The Hope Foundation are currently looking to garner awareness for their upcoming Footsteps for Hope campaign.
The Carmichael resident member is a registered charity working with street and slum children in Kolkata (formerly Calcutta), India. Their Footstep for Hope campaign is a fundraiser running fro, April 12 – May 24.
The premise is a walk/jog/run in order to raise vital funds for The Hope Foundation and their work on the streets of Kolkotta. Each step taken, and every €1 raised, will help support the continued education of a child in HOPE’s care.
By pledging to raise €115, you will provide education materials for a child for one year. Every 10,000 steps taken will represent the 10,000 miles return journey from Ireland to Kolkata. Invite friends, family, and colleagues to join you in Footsteps for HOPE, and invite them to donate to support you here.
Pledge to raise a minimum of €115 –which will provide education materials, for one year, for a child in HOPE’s care. Tag and share your social media posts #FootstepsForHOPE #StepUpForHOPE #TeamHOPE #GOHOPE
The Hope Foundation champion a clear message: every child deserves an education and the pandemic has cruelly interrupted education for children. They say it is now more important than ever for HOPE to have funds to provide the children in our care with access to a continuous and vital education.
HOPE believes education is fundamental to building an independent successful life and a chance to escape poverty. Education gives children an opportunity to find their strengths, to reach their full potential and empowers them to pursue careers and to provide for themselves, as well as for their future families.
HOPE believes that education is critical, not only for the development of the individual child, but for the development of society as a whole, and by giving more children access to education, the benefits will inevitably filter through into the wider community.
The Hope Foundation are a resident Carmichael organisation. You can find out news from this and all their events and charitable work here. Their on social media too, find them by clicking the following links; Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube.
Carmichael wish to recruit a CE Assistant Supervisor. As part of our Community Employment Scheme work, the Community Employment Assistant Supervisor will work with the CE Scheme Supervisor with the administration of the Community Employment Project according to the Community Employment Operating Guidelines. The role is based in Coleraine House, 49 – 50, Coleraine Street, Dublin 1.
This is a full-time role. Salary scale from €429.50 – €542.84 per week (4 point scale). Entrants must commence at point 1 of the current scale. See below for the full job spec.
CARMICHAEL CE SCHEME JOB VACANCY
| Job Title: | CE Scheme Assistant Supervisor |
| Company: | Carmichael Centre for Voluntary Groups |
| Department: | CE Scheme |
| Location: | Carmichael House, North Brunswick Street, Dublin 7 |
| Hours: | 39hrs weekly, Monday – Friday |
| Rate of Pay: | Salary scale from €429.50 – €542.84 per week (4 point scale)
Entrants must commence at point 1 of the current scale
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| Type of contract: | Fixed Term 12 Month Contract |
| Reports to: | CE Scheme Supervisor |
| Job Purpose: | To provide administrative assistance to the CE Supervisor in overseeing all aspects of the CE scheme within CCVG.
This position is subject to Garda Vetting |
| Key Responsibilities: | Role Specific
To assist the CE Scheme Supervisor with the administration of the Community Employment Project according to the Community Employment Operating Guidelines.
To assist the CE Supervisor in sourcing and costing effective training/development To ensure that all HR files both physical and soft copy (Sharepoint) are up to date for each individual participant. To update the Individual Learner Plan for each participant employed on the project. To ensure that all participant ILP files are reflected in hard copy on all participant’s HR files. All forms are to be completed correctly, signed and filed appropriately. To assist the CE Supervisor with the scheduling of one on one meetings with participants. Provide effective Supervisory cover in the absence of the CE Supervisor as directed by the Sponsor Point of contact for CE Participants when CE Supervisor is unavailable. To assist the CE Supervisor with any other duties which may be required from time to time.
Must have: Attained a Major Level 3 Qualification (NFQ Level 6) 1 year Supervisory experience Fluency in English.
Other Good IT skills. Excellent communication skills, written and oral. Excellent interpersonal skills. Experienced team player. |
| Funding | This position is supported by the Department of Employment and Social Affairs
Carmichael is committed to equal opportunity in employment. |
How to apply:
Please email a CV of no more than 2 pages along with a cover letter to: roisin@carmichaelireland.ie
Closing date for applications
Resident Carmichael member the Association for Criminal Justice Research and Development are recruiting a Manager.
ROLE DESCRIPTION
| Job Title | Manager of the Association for Criminal Justice Research & Development (ACJRD)
The Manager is responsible for the management and direction of ACJRD within the context of the business plan. The Manager is accountable for delivering the business plan and for the day to day running and management of the organisation’s business under delegated authority from the Council. The Manager reports to the Chairperson/CEO and Council of ACJRD. The staffing of the office comprises one manager and an administrative assistant.
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| Location | ACJRD operates a hybrid working model. The post holder will be based at the Carmichael Centre, Coleraine House, Coleraine Street, Dublin 7 D07 E8XF and will be required to spend at least 2 days per week in the office.
The post holder may be required to periodically visit locations within Ireland in relation to fulfilling the requirements of the post, for which appropriate travel and subsistence allowances will be paid. |
| About ACJRD
|
The Association for Criminal Justice Research and Development (ACJRD) seeks to promote reform, development and effective operation of the criminal justice system.
It does so mainly by providing a forum where experienced personnel can discuss ways of working in an informal setting, by promoting study and research in the field of criminal justice and by promoting the highest standards of practice by professionals associated with criminal justice. Its activities are designed to lead to increased mutual understanding and provide insights into the problems with which all are confronted. In opening unofficial channels of communication, it improves co-operation between the various parts of the criminal justice system. The ACJRD is a registered charity and company limited by guarantee. Primary funding is provided by the Department of Justice, Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Irish Prison Service and Irish Probation Service. For additional information please see website www.acjrd.ie. |
| Key Role Responsibilities: | 1. Drive, manage and implement the yearly business plan within budget.
2. Manage day- to-day operations of ACJRD in an efficient and effective manner. 3. Ensure that budget is submitted in a timely manner to the funding organisations and to respond to any queries from funders. 4. Develop and implement an effective membership strategy. 5. Report regularly to the Council on the management, budget, status of agreed actions and governance. 6. Develop and design a quarterly newsletter/ejournal that will stimulate the professional growth and membership of the ACJRD. 7. Support the work of ACJRD council and subcommittees 8. Organise and oversee events on behalf of ACJRD including launches, conferences and prepare conference reports etc. 9. Develop, update and maintain the ACJRD website and other approved social media forums, so that it increases the visibility of ACJRD within the criminal justice system.
The above description is not intended to be comprehensive list of all the duties involved and consequently, the post holder may be required to perform other duties as appropriate to the post which may be assigned to him/her from time to time and to contribute to the development of the post while in office.
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| Essential Role Requirements: |
Candidates must have:
1. A good general education standard. 2. Recent experience of working in the charity sector. 3. A minimum of three years satisfactory experience in a managerial /organisational role. 4. Experience of leading and directing staff with a focus on performance and results. 5. Experience in managing budgeting and accounts. 6. Good understanding of the criminal justice system and public policy development and how it can be influenced. 7. A good knowledge of information management systems and good organisational skills. 8. Well-developed information technology skills and a sound knowledge of computer software applications e.g., spreadsheets, word processing, database and website applications and online conferencing. 9. A demonstrated understanding and experience of managing budgets and financial reporting in addition to a working knowledge of policy development and strategic planning (or the ability to quickly acquire the later). 10. Knowledge and/or experience of the policy work or the ability to quickly acquire that knowledge.
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| Personal Attributes |
· Dynamic person with personal initiative and leadership skills. · Able to work independently on their own initiative and as a member of a team. · Effective communication, interpersonal and administration skills, with the ability to interact at all levels across various departments and agencies either in the public or voluntary sectors. · Good strategic thinker with capacity to see the big picture. · Consistent, thorough and tenacious. · Strong team player who can work with a variety of stakeholder groups · Good understanding of the criminal justice system and public policy development and how it can be influenced. · Excellent writing and reporting skills.
|
| Principal Conditions of Service | Tenure: 12 months *
Salary: €34,320 per annum
Working hours: 30 hours per week
Annual Leave: A ‘pro- rata’ annual leave policy applies which is aligned with the number of days worked per week.
* A probationary period of six months applies. The tenure may be extended.
|
APPLICATION
| E-mail contact details: | Maura.Butler@acjrd.ie |
| Closing Date: | Monday 28 March 2022 |
Please submit a CV and cover letter.
Mental Health Reform (MHR) is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year by hosting a half-day hybrid conference. This conference will explore the biggest mental health challenges facing Ireland today, and the opportunities for change.
The event will take place on Thursday, 31st March, 09:30 AM – 1:00 PM. This Mental Health Reform anniversary event will be broadcast from Wood Quay Venue, Dublin and live streamed to the public. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the event in Wood Quay is by invitation only. To watch the event online, register for your free place here on Eventbrite.
Attendees will hear from leaders, policy-makers and activists who will discuss key developments in mental health and aspirations for the future. Through live panel discussions, the conference will present a range of focused subjects to provoke debate and stimulate action.
MHR will also be launching a new report at the conference as part of the Brave New Connections project, an initiative supporting capacity-building for Voluntary and Community Sector mental health organisations adapting to the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The report will examine the contribution of the sector within the wider mental health ecosystem in Ireland. The hybrid conference is free, online and open to MHR members, partners and like-minded stakeholders from across Ireland and beyond.
External experts and leading thinkers have been invited to provide additional stimuli and new perspectives. This will be a historic year for mental health in Ireland. Join MHR as they look back and move forward into a new decade of advocacy, innovation, research and collaboration.
Mental Health Reform is a Carmichael resident member. They were founded in 2006, following a coalition by five organisations aiming to hold the Government accountable in its delivery of policies. Over the years, they have developed a strong membership. Today, they are Ireland’s leading national coalition on mental health.
Together with their 77 member organisations, they work to drive progressive reform of mental health services and supports in Ireland. You can check out all their fantastic work here. They’re on social media too; see there Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube.
By Diarmaid Ó Corrbuí
There is a Chinese curse, “May you live in interesting times” which may sound like a blessing, however, the expression is normally used ironically; life is better in “uninteresting times” of peace and tranquillity than in “interesting” ones, which are usually times of trouble. We are certainly currently living in interesting times. Just as are we beginning to hope that the worst of the global Covid-19 pandemic was over, the world has been hit with a geo-political crisis as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the humanitarian catastrophe it has created.
The crisis in Ukraine adds another layer of complexity to the many governance challenges and potentially funding challenges that organisations need to address in 2022. For charities in Ireland in particular, there are a wide range of governance challenges and developments to be addressed in 2022, but the major ones in my opinion, are the following;
- Grappling with the “new normal” and the implications of hybrid working models for the organisation and delivery of charitable activities
- Recruiting and retaining staff and volunteers in an increasingly competitive environment
- Succession planning, trustee development and recruitment
- Ensuring that the charity is in compliance with the Charity Governance Code standards
- Getting ready for the SORP for Charities financial reporting standard
Grappling with The “New Normal”
The removal of almost all of the Covid-19 restrictions, has triggered a slow but steady flow back to the office for many organisations. Some firms are offering meals and other perks to entice their staff back to the offices. Charity trustees and managers don’t have the same latitude to offer similar enticements but they urgently need to think through and plan for their future working operating model that will need both appropriate flexibility and sustainability.
They will need to organise staffing rosters that will have the necessary staff and volunteers in place to ensure continuity of delivery of quality services and supports. Another key consideration will be how to maintain the ethos, culture and values of the charity in an era of hybrid and remote working. They also need to return to having in-person board meetings and re-engaging with their fellow trustees in ways that are not really possible with online meetings.
There was a certain amount of tolerance or acceptance for the imperfections and constraints that working from home created, but this tolerance is finite and the Board needs a clear, thought-through strategy and plan for how the “new normal” will operate in their charity and this will need to be communicated to and be bought into by staff, volunteers and beneficiaries.
Recruiting and Retaining Staff and Volunteers
There is considerable commentary on the recent phenomenon of the “great resignation” as many workers across the globe decide following an extended period of working from home to resign from their jobs and do something different. The reasons are varied but the impact is that employers are being faced with the additional challenge of trying to recruit workers in a very competitive environment.
The charity sector is also impacted by this and also faces the additional challenge of not being able to compete against the higher salaries being offered by for profit and public sector organisations. The USP for charities is their purpose, the difference they make in society, their values and their ethos. Charities need to communicate and demonstrate these points of difference in the battle to recruit and retain staff and volunteers.
However, there are many charities where these are unclear or unconvincing and this will require Boards to reflect and refresh their purpose and values and tell their stories with conviction and authenticity.
Succession Planning, Trustee Development and Recruitment
As well as considering and developing its staff recruitment and retention strategies, charity boards will also need to look at their own composition in terms of skills, diversity and tenure. They need to objectively assess what changes to the board’s composition and skills development are required to enable the board to effectively address the evolving challenges facing their charity and ensure its future sustainability and success.
Compliance with the Charity Governance Code Standards
Compliance with the Governance Code is now a requirement for all Irish charities. It is not simply a tick box or form filling exercise. Compliance with the governance standards goes to the heart of how the charity operates, how it does its business, how it engages with its beneficiaries, how it oversees and manages its resources and how it provides accountability and transparency to its stakeholders.
Many charities have put in considerable effort in getting ready for compliance with the Code but there are many other charity boards that have not properly engaged in the compliance process and have delegated responsibility to staff or ignored the Code and its implications. Charities need to be prepared for a random compliance audit by the Charity Regulator. The Regulator has commenced the process of selecting charities for audit to verify the charity’s actual compliance with the Code’s standards in terms of performance and effectiveness.
SORP for Charities
Complying with the SORP standard for financial reporting is only voluntary for now in Ireland (it is mandatory in the UK) and only a very small percentage have opted to apply the standard. Finally, after many years of it being promised, a Charities Amendment Bill will shortly be introduced in the Oireachtas. One of the amendments, will give the Regulator the power to specify the financial reporting standards that all charities must adhere to.
This is expected to pave the way for setting SORP for Charities as the required standard for charities with annual income of over €250,000. For relevant charities who do not currently apply the SORP standard, they need to start the planning process now to be ready when it becomes a mandatory requirement.
There are many other challenges specific to the charity that the boards and management will also need to address in addition to those listed above. The task for all charity boards is to assess the challenges and opportunities for their charity and develop the responses and strategies to ensure that they are effective, impactful and sustainable.
Chronic Pain Ireland are hosting an upcoming webinar on March 15, as part of our Pain Talks with CPI series. Here at Carmichael we are delighted to spread the word of the event, which will feature Mags Clark-Smith MA, PGCE, a movement specialist and Director of Resolving Chronic Pain.
What’s Happening?
Mags, who worked with clinics based in Ireland and Scotland, is a Stress Illness practitioner, University Lecturer and researcher in dance, movement and psychology and is a member of the Irish Pain Society.
Mags will discuss ‘How movement can calm the mind and how the detailed precise approach fits with new evidence concerning pain in the brain’.
Throughout this live and interactive talk they will:
1. Summarize key research and clinical concepts that underlie the relationship between movement and pain science.
2. Identify some disorders that are likely to benefit from this
3. Understand the limitations and clinical caveats to this approach
As previously stated, the event takes place Tuesday March 15th from 2:00-3:00 p.m. via Zoom. To register www.chronicpain.ie
Chronic Pain Ireland are a Carmichael resident organisation, one of the many organisations we help at one of our two locations based in Dublin’s city centre.
More about Chronic Pain
In Europe 1 in 5 adults suffer with chronic pain. In Ireland that figure is higher. In 2011 Researchers from School of Psychology & Centre of Pain Research, NUIG Galway found that in Ireland 35.5% of adults in Ireland suffer with chronic pain. That’s 2 in 5 people. In those aged between 18 and 24 the proportion was 1 in 5 people, those aged 65 and over it was as many as 3 in 5.
- 42% have chronic pain more than 5 years
- 15% have clinically relevant depression as a result compared to 2.8% living without chronic pain.
- 12% unable to work or reduced work hours and are 3 times more likely to be unemployed due to their chronic pain.
The Organisation & What They Do
At Chronic Pain Ireland they offer nationwide support to people living and learning to live with chronic pain, their friends, and family. They achieve this through their support phone-line, email, online forum, self-management workshops and information talks.
Brain Awareness Week
Chronic Pain Ireland are proud partners of Brain Awareness Week an annual campaign run by the Neurological Alliance of Ireland. National Brain Awareness Week takes place this year from March 14th to 20th 2022 and the theme is “Together We Are Stronger: Promoting the Value of Teams, Partnerships and Collaborations in Neurological Care and Research”.
ADHD Ireland are delighted to promote their upcoming webinar titled ‘Emotional Regulation and Healthy Boundaries’. The webinar will take place on March 23, and will be presented by professional Play Therapist Aisling Murray.
This webinar is aimed towards parents and children up to age 8. As stated, the webinar will be presented by Aisling Murray, an Accredited Play Therapist based in Portlaoise. Aisling, the founder of Laois Play Therapy, has been working with children for over 16 years and in Play Therapy for over 6 years.
Furthermore, she is currently working with children with a wide range of issues including social anxieties, social difficulties, behavioral issues, trauma, loss, ASD, ADHD and other individual needs.
On Aisling’s website we learn more about her methods. It states Play Therapy is a type of therapy primarily used on children under the age of 12. A trained play therapist can use play to observe and gain insights into a child’s problems, emotions, or unresolved trauma. Using play therapy has been proven to help children develop coping skills and learn how to redirect inappropriate behaviour.
In play therapy the therapist will facilitate the child in their play, bringing themselves to the child’s level and building trust between them. The therapist will observe the child’s behaviour and how they interact with the toys. As trust develops children become more willing to share their thoughts and feelings with the therapist.
ADHD Ireland a resident Carmichael organisation. ADHD Ireland are a dedicated non-profit in Ireland that look to provide up-to-date information, resources and networking opportunities to individuals with ADHD, parents of children with ADHD and the professionals who serve them.
You can register for the free event here. To become a member of ADHD Ireland you can click here. Finally, if you wish to donate to ADHD Ireland you can click here.
Independent Living Movement Ireland (ILMI) are set for a busy period with two events coming up in March. The Carmichael resident organisation are celebrating International Women’s Day on March 8th with an online event, and will also host a drama and theatre workshop on March 15.
International Women’s Day will take place on March 8th and ILMI are inviting people to celebrate the occasion with an online event that evening, from 7pm. They will host a number of guests including Baroness Jane Campbell, Seònaid Ó Murchadha , Blessing Dada, Cathy Reay and Emilie Conway.
This year, along with organisations across the world, ILMI will be exploring the International Women’s Day theme of #BreakTheBias. Together they want to forge women’s equality. To register for this event, email edelmcginley@ilmi.ie or audreywilson@ilmi.ie.
On March 15th meanwhile ILMI will host a drama and theatre workshop, with any disabled person from around the country who has an interest, or even an acting curiosity, can sign-up for the fun workshop by emailing Peter Kearns at info@ilmi.ie.
ILMI upcoming venture into disability equality dramatic arts with The Half Made-Up Drama Collective will make the invisible visible, and spark new, open discussions around what being a disabled actor, writer, director and activist means to each individual ILMI audience member and supporter.
ILMI look forward to the collective’s actors/writers making effective contacts with the wider Irish drama and theatre community through a social media based 200-Second short collection of drama pieces. As part of the process they hope to attract to interest of mainstream drama courses to work in partnership with ILMI’s Half Made-Up Drama Collective series of workshops delivered by ILMI disabled dramatists Peter Kearns, Paula Soraghan and Mark McCollum.
The Half Made-Up Drama Collective will explore forms of realism, absurd and surreal with future complete productions and standalone drama which will explore themes/issues touched upon, but not exclusive, in the narrative and stories coming from the Irish disability movement.
The ILMI are a Carmichael resident organisation. They are a campaigning, national representative Disabled Persons Organisation (DPO) that promotes the philosophy of independent living and works to build an inclusive society. If you wish to get involved with ILMI, you can check out this page on their website. Finally, you can check the ILMI on Facebook and Twitter.
The Association for Criminal Justice Research and Development (ACJRD) are seeking to promote an upcoming event “Effecting Change: Learning from the experience of Oberstown“.
Event Details:
Set to take place on March 3rd from 2-3.30pm, this forthcoming event will centre on Oberstown Children Detention Campus, looking at key learnings from recent studies on the campus and in relation to the wider view of the Irish justice system.
This event sees the ACJRD collaborate with Professor Ursula Kilkelly, Chairperson of the Board of Management, Oberstown Children Detention Campus, and Pat Bergin, former Director of Oberstown Children Detention Campus, and current Head of Service, National Forensic Mental Health Service, to deliver the online seminar “Effecting Change: Learning from the experience of Oberstown”.
Professor Kilkelly and Pat Bergin will present the key messages from the work documented in their recent publication “Advancing the rights of children in detention; A model for international reform”, and will discuss with participants how this model might be replicated elsewhere in Ireland’s criminal justice system.
Who are the ACJRD?
The ACJRD, a resident Carmichael organisation seeks to promote reform, development and effective operation of the criminal justice system. We have featured many of their events in the past, much to huge success thanks to their passion and hard work.
They do so primarily by ‘providing a forum where experienced personnel can discuss ways of working in an informal setting’, as well as by ‘promoting study and research in the field of criminal justice and by promoting the highest standards of practice by professionals associated with criminal justice’.
Booking & Contact Details:
This seminar will be chaired by Dr. Mary Rogan, Associate Professor in Law, Trinity College Dublin. Book your free place for this event here. You can keep up to date with all news from ACJRD on their website here. Also, they’re on social media too; find their Twitter here, and LinkedIn here.
Minister Roderick O’Gorman to launch Rape Crisis Network Ireland’s ‘Breaking the Silence: Terminology Guidelines for Data Collection on Sexual Violence against Children’
Register here to watch the event.
On Tuesday 22 February at 10am, Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Roderick O’Gorman will launch the Rape Crisis Network Ireland resource ‘Breaking the Silence: Terminology Guidelines for Data Collection on Sexual Violence against Children’. The event is being hosted by Carmichael resident organisation, The Rape Crisis Network of Ireland (RCNI).
‘With an estimated 2% conviction rate on reported Child Sexual Violence cases, making sure we can tell the child’s story, wherever they break the silence, is essential’ says Cliona Saidlear, Executive Director of RCNI, ‘All services and professionals meeting a child’s needs must be able to join up their knowledge with others’, especially when our children cannot. To do this we must develop a common language. This is what the RCNI Breaking the Silence collaborative project promises.’
The goal of a common language and the aim of creating guidelines for terminology on sexual violence against children is to enable the collection of reliable, comprehensive and comparable data across services which will improve our understanding and interagency pathways for children. Failure to use shared language risks minimising or even erasing the experience of the child.
‘Breaking the Silence’ is a collaborative project which provides child-specific terminology and definitions for some of the manifestations of the many forms of sexual violence against children that are covered by the Istanbul Convention and Irish legislation. Now, more than ever, it is well understood that violence against children includes physical, psychological, sexual and emotional violence and it has become increasingly important that the language to describe it captures and accurately records its breadth and nuance. The terminology guide is designed to be used by Irish service providers who must be able to talk to the children and their carers, in language that is appropriate to their organisation.
The event will be hosted by RCNI Executive Director Clíona Saidléar and they are pleased to welcome the following speakers:
Roderick O’Gorman, Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Inclusion and Youth
Biljana Brankovic member of GREVIO, the independent expert body responsible for monitoring the implementation of the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (Istanbul Convention). She has over 20 years’ experience in research, advocacy/lobbying, monitoring, shadow reporting to UN Treaty Bodies. Most of Biljana’s research/ monitoring work has been done in countries of South-Eastern Europe, including cross-cultural/comparative studies on violence against women and children, and analyses of compliance of domestic laws/policies on VAW with international standards (CEDAW, CRC, Istanbul Convention, etc). Her research bibliography involves over 120 references, roughly half of which are related to VAW/women’s rights/child rights and she has worked for many UN agencies/international organisations or NGOs/Networks as an Independent Researcher-Consultant.
Niall Muldoon was appointed as Ombudsman by President Michael D Higgins on 17 February 2015. His background is as a clinical psychologist and he has worked in the area of child protection for almost 20 years. Before becoming Ombudsman for Children in 2015, he worked at the OCO as Director of Investigations, and before that he was the national clinical director of The CARI Foundation, a charity that provides therapy and support for children affected by sexual abuse.