Developing and Implementing a Good Practice Model for Meath

Draft Socio-Economic Statement for Meath

Local Economic & Community Plan

Developing and Implementing a Good Practice Model for Meath

Draft Socio-Economic Statement for CountyMeath

Local Community Development Committee and Meath County Council

July 6th 2015

Table of Contents

Preparing a Socio-Economic Statement for County Meath

Introduction

Key Socio-Economic Facts

Affluence and Deprivation

Population & Age

Age Dependency Ratio

Lone Parent Families

Nationality & Ethnicity

People with a disability

Unpaid Carers

Education

Labour Force

Industry & Employment

Economic Context

Socio-Economic Statement

Vision

Underpinning Values

Key Concepts

High-level goals

Approach

Next Steps

Preparing a Socio-Economic Statement for CountyMeath

Introduction

The Local Economic and Community Plan (LECP) will set out the objectives and actions needed to promote and support the economic development and the local and community development of CountyMeath over the next six years. The Plan will serve as the primary strategy guiding development in CountyMeath.

The LECP will enable a targeting of resources under the direct management of the LCDC, under the management of LCDC partners, and under the direct management of other publicly funded local development agencies and bodies not on the LCDC. It will be action focused and will be delivered through a combination of local authority programmes and the programmes of other stakeholders.

The first step in the preparation of the LECP is the preparation of a socio-economic analysis of CountyMeath. The second step is the preparation of this socio-economic statement for the county. The socio-economic statement establishes draft high-level goals and associated broad outcomes for the LECP. The economic and community elements of the LECP are to be integrated and mutually supportive and this is to be reflected in the socio-economic statement.

The socio-economic statement will be used as a starting point for a public consultation on the LECP. This will include a call for submissions, interviews with public sector and voluntary sector agencies, and public meetings. The socio-economic statement will be finalised and agreed on foot of this consultation and will then serve as the starting point for drafting the LECP.

The preparation of this socio-economic statement involved an assessment of the socio-economic profile prepared by AIRO on CountyMeath and an examination of the Economic Development Strategy for CountyMeath prepared by Meath County Council. It involved interviews with a range of agencies represented on the LCDC and a consultation meeting with the PPN Secretariat. It was be work-shopped with the LECP advisory committee prior to presentation and discussion with the LCDC.

Key Socio-Economic Facts

The following section provides a very brief overview of some of the key information from the LECP Baseline Study.

Affluence and Deprivation

Affluence and Deprivation / Meath / State
Relative Score / 0.9 / 0.24
Description / Marginally Above Average / Marginally Above Average
Absolute Deprivation Change 2006-2011 / -8.8 / 0.47

• Meath is the 9th most affluent local authority area in the State;
• Between 2006 and 2011 the Absolute Index Score fell by 8.8 points, the highest decrease for all local authority areas.

Population & Age

• According to Census 2011, the total population of Meath is 184,135.
• Between 2005 and 2011 the population increased by 21,304 or 13.1% compared to an average for the State of 8.2%.
• The main population growth was concentrated in the east of the county and in close proximity to the main urban settlements;
• Relatively speaking, there are high levels of young people and fewer older people in Meath. The age breakdown is as follows:

Age Dependency Ratio

The age dependency ratio is derived by expressing the young population (0-14 years) and the old population (aged 65 years and over) as percentages of the population of working age (15-64 years). The total age dependency rate is the sum of the young and old rates

• The Age Dependency Rate is lower in Meath than the average for the State;
• The Old Age Dependency element is significantly lower – 13.5% compared to 17.4% - and the Young Age Dependency element is considerably higher – 38.3% compared to 31.9%

Lone Parent Families

• There are 7,209 lone parent families living in Meath;
• Proportionately, the number of lone parent families is significantly lower than the average for the State;
• Proportionately Meath has the lowest number of lone parents in the State.

Nationality & Ethnicity

• There are 19,802 people living in Meath that describe themselves as non-Irish national;
• Numerically, , Meath has the 7th highest non-Irish National population;
• Proportionately, the non-Irish population is lower than the average for the State – 10.8% compared to 12.0%.

Ethnicity (% of population) / Meath / State / Eastern & Midlands / GDA / Mid-East
Traveller / 0.5 / 0.7 / 0.6 / 0.5 / 0.5

• There are 967 members of the Traveller community living in Meath;
• Numerically, Meath has the 12th highest Traveller population;
• Proportionately the numbers of Travellers living in Meath is lower than the State average.

People with a disability

Disability (% of population) / Meath / State / Eastern & Midlands / GDA / Mid-East
People with a disability / 10.7 / 13.0 / 12.6 / 12.5 / 11.6

• There are 19,669 people with a disability living in Meath;
• Numerically, Meath has the 13th highest population of people with a disability in the State;
• Proportionately, it has the 2nd lowest at 10.7% compared to an average of 13.0% percent in the State.

Unpaid Carers

Carers (% of population) / Meath / State / Eastern & Midlands / GDA / Mid-East
Carers / 3.6 / 4.1 / 3.7 / 3.6 / 3.5

• There are 6,632 people who describe themselves as Carers living in Meath;
• Numerically, Meath has the 12th highest population of Carers in the State;
• Proportionately, it has the 4th lowest at 3.6% compared to an average of 4.1% percent in the State.

Education

• 15, 073 people in Meath ceased education with no formal or primary education only, 12.9% of the population compared to an average of 15.2% in the State;
• 20,246 people in Meath ceased education with lower secondary education only, 17.4% of the population compared to an average of 16.6% in the State;
• 25,116 people in Meath ceased education with upper secondary education, 21.5% of the population compared to an average of 20.0% in the State;
• 19,079 people in Meath ceased education with Technical/Apprenticeships, 16.4% of the population compared to an average of 14.3% in the State;
• 32,346 people in Meath ceased education with third level education, 27.7% of the population compared to an average of 29.1% in the State. Proportionately, the number of people with third level education is significantly lower than the average for the State, the Eastern and Midlands region, the Greater Dublin area and the Mid-East Region.

Labour Force

Labour Force (% of population) / Meath / State / Eastern & Midlands / GDA / Mid-East
In the Labour Force / 65.8 / 61.9 / 60.3 / 62.2 / 60.5
Unemployment Rate[1] / 18.0 / 19.0 / 18.3 / 17.4 / 18.3

• 90,634 people describe themselves as in the Labour Force in Meath;
• Numerically, CountyMeath has the 7th highest labour forces in the country;
• Proportionately, Meath has the second highest labour force in the country at 65.8% of all people over the age of 15 years, compared to an average of 61.9% in the State;
• 16,292 people described themselves as unemployed (unemployed and looking for a first job);
• Numerically, Meath has the 8th highest unemployment rate in the country;
• Proportionally the unemployment rate is slightly lower than that of the State, 18% of the population compared to an average for the State of 19% and the 5th lowest in the State.

Industry & Employment

Industry (% of population) / Meath / State
Agriculture, forestry and fishing / 5.0 / 5.1
Manufacturing / 11.9 / 11.7
Construction / 6.3 / 4.9
Wholesale, Retail, Transport / 26.6 / 24.8
It & Professional Services / 17.0 / 17.9
Public administration & Defence / 6.7 / 6.3
Education, Social & Health / 18.2 / 20.3

According to an analysis of the 2011 Place of Work survey;

• 38.5% of the population at work were employed in Meath;
• 44.6% of those at work were employed outside Meath;
• 7.6% were classed as mobile workers;
• CountyMeath has the 4th highest rate of outbound commuters for work in the country;

Economic Context

There are a number of key features that characterise the economic context. These include that:

• There is significant economic potential owing to the favourable location of the County in relation to, and transport links with, Dublin;
• The County is fundamentally prosperous, while there are pockets of disadvantage;
• There is a strong sense that the County has not fulfilled its economic potential;
• There is a comparatively narrow economic base, including agriculture, and traditional manufacturing like engineering and mining;
• Market-led knowledge activity, such as IT related activity or modern manufacturing, is relatively low;
• There is substantial leakage in the form of outbound commuting and retailing;
• The level of FDI is low compared to other counties;
• Educational attainment is lower than in the rest of the country;

Meath has the qualities to become a highly competitive location for enterprise, both indigenous and foreign-owned. These include:

• Small enterprises have traditionally performed better compared with the country as a whole but there has been a downward trend in self-employed income since the onset of the recession. There needs to be a move from supply-led support to demand-led support for businesses;
• Larger Irish-owned enterprises are also performing well and out-performing the rest of the country. The proportion of all employment within the county accounted for by agency-assisted indigenous firms is appreciably higher than that for the country and there has been strong growth in this form of employment in recent years;
• Meath is host to a number of successful foreign-owned enterprises, but underperforms comparatively in relation to FDI and needs more of this investment.

Socio-Economic Statement

Vision

We seek a County that enables the diversity of its people, communities and organisations to have the resources for wellbeing, the creativity to flourish, and the strength to be resilient; a County that benefits from a dynamic economy; and a County committed to renewal in the work and approach of public bodies and their shared values.

Underpinning Values

This plan is based on and seeks to progress values of:

• Community: that provides the foundations for economic and social and cultural developments. Meath is made up of a diversity of communities based on a sense of place and a sense of identity.
• Equality: that is concerned with the distribution of resources, power, status and relationships of respect and care among the diversity of people and communities in Meath.
• Diversity: that is concerned with valuing difference and addressing its practical implications in policy, procedure and practice.
• Empowerment: that is concerned with communities having a voice to articulate their interests and needs and having a say in decisions that impact on them.
• Dignity: that is concerned with the human worth of all individuals and the human rights that flow from this.
• Sustainability: that is concerned with managing the effects of climate change, resource depletion, and protection of ecosystems.
• Partnership: that is concerned with increased collaboration and alliance building between the different sectors, including between public and private agencies and between agencies and community, driving the development of the County that are based on mutual esteem, shared vision, and coordinated endeavour, including the sharing of resources.
• Balance: that is concerned with eliminating the pockets of disadvantage that characterise what is an otherwise prosperous County.
• Innovation: that is concerned with exploring new forms of human development, implementing new ways of policy making, and devising new types of responses to persistent problems faced.

Key Concepts

1. Wellbeing is where people can meet their basic needs, have a sense of purpose, enjoy financial and personal security, engage in meaningful and rewarding work, and have good physical and mental health.
2. Dynamic economyis where production, distribution and consumption are supported and stimulated with creativity, innovation, and rigour to be resilient and to best meet the needs and aspirations of the people of Meath.
3. Resilience is where people have the capacity to mobilise and deploy the necessary human and physical resources to withstand challenges, adapt in the face of challenges, and build human progress on foot of challenges.
4. Flourishing is where people have the capabilities necessary to live lives that they have reason to value, including capabilities to access and deploy knowledge and learning, to access and produce culture, and to enjoy recreation and leisure.
5. Renewal is where organisations bring a concern for social inclusion, equality and human rights into policy making and policy implementation, enable the voice of those experiencing inequality and disadvantage to be heard in their work, and engage with and integrate their efforts with other organisations pursuing similar or linked goals including in the community, voluntary, environmental and private sectors.

High-level goals

We aim to:

1. Promote and secure wellbeing of all people and communities in the County.
2. Stimulate and support a dynamic economy to best meet the needs and aspirations of the people and communities in the County.
3. Build and enable the resilience of all people and communities in the County.
4. Stimulate and empower a flourishing for all people and communities in the County.
5. Develop and implement ongoing renewal in public sector bodies, the manner in which they fulfill their mandates and the manner in which they work with others.

Associated Broad Outcomes

We will demonstrate progress on wellbeing through securing:

• A reduction in poverty levels and associated disadvantage along with increased levels of income for those experiencing poverty in and out of work.
• An increase in employment levels in quality jobs spread throughout the county, supported by effective and relevant training, and person centred labour market activation.
• An enhancement in the culture of, skills for, and support to entrepreneurship.
• Improved access to high levels of mental health and physical health for all people in all communities.
• Reduced levels of homeless and at-risk-of homelessness and improved forms of support to those in and at-risk-of homelessness..
• Increased levels of social housing provision and regeneration that enable sustainable communities.
• Improved transport links for those experiencing exclusion in rural areas.
• Improved perception and experience of safety for people in rural areas.

We will demonstrate progress on a dynamic economy through securing:

• A cost-competitive location that is internationally, nationally and locally recognised as an attractive and distinctive centre in which to conduct business.
• A large number and varied range of serviced sites and property solutions to suit the needs of large and small businesses in all sectors.
• Seamless access to skills, infrastructure and services, and national and international markets for businesses.
• An environment for growing enterprises with clusters of FDI and indigenous companies in vibrant economic centres.
• Enhanced status as a visitor destination with a large and varied choice of attractions, accommodation and eateries, leisure and entertainment facilities, and events throughout the year.
• Attractive and competitive shopping locations combining a mix of traditional and modern retailing experiences in a unique and differentiated setting.
• An inclusion for and benefit to people and communities experiencing inequality and disadvantage from the further development of the economy in the County.
• An inclusive, innovative economy in the Gaeltacht areas.

We will demonstrate progress on resilience through securing:

• An independent, resourced, empowered, vibrant and diverse community infrastructure that gives voice to place based communities and identity based communities, pursues innovation in responding to issues, enables and supports voluntary endeavour, and contributes to wellbeing, resilience, and flourishing within their communities.
• Meeting the specific needs of women, carers, lone parents, older people, young people, Black and minority ethnic people including Travellers, lesbian, gay and bisexual people, and people with disabilities.
• Widespread implementation of transition initiatives that include community and social businesses serving local needs, community owned renewable energy production, local food production and related food-processing activities.
• Enhanced and effective systems of environmental protection and sustenance.

We will demonstrate progress on flourishing through securing:

• Enhanced education experiences, services, facilities, and outcomes for people experiencing inequality and disadvantage.
• Enhanced network of and access to informal education opportunities.

• Enhanced and full access to high quality broadband throughout the county, as well as an improved IT infrastructure and IT skills and knowledge for all

• Community arts programmes that enable communities experiencing disadvantage and inequality to develop their capacity to access and produce culture.
• Enhanced facilities and services for all people and communities to engage in recreation, sport and leisure activities.
• Enhanced physical infrastructure in which the community sector can provide efficient and cost effective services and supports in a way that facilitates them to be able to respond to the needs of communities.
• Strengthening the Irish language and culture in the Gaeltacht areas and beyond.

We will demonstrate progress on renewal through securing:

• Interagency systems that enable coordination and cooperation between public bodies and publicly funded organisations and with the community, voluntary, environmental and private sectors that will enhance their impact.
• Interagency processes to develop shared values and understanding across public bodies and publicly funded organisations.
• A smooth functioning of the reformed structures in the County Council that reflects the ambition and provision of establishing legislation and policy.
• New forms of intervention and new relations of collaboration with other sectors by the public sector in achieving its goals.
• Policy and programme processes that enable the voice of people experiencing disadvantage and inequality,and the organisations that represent them, to be heard in the operations of public bodies and publicly funded organisations.
• Planning, policy-making, budgeting, policy-implementation and policy-evaluation methods within public bodies that are transparent, target the pockets of disadvantage in the County, and mainstream social inclusion, equality and human rights values and issues.

Approach

The approach will be based on the following: