This year's Annual General Meeting will be held on Friday, 13 November 2009 at 12.30 pm in our offices at 2 Downshire Place, Belfast.  All Community Places members are invited to attend the meeting to receive our Annual Report 2009, audited accounts and appoint the Board of Directors for the forthcoming year.  The meeting will end with lunch at 1.00 pm.  Please contact Celine ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) if you are able to attend (by Tuesday, 10 November 2009).

The Big Lottery Fund has unveiled the BIG Proposals for Northern Ireland, a document that gives details on the types of programmes it hopes to run up until 2012.  It builds upon the wide-ranging 'BIG Thinking' consultation carried out last year. 

The Big Lottery Fund is asking people to comment on the new proposed priorities which include older people at risk; space and place; younger people at risk and alcohol related harm.  The consultation launched on 8 October 2009 and will run until 15 January 2010. 

The 'Big Proposals' gives details on how future grant could be developed in the following areas:

• a programme supporting older people worth £10 million;
• a £15 million programme that will fund improvement and activities involving space and place;
• a programme targeting young people at risk worth £10 million; and
• a £5 million programme dealing with alcohol misuse and related harm. 

For further information see http://www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/northernireland.htm

The next two in our series of Planning Advice Clinics will be held on:

-  Wednesday, 28 October 2009 from 12 noon to 4.00 pm in West Belfast Partnership Board (218-226 Falls Road, Belfast); and

-  Wednesday, 4 November 2009 from 12 noon to 4.00 pm in Strabane and District Community Network (23 Main Street, Newtownstewart).

The Advice Clinics will provide information on all planning issues including making and objecting to a planning application, planning enforcement and complaints.   

Anyone with a planning query is welcome to call in and we will provide follow-up advice to everyone who needs it.  Appointments are not needed but it would be helpful if people let could us know if they will be calling in by telephoning us on 9023 9444.

(6 October 2009)

The next in our series of Planning Advice Clinics will be held in Down Arts Centre (Auditorium), Irish Street, Downpatrick on Monday, 5 October 2009 from 12 noon to 4.00 pm.

The Advice Clinic will provide information on all planning issues including the new planning policy for single houses in the countryside and will give advice on how to make or object to planning applications.   

Anyone with a planning query is welcome to call in and we will provide follow-up advice to everyone who needs it.  Appointments are not needed but it would be helpful if people let could us know if they will be calling in by telephoning us on 9023 9444.

The Planning Service is holding 11 consultation events during September 2009 on the proposals for the Reform of Planning.  Some have already taken place - the remaining events will be held on: 

-  Thursday, 17 September 2009 at 7.30 pm, Ballymena Showgrounds, Ballymena;

-  Monday, 21 September 2009 at 10.30 am, Market Place Theatre, Armagh; and

-  Tuesday, 22 September 2009 at 7.30 pm CAFRE, Greenmount Campus, Antrim.

To reserve your place at one of the events, please register online at: www.event-ful.co.uk/planning or contact Julie Corey at the event-ful consultancy (Telephone: 9043 4320, Fax: 9043 4321 or Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ).

Community Places together with a number of other community and environmental organisations has prepared a Shared Policy Paper to encourage participation in the planning reform process. The paper identifies 11 key issues which we feel need further consideration in the Planning Reform consultation document.  Click here to download it.  The consulation period ends on 2 October 2009.