Balbriggan is officially Ireland’s youngest large town. 30.37% of the population are between 0-17 years (Census 2022).
To celebrate this, Our Balbriggan is continuing its ‘Spotlight Series’ with a focus on youth services in the town.
Foróige is an organisation that provides youth services, which can be accessed by any young person living in Balbriggan, aged between ten and twenty four years. It is based in both the Castlemill Education Centre, which connects to Flemington Community Centre and Castlelands Community Centre.
In order to highlight the youth work that is happening in Balbriggan by Foróige, two videos have been created that give an insight into the valuable work and the impact it makes to the lives of young people.
Firstly, in advance of the Local Elections (2024), the Foróige team and Fingal Comhairle Na nÓg organised a ‘hustings event’, which brought together local election candidates and young people in the Foróige building. A key emphasis is on the youth voice and the need for young people to be listened to and included on decisions that affect them.
Some of the day-to-day activities of Foróige are also captured in a second video piece that shows the benefits that young people can get, and life skills they can learn, from participating in organised youth work activities and making new friends and connections.
The issues facing young people and the future development of youth services in Balbriggan are also being highlighted in the Our Balbriggan regeneration process by organisations such as Foróige, through their participation on the Community Pillar.
This ‘spotlight on youth services’ is part of a series of promotional works that the Our Balbriggan Programme office will be delivering over the coming months. Through its ‘Community Pillar’, the Our Balbriggan office is committed to highlighting the strengths of the town, the vibrancy of the community and the hard work of organisations working in and for Balbriggan.
