Promoting Collaboration

Over the course of the past number of years an important feature of the role of YMCA Ireland has been to promote closer collaboration between our local independent YMCAs in order to help ensure that the organisation is able to deliver more effective programmes to more young people in more communities.

Collaboration has taken a number of different forms. These have included YMCA Ireland providing payroll services to a number of local YMCAs to helping all of the YMCAs in N Ireland apply for a joint bid for Peace IV funding.

For some YMCAs the future may involve choosing to become a part of YMCA Ireland. During the year work was done with a number of local YMCAs to explore this option in more detail. This has led to Portadown YMCA merging with YMCA Ireland while other YMCAs are actively considering this option.

For some YMCAs closer formal or informal links with neighbouring YMCAs are also being explored as ways of helping to develop new responses to emerging needs among young people.

At a general secretary level there has been a commitment to explore new ways of building greater coherence by promoting a joint approach to communications, a shared practitioner conference, sharing learning around measurement and exploring how our Ethos can be further developed. Another example of collaboration has been the involvement in the #IAMWHOLE campaign to address issues of stigma around mental health among young people.