Creggan Enterprises Limited has successfully provided a wide range of services and facilities for the local community...

CEL: Building a Sustainable Community

Experience has shown that it requires long-term investment to build healthy, sustainable communities which are equipped to play a meaningful role in the social and economic regeneration and life ot their area. CEL would argue that community development and local ownership processes are a prerequisite for sustainable community outcomes, especially in areas of high deprivation which lack any real social or economic infrastructure.

Key Achievements & Community Impacts:
• CEL now provides 100,000 square feet of retail, business and community service space;

• CEL is directly responsible for the employment of its own staff without any state assistance;

• 192 jobs have been created to date within Creggan as a direct result of the various enterprises and projects located at Ráth Mór, with an estimated £2million per annum in wages being earned, spent and circulated within the local community;

• CEL has successfully provided a wide range of services and facilities for the local community, such as a supermarket, post office, chemist, bakery, family opticians and community offices;

• Annual revenue from CEL services – £373,000;

• An outreach programme with local schools;

• Training and conference facilities used by private, public, community and voluntary sectors;

• CEL has distributed £90,000 of its surplus to assist community based initiatives within the area;

• Assisting and development of locally based enterprise developments;

• Secured funding package of £330,000 from EU (DHSS), DoE, Derry City Council and used its own resources as matching funding to set up a community partnership promoting local solutions to meet local needs;

• Networking with others to promote best practice;

• Assisting with the provision of a community-based taxi network;

• Working in partnership with North and West Housing, a self-help Housing Association, to secure a £3 million development package for the area to address accommodation shortage within the locality;

• The community, through CEL, owns and manages the Ráth Mór Centre.