Lord Mayor recognises success of Legacy Project in supporting growth and development of young people living in east Belfast

Working with young people not in full-time education or employment, the project used the resources in east Belfast as support throughout the development and training. This included engagement in the outdoors on the Connswater Community Greenway, giving back to the community by volunteering at EastSide Partnership events such as EastSide Arts Festival, walking groups, litter picking, community park events, markets and tours, and connecting the young people to local services such as housing rights, benefits advice, access to childcare, mentoring, counselling and more.

It was delivered through unique and bespoke training with skills development opportunities ranging from first aid and World Host Training to horticulture and walk leading. One to one support throughout helped to identify challenges the young people were facing which prevent them from progressing, allowing them to address these challenges through relevant local services. Training also included OCN’s in Personal Development, Good Relations and Employability as well as driving support and specialised skills training based on the interests identified by each individual young person.

Legacy Project has been a huge success with young people moving on to further education, employment, volunteering within their community and even becoming community champions and ambassadors. Funding is secured for another two-year programme starting in October, which will bring together a new group of participants to take on this life changing journey.

Belfast Lord Mayor, Councillor Micky Murray, commented: “I’d like to congratulate all 17 young people who made a two-year commitment to taking this positive journey with Legacy Project. I know from personal experience how powerful these types of programmes can be – and hearing that these young people are now moving into Further Education, employment, volunteering in their community and even becoming community champions and ambassadors - to me, that’s real success. Belfast City Council made a commitment in The Belfast Agenda to helping the city’s residents reach their full potential, in collaboration with a range of partners, and that’s exactly what the EastSide Greenways team is doing here, thanks to support from the International Fund for Ireland - consistently delivering valuable opportunities for learning, growth and development for people living in the area. It’s fantastic to see.”

Jacqueline O’Hagan, EastSide Greenways Manager, said: “We are very proud of all the young people who participated in Legacy Project. We hope the participants go forward with more confidence in their abilities, more resilience to deal with life’s challenges, more aspirations for their future, a strong network of support, more practical skills and qualifications and a clear path for the next step in their lives, whatever that might be. We are looking forward to welcoming a new group of young people this October and excited to watch their journey over the next two years.”

International Fund for Ireland Board Member, Peter Osborne added: “The work of EastSide Greenways and EastSide Partnership has been genuinely transformative for east Belfast, just as it can be for young people on projects like this. I was brought up in Ballybeen, one of the target areas, and know how much talent, energy and potential there is in these communities. When young people are helped to listen, learn and are challenged, they can do so much more for themselves and make a real difference in their communities. The IFI’s Personal Youth Development Programme was launched in 2015 and aims to help young people build and develop life skills that foster good relations, build confidence and resilience, and make them more employable. It is truly unique, tailored to the individual, and helps them to transform their lives. We are delighted to extend the project with EastSide Greenways for another two years, adding more young people on to a wider programme that has already seen over 750 accreditations achieved and 163 young people secure employment. Young people should never rule themselves out of anything. It’s only by trying that they will know how well they can do, and projects like this challenge them to do more than they think possible.”

For more information and to find out how to participate in the next Legacy Project visit https://www.eastsidegreenways.com/legacy-programme/