A community group in the Co Fermanagh village of Derrygonnelly is working to bring more positivity to the area after a recent reported rise in crime in the area.
The new committee of the Derrygonnelly District and Community Partnership have used funds gathered recently to introduce new welcome planters to the area and window boxes for properties on Main Street.
Three people were hospitalised after a recent altercation in the village in which knives and metal bars were used, while there have been concerns raised over a rise in anti-social behaviour in the area.
READ MORE: Three suffer head injuries in Co Fermanagh as 'knives and metal bars' used in alleged attack
The community group’s new chair, James Graydon-Rhodes, says the new addition of the welcome planters to the village is one of the first steps towards making Derrygonnelly a better place to live.
“For the partnership it really is about small things making a big difference,” James told MyFermanagh.
“I think we all need a bit of something nice that makes us smile in our lives at the moment.
“That was the idea of the project that we would inject a little bit of happiness into the community.
“They look brilliant, ideally we’d love to put one at every entrance to the village but if we can get more funding then that’s what we would like to do.
“Considering what we’ve achieved with £1,000 I think it’s fantastic, we’d love to have a lot more money but realistically we have to work with what we’ve got.
“We wanted to do something that had the biggest impact for the lowest cost and still looks great.”
James added that the recent negative news headlines were not reflective of the community in the village as a whole.
“The other side of Derrygonnelly has just recently come out in the papers and that’s sad, because there is a massive part of the community that want to have a better place to live," he said.
“Unfortunately for things that are outside of their control they can’t achieve what they want, a nice peaceful, quiet life.
“It’s quite sad really, and I think as a community partnership that’s why we’re trying to support the community and say that we can have things better here.
“As a community organisation we are not responsible for changing that, that’s got to be down to the authorities. It’s certainly not something we would want to interfere with, it has to be done via the proper channels and the proper authorities and the police.”
James adds that the group have a number of ambitious plans for the area, starting with a new monthly community market which they are hoping to launch next month.
“This is such a beautiful area and we’ve got so many wonderful things around us and we’re here for the members of the community that we can support.
“I’m a blow in but I can say that people in Derrygonnelly are the salt of the earth, everybody seems to have each other’s back.
“No matter what side of the community they are from, I just see people that want to be in a better place.”
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