Local Government Management Agency (LGMA)

We’re recruiting an Assistant Staff Officer to work within our IT internal team. This is a support or supervisory position within the Agency and the successful candidate will be assigned responsibility for the day-to-day operation of a work area, section or team. The role is varied and requires the post holder to be flexible, capable of meeting statutory deadlines and to ensure commitment to delivering quality results. They will work as part of a team, supporting the line manager and other colleagues to meet the LGMA work goals and objectives.  More information about the role and application details are now available: https://lnkd.in/eYrpffM

Almost €1m in funding is being made available in 2025 for the recruitment of new heritage professionals aimed at strengthening the protection of heritage assets across the country. It is anticipated that by the end of 2026 a full complement of local authority archivists, architectural conservation officers and archaeologists will be in place, ensuring comprehensive nationwide coverage of crucial heritage protection functions for the future.   The announcement was made today, Tuesday 29th October, by Minister of State for Nature, Heritage and Electoral Reform, Malcolm Noonan TD. It is being implemented by the Heritage Council in collaboration with the County and City Management Association (CCMA) with the support of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.   The funding is part of an overall allocation of €5m to the Heritage Council aimed at strengthening heritage protection measures and improving accessibility to heritage at local level. It will also support the already fully resourced biodiversity and heritage officer networks. The introduction of the expanded scheme will ensure that essential specialist professional resources are in place to protect local heritage and provide increased public services. https://lnkd.in/emDkY3hH The Heritage Council Virginia Teehan Bernadette Moloney

An excellent opportunity presents to work as part of a team in the day-to-day operations of work areas within the LGMA. We're seeking applications from candidates for Clerical Officer posts. Clerical Officers have responsibility for their work area, facilitating meetings and assisting with the implementation of work programmes to achieve goals and standards set out in our Pillar and Team Plans. This competition will establish a panel to fill permanent and temporary positions within the LGMA. Job and application details are available online: https://lnkd.in/eYrpffM

More than 18,130 children and young people from Ukraine and over 4,100 under International Protection have been welcomed into 2,200 schools across every county in Ireland. Department of Education — Ireland has filmed a series of short videos where we asked them to tell us about their experiences of school in Ireland. Learn of experiences of people from Ukraine, Syria and Afghanistan via the Department's YouTube channel: https://lnkd.in/eKR2srfT

Local authority Energy Performance Officers met today, Tuesday 22nd October, in the Bridge House Hotel in Tullamore at an event organised by the LGMA (on behalf of the CCMA) and Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI). Funding and resources for delivering projects to cut down on the local government sector’s emissions and energy usage were discussed. The continued commitment of local authorities to assist in meeting national targets was outlined in the regional updates, which detailed current and planned projects that included refurbishing of leisure centres, fleet decarbonisation, public lighting and installation of solar systems. 

The customer service experience provided by county and city councils was the focus for a workshop hosted in Co. Kilkenny today. Examples of good practice within county and city councils were highlighted at the NOAC (National Oversight and Audit Commission) Communications and Customer Service Working Group workshop. Taking place in Kilkenny Castle, the Group heard of the findings from a recently published national survey on customer service in local authorities, undertaken by the LGMA.   Good examples of customer service from Dublin City, Meath, Roscommon, and South Dublin councils, as well as the Irish Passport Office, were presented.   The diversity of the projects was reflected in presentations delivered, including:    South Dublin County Council’s provision of library services to neurodivergent individuals,   Meath County Council’s use of CRM systems to support local government elected members,   Dublin City Council's achievement in attaining the Excellence Ireland Quality Association Q Mark in customer services,   Roscommon County Council’s Active Communications and online grants systems.   Attendees on the day included the representatives from the LGMA, Board of NOAC, Directors of Services responsible for customer services and Heads of Communication Units in local authorities across Ireland, the President of the Association of Irish Local Government and representatives from the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.   NOAC board member and Chair of the NOAC Working Group, Miriam McDonald, outlined that the “presentations on show would help further develop the conversation on how customer services can be used to help local authorities engage with the public and support a better customer experience”.   The presentations from the workshop are available to view freely on the NOAC website, www.noac.ie and further information regarding the individual projects or presentations is available by contacting noac@housing.gov.ie. 

The Irish government wants social housing providers to adopt modern methods of construction to increase the delivery of public housing. In this article, Margaret Geraghty, Programme Coordinator and Ruth Hurley, Project Manager with the LGMA's HDCO (Housing Delivery Coordination Office) are amongst contributors providing insight into what is being done to support this aim. Ruth informs of reducing reliance on traditional contract forms and expanding knowledge through collaboration with cross-agency partners, local authorities, and industry experts in the use of modern methods of construction. https://lnkd.in/egaf5Zp6

The 26th Annual Local Government HR Conference 2024 took place this year on October 3rd and 4th in the Radisson Hotel, Letterkenny, Co Donegal.   The theme of this year’s conference was “HR-Fostering a Culture of Collaboration & Innovation”. This explored both the practical and strategic implications of the next phase of work for our organisations, our managers and our employees, and how we can collaborate and innovate to deliver a people-centric approach.      Thanks to our all our excellent, engaging and insightful speakers for sharing their experiences with us and also to all our colleagues across each of the local authorities for attending what was a really informative and enjoyable conference, that was kindly supported by the HR team in Donegal County Council.

An excellent resource for people interested in the history of local government has now become available through the excellent work of the Local Government Archivists Network. Read online or pick up a copy from your local council. https://lnkd.in/eCZcGNxk

Our Housing Delivery Coordination Office (HDCO) Project Manager Ruth Hurley opened the metropolitan local authorities conference Competitive Dialogue: Driving collaboration on innovative methods of social and affordable housing delivery. The conference brought together housing stakeholders, led by the HDCO, the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, The Housing Agency Ireland, and representatives from larger urban and metropolitan local authorities in Ireland. Ruth hosted stakeholder engagement focused around the use of competitive dialogue as an important means to support the delivery of social and affordable housing in a climate of ongoing needs and high-demand for delivery of such by local authorities. Competitive dialogue is a procurement procedure that allows the contracting authority to engage in discussions with selected bidders to develop one or more suitable solutions to meet their requirements. It can be used when local authorities are seeking design or innovative solutions, or when they need negotiation of specific circumstances related to the nature, complexity or the legal and financial make-up because of risks attached. Presentations were delivered by Alison O Rourke, Cork City Council - Comhairle Cathrach Chorcaí, Gerard O Sullivan, Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council. Infrastructure issues were discussed with Keith Jones of Cork County Council, who spoke about the use of design build & finance to service sites for housing delivery. The workshop concluded with group discussions and feedback to help identify challenges to be addressed in order to move into this procurement space and to support focusing on advancing towards more agility in the delivery methods for social and affordable housing in Ireland. Also speaking at the event were staff from Cork City Council, Cork County Council and Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council.