From Department of Rural and Community Development
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Following the recent introduction by the Department of Rural and Community Development, in conjunction with the Department of Transport, of a pilot initiative to develop a scheme for the provision of high quality up-cycled bicycles and e-bikes, the successful applicants for the initiative have now been chosen.
The pilot fund will be administered by Pobal on behalf of the Department of Rural and Community Development as part of its Community Services Programme, with funding of up to €3m provided by the Department of Transport over a three year period.
The pilot will support a number of social enterprises in 2021 and will, depending on the level of success of the pilot, seek to bring additional organisations into the initiative in 2022.
Fourteen applications were received and the five applicants approved for support under this pilot initiative are:
Minister O’Brien said:
“I would like to thank all those who submitted applications under this pilot initiative and I welcome the geographical spread of the successful organisations.
"The successful projects were chosen because they are very innovative and outline a model that has the potential for replication on a nationwide basis, thereby supporting the Programme for Government commitment to widening the eligibility of the Bike to Work Scheme to ensure that bikes are more accessible to those in our society who are most disadvantaged or marginalised. It is envisaged that the pilot projects will also provide training and employment and will help reduce the number of bikes going to landfill. These outcomes combined with the wider environmental and health benefits of increased bike use ensure that this pilot is a vitally important scheme and one I very much hope to build on over the coming years.”
Minister Ryan, whose Department will provide the funding for this pilot initiative, said:
“Bikes will get a second life, and the people building them will provide a vital service in their communities with these pilot projects. The demand for bicycles, parts and maintenance far exceeds supply in many places around the country. This scheme keeps valuable materials in circulation, builds local expertise, and will shorten the turnaround time for those who have come to rely on the bicycle as a convenient way of getting around.”
Minister O’Brien concluded:
“I am looking forward to assessing the impact of these innovative pilot projects over the following three years, not only on the environmental impact but also in relation to the training and employment opportunities that will arise from this initiative. I wish the five successful applicants every success in their endeavours”
The Scheme was launched at a photo call with Minister’s O’Brien & Ryan at the Core Youth Service facility (St Vincent St W, Inchicore, Dublin 8, D08 T104) at noon on Wednesday 28th April last.
The CSP currently supports community-based organisations to provide local social, economic and environmental services through a social enterprise model, providing a contribution towards the cost of staff in CSP organisations. It typically supports organisations to meet local service gaps and provide access to services and facilities that would otherwise generally be unavailable.
Organisations eligible to apply were those currently supported under the Community Services Programme or alternatively be in a Partnership/Consortium of which at least one member is currently a CSP supported organisation.
In 2020, Indecon International Economic Consultants were engaged to carry out an independent review of the CSP. The final report was published in late September 2020 with a High Level Action Plan, prepared by the Department and Pobal. The Department and Pobal have now commenced work on the restructuring of the Programme. Pending the transition to the new restructured programme, the open Expression of Interest process is now closed. It is expected that the new Programme will facilitate new entrants via targeted calls to address identified gaps in service delivery.