There has been a call this week for the appointment of a full time Youth Worker in Mitchelstown as a matter of urgency.
Fianna Fail TD Kevin O’Keeffe said a youth worker had been promised before ‘but the promise has not been fulfilled’.
“We were promised before by some members of the Oireachtas in Cork East that such an appointment was in the pipeline, but to date, we have seen little progress on the issue,” he told The Avondhu this week.
Deputy O’Keeffe, who has in his time as a public representative, developed a strong relationship with the people of Mitchelstown, says he has been working on this issue for a number of years.
“Mitchelstown needs a dedicated, full-time Youth Worker. Volunteer initiatives like M’town by the Fonteyn family form Ballygibiln, further stresses the need for a Youth Worker in the town,” he continued, explaining that a youth worker could reduce depression and issues such as self-harm, anti-social behaviour and youth suicides ‘of which we have seen too many’.
“As a community, we have collectively grieved the loss of young lives in our area and it is the needlessness of these deaths, which is pushing me to call for a Youth Worker now.
“It is a combination of these factors coupled with the high youth population, youth unemployment, dependence on social welfare, social isolation and no mainline youth services, that I now call on Minister Zappone to urgently expedite Mitchelstown’s application for the appointment of a full-time youth worker.”
