Age Friendly

Chapter 1: Setting Up An Age Friendly City Or County Programme
who will be taken seriously because of his/
her seniority but who also fits in terms of
personality, capability and commitment to and
understanding of the community.”
He also argues that the Age Friendly Cities
and Counties programme will work better
if it doesn’t become a mandated or legal
responsibility of a staff member. “If we see it
as someone’s pet project or something that
has to be done, it will lose something. The
voluntary nature of the Age Friendly Alliance
is significant: we have to ask ourselves on a
daily basis – are we focused on people in the
correct way? Are there gaps in what is being
done for communities? The fact that people
are invited to participate and shape and design
the programme means they own it.”
Conn Murray says that we must also realise
that a lot of work is already being done in the
voluntary and community sector for older
people. “There was so much of this work that I
wasn’t aware of. It’s important not to interfere
with it but to support it with networks and
publicise what is being done.”
The Age Friendly Cities and Counties
programme offers the structures, networks
and recognition for this work”. “Work such as
the Care and Repair in Dundalk or the Senior
Helpline run by Third Age. The Age Friendly
Cities and Counties programme offers them a
chance to link together and learn lessons from
each other.”
He cites the Great Northern Haven housing
project in Dundalk as a good example of
different agencies working together. “It’s about
getting a better understanding of what each
provides and supporting that so we can do
things better. For example, at the Great Northern
Haven, the local authority deals with the housing
elements, the HSE deals with the care, the
Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland takes
on the energy dimension and Age Friendly
[through the Netwell Centre in Dundalk] looks at
how people can be assisted in the long term to
remain at home.” The project allowed funding
streams from each organisation to be combined.
Conn Murray believes another key to it working
well is appointing a member of council staff as
an administrator. “In Louth, I resisted money
for additional staff because I felt it would be an
additional cost, that I would become reliant upon
and it wouldn’t survive over time.” He believes
the long term sustainability of the Age Friendly
Cities and Counties programme will depend on
the local Authority Administrative Officer and
23