Mr. John Gilmore:

I thank the committee for inviting us to attend. It is a pleasure for Youth Work Ireland to be present alongside our Northern partners, YANI. I will provide an introduction to our organisation. I am the president and a volunteer. I was young when I took up my post, but now that I am hitting on 25 years of age, I am moving on a little bit.

We are a national organisation and the largest youth work organisation in Ireland, comprising a federation of 22 regional youth services. What makes us unique is that our focus is very much on the local. We pride ourselves on being local services led by local people that come together as Youth Work Ireland on a national footing to work collectively, to ensure young people have a voice nationally and to ensure the best service provision for them.

It is difficult to make estimates, but we work with approximately 100,000 young people through a number of programmes and projects. We have approximately 450 clubs and projects, but our services also work with young people one on one and through other fora. We try to promote an integrated service and ensure any young person who approaches us has the service he or she needs, be it focused or universal.

Our unique community focus and our structure have led to us being a good fit with YANI. That group has a community focus, working with over 200 communities with a large volunteer base and approximately 17,000 young people. A number of years ago we came together and decided to work on the same footing. Things have improved greatly for cross-Border initiatives and young people in the 32 counties of Ireland but we cannot become complacent and there are still significant issues. Through the auspices of youth work we are trying to help and promote peace, ensuring that young people are supported. Youth work plays a vital role in that respect for young people.

I will hand over to Mr. Michael McLoughlin, our head of advocacy and communications, who will provide some indication of the kind of work we do in our partnership.