John Kelly (Labour)
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I am seeking funding for the rural men's shed projects and clubs. I do not know whether funding for these projects comes from the Departments of Health, Social Protection, the Environment, Community and Local Government or Agriculture, Food and the Marine. There is no doubt these men's sheds do fascinating work. I recently brought the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection to view two such projects in County Roscommon, one in Boyle and the other in Dysart. It is amazing the work that has been done in local communities by bringing elderly people together. This initiative is in line with the Government’s 2013 policy on ageing, dealing with rural isolation and protecting people who might suffer from depression. It is designed to empower people and does what it says on the tin, namely, it works. All of this great work assists the Government by cutting down on health expenditure, keeping people living in their communities longer, and easing pressure on nursing homes and hospitals. However, there does not seem to be any financial appreciation for all the work these projects do because they have to fund-raise to sustain their projects. These are worthy projects and a little amount of funding will go a long way. I hope the Minister of State will be able to find some way of finding funding for these projects.

Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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I am taking this matter on behalf of the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Alan Kelly.

The Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government has funded men’s shed projects under both the rural development fund and the Leader element of the 2007 to 2013 rural development programme. Funding has been provided to renovate buildings to house these types of initiatives and also for tools and equipment.

Since the downturn in the construction industry in particular, some men have found themselves becoming unemployed and, in some rural areas such as Boyle and Dysart, County Roscommon, this has led to situations of isolation for individuals. Men’s shed projects have played an important part in addressing these situations, supporting initiatives where new friendships have been developed and communities have benefited from the products and services provided. There are almost 220 men's sheds in Ireland with over 7,000 members. Some wonderful projects have grown from these initiatives such as the restoration of old farm machinery to the production of some fantastic wooden pieces. They have helped men in several communities to come together to work on initiatives which they might not have done otherwise.

The Government, through the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, provides supports and funding to communities, urban and rural, which enables them to identify and address issues and priorities for action in their own areas. Communities have identified men's shed projects as a priority for funding in their areas.

Many projects of this nature have been funded under the Leader element of the Rural Development Programme 2007-2013. On future funding of these projects, €250 million will be provided under the forthcoming Leader element of the Rural Development Programme 2014-2020 to support the sustainable development of rural communities across the country. This funding will be delivered using a community-led local development approach based on local development strategies. These strategies will be designed and implemented by local action groups. It should be noted that all decisions relating to funding for specific projects, including those relating to men's sheds will be a matter for the local action group and will be made based on the needs and priorities that the group have identified in their local development strategy. This type of decision-making is at the heart of sustainable development in rural communities. We are all firm believers in leaving decisions in the hands of the people who know their communities best.

I can assure the Senator that funding for this type of activity will be eligible under the programme, provided that it is included in the relevant area's Leader strategy.

John Kelly (Labour)
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I thank the Minister of State for his response. It is important that it be set in stone that when rural men's clubs or men's shed projects apply to Leader for funding the response should not be a blanket "No" so that there is an opportunity for them to access funding. Much more needs to be done. I appreciate the Minister of State's response and ask that he relay to the Minister that this has to happen.

Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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I will relay the issues raised by Senator Kelly to the Minister. There is also an opportunity for the national men's shed umbrella organisation to potentially use its leverage to attain membership of the local action groups. I believe that the stakeholder model, in terms of the funding that has been espoused by Senator Kelly, in which the HSE is an actor, could become a major influencer for funding these activities. I do not see any reason the umbrella organisation could not become part of the local area groups and thereby influence funding decisions at the most democratic level.

I will certainly relay the Senator's concerns to the Minister.