Training & Events
Community Development Support

Helping Communities Help Themselves

Through our Community Development approach, County Down Rural Community Network works at grassroots level to:

  • Support communities, of place and identity, to use their own assets to improve the quality of community life;
  • Help communities and public bodies work together to improve services and the way in which decisions are made.
Become a Member
Through providing a range of programmes and services, CDRCN works with groups and individuals to ‘help communities to help themselves’:

• Rural Community Development Support
• Rural Micro Capital Grant Scheme
• Neighbourhood Renewal
• CDRCN Men’s Shed Network
• Events and Training for community groups and volunteers
• Charity Commission Support

Rural Community Development Support

We specifically focus on:

  • Support for community planning;
  • Support for isolated rural people;
  • Support for the sustainability of rural villages;
  • Marginalised minority community support in rural border areas.

In practice, this means working with local people and community groups in diverse ways – including providing support with project planning, practical advice, funding applications, governance, networking with other groups, advocacy to local government, providing a collective voice, and more.

Rural Micro Capital Grant Scheme
County Down Rural Community Network administers the Rural Micro Capital Grant Scheme in our area, on behalf of the Department for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs. Commonly referred to as Rural Micro Grants, this scheme offers between £500 and £2,000 to rural community-led, voluntary organisations for projects tackling issues of local poverty and / or social isolation.
View Case Study
Neighbourhood Renewal
County Down Rural Community Network delivers a range of targeted health and wellbeing and community initiatives to hard-to-reach groups within the Downpatrick Neighbourhood Renewal area. Through this programme, we work to develop the skills and confidence of the local community, enabling them to participate in community and health-related activities.
CDRCN Men’s Shed Network

Men’s Sheds are community-based projects, where men can come together to learn, share skills, and make connections. 

CDRCN works with a network of over 30 Men’s Sheds across our area, providing information, practical support and advice.

Events and training opportunities for community groups and volunteers

County Down Rural Community Network supports volunteers and community groups to develop skills, knowledge and training to enhance good practice in relation to community development.

For upcoming opportunities, click HERE

Charity Commission Support
The Charity Commission NI (CCNI) is the independent regulator of charities in Northern Ireland. Community groups and organisations are required to apply for registration as a charity if they have charitable purposes and are governed by the law of Northern Ireland. County Down Rural Community Network is a registered Helper Group. We provide practical support to individual organisations applying for registration or submitting accounts and reports to CCNI.
Become a Member of CDRCN
Membership of County Down Rural Community Network is FREE and open to all community-based organisations in the Council areas of Newry, Mourne and Down District Council, and Ards and North Down Borough Council.
Become a Member