Inagh Housing Association

Neighbours are an important part of Life. They are ever present, on hand, when you need them but remain at a distance if you require your privacy. There is an old saying which says ‘you can change your neighbours but your stuck with your relations’, so good neighbours are valuable.

Neighbours Day in Inagh was a tentative step towards celebrating good neighbours. Being the first time to celebrate it, its organisation was a step into the unknown. Even though Inagh Housing Association received guidelines from Europe, through the ICSH, it is something new in the Irish calendar of events. As Inagh Housing Association had planned an open meeting to introduce the Board of the Housing Association to the tenants and to the wider community, it was decided to make that open meeting our Neighbours Day Celebration.

Attendance included some of the tenants from our sheltered housing development together with local people. The former Mayor of County Clare, Flan Garvey, former TD and local County Counsellor James Breen and local Parish Priest Fr Sean Sexton were among those attending as well as all members of the Board of Inagh Housing Association Ltd.

The Housing Association organised a number of presentations on topics relevant to the tenants and friends. These topics included; Fire Safety, Neighbourhood Watch, Legal matters.

The presentation on Fire Safety was given by Eugene Foudy, an expert on the use of fire extinguishers, fire blankets, installation of fire alarms and such devices. This presentation was well received and many questions were posed by those in attendance.

The local Community Garda, Michael Burke, gave a talk on personal security, protection of property and neighbourhood watch. This presentation was of great interest to all and resulted in a wide discussion.

The final formal presentation was given by Niall Garvey, a member of the Board of Inagh Housing Association Ltd and a Chartered Accountant by Profession. He gave an informal talk on property rights, responsibilities of lease holders, landlords and tenants and the making of a will. This talk concluded with a question and answer session which was most informative.

The evening continued with music by local young musicians Sarah, Hannah and Emily Grogan and some step dancing. Refreshments were provided by the members of the Housing Association and local business people.

This year Neighbours Day was celebrated in a very small way but from such small beginnings much bigger celebrations involving everybody in the Community will hopefully take place in the future.