Through Creative Ireland funding we began tackling this problem by working on capacity building, we set about providing a forum for the residents of all ages to express their views and guide the cultural programming in the Adamstown area.

Through active citizenship projects, providing young people with opportunities to engage in film, music and dance programmes they have been using the workshops to highlight specific needs in the community such as more space to meet or hold activities. Already we have seen some movement on this issue as the Community Centre has offered free hours to Crosscare Lucan Youth Service for local teens. This was the direct result of viewing two of the short films made in the Drama/Filmmaking workshops.

Another significant outcome from the youth creativity programmes is the initiation of the Adamstown Youth Committee which was set up by secondary school students from the area. The group have been attending weekly workshops with South Dublin Partnership and Crosscare to understand what and how a committee works, enabling them to become active citizens and to contribute to change in their community. The group continues to meet weekly.

Building upon this level of active citizen engagement, we developed a festival event in celebrating the diversity of cultures and age groups. On Saturday 16th December 2023, Adamstown Community Centre hosted an all-day celebration of the Winter Solstice – the longest night of the year and a juncture in the return of the light. Through a series of multi-disciplinary workshops, performances and Installations co-created with The Adamstown Community.

"The shortest day and longest point of darkness in the year, the solstice is a solar phenomenon and a turning point in our seasonal calendar, one which humans have celebrated for thousands of years."

The Crossing was a collaboration between Adamstown Community Centre, Creative Ireland South Dublin. South Dublin County Council Arts Office, SoFFt Productions and South Dublin Libraries. The day was a celebration of cultures, our roots and or intrinsic links with workshops such as: Inner Light: Art Journaling and Vision board workshop,  the solstice Headdress crafting workshop, an Introduction to The Night Sky with Astronomy Ireland, a sharing of Local Stories from ‘Our Sun, Our Moon’ project and Magical Storytelling Session Tickets as well as music dance and spoken word performances throughout the day.

Despite the lack of communal spaces, the funding made available through Creative Ireland South Dublin has united the Adamstown community in exploring the communities’ needs, unique voice, and vision for the future of their rapidly growing community. The organic way in which the projects evolved and how committees and film groups formed is an encouraging testament to the work that has been ongoing in the community over the past two years.