and service delivery and adapt to changes as they arise”.

Mr Jackson then gave an overview of  proposed activities and ended by thanking CCG staff, project volunteers and the volunteer management committee for their work throughout the year. He also expressed thanks to local community organisations, members, tenants and funders for their contribution and support.