Longford Councillor calls for more youth focused outreach initiatives

Councillor Niall Gannon has called for more outlets to be made available to young people in Longford town.

The councillor tabled a motion calling for the introduction of more youth outreach programmes.

“I call on Longford County Council to take immediate action to address the following issues. the increasing presence of groups of youngsters who are intimidating local business owners, residents, and visitors in our town centre.

“Potential measures could include increasing Gardaí presence in the town during peak hours, implementing and engaging more with community outreach programmes aimed at engaging youth in positive activities and collaborating with local schools and organisations to address the underlying causes of such behaviour.

“Other towns and counties have introduced initiatives such as Gym Justice (Antrim), and more comprehensive CCTV cover (Rathdown).

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“Early intervention programmes (Ballymun) and many more we could surely learn from.”

Cllr Seamus Butler reminded his colleague that the council has no power in regard to Garda resourcing.

“What I would recommend is that it’s referred to the local community safety partnership.”

Cllr Gannon stated that he didn’t believe an increased garda presence would help.

“I don’t think they would care if the guards were there.

“We need to look at measures that aren’t Garda-related but rather initiatives.

“Organised gym sessions, instead of hanging around we’ll be giving them a different outlet.

“I know the kids involved, you need to find something for them to do.”