South Dublin Community Response Forum Set Up

South Dublin County Council has been mandated by the government to co-ordinate the community response to the COVID-19 emergency in the County.  Accordingly, a South Dublin Community Response Forum has been established to lead the co-ordination of COVID-19 community supports and resilience, including:

• Working with the HSE, An Post, local community groups and local Community Welfare Office service to identify vulnerable groups and individuals in each local authority area;
• Ensuring delivery of targeted social care supports and assistance to those vulnerable groups and individuals;
• Identifying issues arising through Older Persons Council, PPNs, community groups and helpline calls;
• Providing assistance to vulnerable individuals in isolation;
• Ensuring the resilience of existing community services;
• Harnessing offers of assistance from enterprises/businesses generally; and,
• Collecting and mapping information on services and voluntary groups across the County to help direct requests for assistance and identify gaps in service.

Protocols around these objectives and actions are currently being finalised while a dedicated phone line (1800 240519) and email address (covidsupport@sdublincoco.ie) have been established as points of contact for members of the public and community organisations seeking or wishing to provide assistance.  Further details will be provided when the protocols are finalised.

The agencies and organisations currently represented on the forum include the following:

• South Dublin County Council
• Office of the Mayor of South Dublin
• Health Service Executive
• An Garda Síochána
• Tusla
• Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection
• South Dublin County Partnership
• An Post
• South Dublin Volunteer Centre
• Dublin Civil Defence
• ALONE
• Dublin GAA
• Tus Nua / Older Persons Council
• Public Participation Network
• Local Traveller Support Groups
• Crosscare

Additional community, voluntary and sports representatives are now being contacted and may be added to the forum as necessary.

 The new phone line is just one aspect of the Forum’s work. Its core aim is contributing to the community-wide effort to limit the spread of COVID-19. South Dublin County Council, through this group, will ensure that the wide variety of groups working across the County to assist those in need, will do so in an organised, collaborative and targeted way. The Council’s COVID-19 Community Response Forum is there to ensure the very best use of the many resources assisting vulnerable persons with their daily needs at this unprecedented time, whether that is collecting medication, food shopping, social support and contact.

Contact details of this new service will be promoted on www.sdcc.ie and various other online resources.

For information about the ‘Community Call’ initiative please see the booklet here.