Fingal County Council is committed to driving a collaborative, multi-sectorial Age Friendly Programme which supports initiatives and activities to improve the quality of life of the current and future population of older people in Fingal. This is achieved through the work of Fingal’s Older People’s Council and Age Friendly Alliance, as well as the Interdepartmental Team. Fingal’s OPC contribute and input into the delivery of a number of initiatives, events, projects, consultations.
- Weekly distribution emails featuring relevant AF event, activity, and updates.
- Represent the voice of older people in Fingal on national forums such as the National Older People’s Council
- Sit on a number of working groups and input into local and national consultations.
- Information Events for Older People – 2 per year
- Input into the development of Fingal’s New Age Friendly Strategy 2025 -2029.
- Fingal OPC’s Annual Conference
- Provide input into HSE’s booklet for older people
- Fingal’s Vintage Picnic Arts, Creativity and Music Festival
- Positive Ageing Week initiatives
- Annual Harvest Social
Fingal’s OPC Annual Conference
The Annual Conference took placeon Tuesday 21st May 2024 in Kettles Country House Hotel with over 130 older people in attendance. The Conference covered two themes: Housing in Fingal and Decisions Supports within the HSE. Housing presentations were provided by Aoife Lawler, Carmel Brennan and Danielle Monahan on Housing Options in Fingal, Age Friendly Design and Ageing in Place, respectively.
Presentations from the HSE’s Ciara Palmer, Jacqueline Grogan and Geraldine Farren focused on the Assisted Decision Making (Capacity) Act 2015 and the move to a human right-centered approach to supports available in acute settings and advanced healthcare directives.
Following a thought-provoking morning, the afternoon provided mental relief with music and dance. It was obvious from the dancing that some delegates acted upon the information provided by speakers and made their own decision to forgo the walking sticks and join in the dancing. For them, it was a wise decision and for one delegate it felt like “a weight had been lifted” from his shoulders and it was the best time he had had in years!
Vintage Picnic 2024 at Swords Castle
Circa 700 people attended Vintage Picnic hosted by Age Friendly Fingal on Thursday 25 July 2024 in Swords Castle. This lively festival offered an afternoon of creativity, music, dance, and exercise for over 55s and was testament to the enthusiastic and motivated older people of Fingal.
Those in attendance participated in a wide range of workshops, including graffiti art, mandala creation, vintage clothing demonstrations, and tie-dyeing. For those inclined towards physical activities, professional instructors led sessions in Yoga, Zumba, and Tai Chi, allowing participants to try out new activities, or simply relax and enjoy the festive atmosphere. Light garden games were provided by the Fingal Sports Department, and for those needing a bit of relaxation, chair massages were available. For aspiring musicians, workshops in African Drumming, Ukelele and Bodhrán were provided by tutors from the IIMS, Balbriggan.
The crowd were entertained with live music from local groups; Gerry and the Plonkers from Donabate and the Blanchardstown Ukulele Group (BUGS), showcasing the talents of Fingal’s older residents. The headline acts, the Blue Bells, and the Ronan Collins Showband, created a festive atmosphere that reverberated throughout the grounds and brought the crowd to their feet. Vintage Picnic 2024 brought together older people from across Fingal in an environment that fostered connections and new learning experiences. Most importantly Vintage Picnic highlighted the need to provide new opportunities for older people, to continue to learn, develop and grow, and to have fun!
An Information Event in Dublin 15 took place on Tuesday 19th March in Blanchardstown Library with circa 160 attending. Unlike many other events for older people, this attracted a large male cohort, accounting for circa 25% of those in attendance. Information and advice was provided on the day by Alone, Age Action, DDLETB, An Garda Siochana, Dublin Fire Brigade, Fingal OPC, Age Friendly Health Homes, Fingal Community and Sports Departments, Libraries, Sage Advocacy, MABS, Citizens Information, HSE, Fingal Volunteer Centre, Blanchardstown Centre for Independent Living, Safer Blanchardstown, Lions Club (Message in a Bottle), Empower (Social Prescribers) as well as representatives from Community Centres in Dublin 15.
An Information Event in Balbriggan took place in the Senior Citizens Centre on Thursday 26th September 2024 providing many older people in the area with an opportunity to visit the centre for the first time. Despite the horrendous weather conditions, over 80 older people attended with information available from local groups and organisations present including An Garda Siochana, Fingal Healthy Age Friendly Homes, Care & Repair, Alone, Citizens Information, Money Advice & Budgeting Services, Cairde, Meals-on-Wheels, LGBTI Balbriggan and Fingal Community Library and Community Depts as well as representatives from local community centres.
Positive Ageing Week 2024
The theme for Positive Ageing Week 2024 was “Challenging Ageism – Reframing How We Think, Feel and Act towards ageing and older persons”. To celebrate Positive Ageing Week, a series of events took place throughout Fingal with the support of Age Friendly Fingal. Nearly 500 older people attended activities and events, which challenged ageism while promoting physical and mental wellness and fostering creativity and social interaction. Some of the events which took place were:
Challenging Ageism Information Session & Afternoon Tea Dance: Huntstown Community Centre
Huntstown Community Centre hosted 80 older residents of the local community at an “Afternoon Tea Dance”. The event also provided an opportunity for local service providers to provide information on available services for older people in the area.
Active Ageing, Having Fun and Keeping Well: Blakestown Community Centre
Over two days Blakestown Community Centre opened its doors to older residents to try new activities such as Chair Yoga, Pilates and Flower Arrangement. While this provided an opportunity for local residents to try new activities, it also provided the centre with an insight into possible new activities for older people.
Drop-in for Tea and Chair Yoga: Liam Rogers Community Centre
Liam Rogers Centre which has only recently re-opened to the public, hosted a morning of activities, with over 50 older people attending including clients from the nearby St. Michael’s House. The event also provided an opportunity for older residents to re-engage with the centre with the aim of providing similar activities on an ongoing basis.
Fingal OPC: Harvest Social
Fingal OPC hosted their annual Harvest Social on Thursday 3rd October in the Links Hotel Portmarnock. Over 130 were in attendance representing groups from across the county with transport provided from Blanchardstown/Castleknock, Swords/Donabate, Rush/Skerries and as far as Balbriggan. Afternoon tea was followed by music from the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s with many dancing for the first time in years while reminiscing about the dance halls across the county.
Contacts
| Local Programme Manager Cathrina Murphy Email: cathrina.murphy@fingal.ie |
| Local Technical Advisor Nilfa Burke Email: nilfa.burke@fingal.ie Morgan O’Shea Email: morgan.oshea@fingal.ie |
| Local HAFH Coordinators Danielle Monahan & Elaine McGauran Email: healthyagefriendlyhomes@meathcoco.ie |
| Local Older People’s Council Chair: Eleanor Hull Vice Chair: Patricia Martin |
| Local Age Friendly Ambassador Terry Prone |