Youth service manager reflects on changes seen over two decades

AFTER over two decades at the helm of Ballyfermot Youth Service, manager Gerry McCarthy retired last week and reflected on the positive changes he’s seen in the area over the years. 

Gerry’s passion for the area has been a lifelong one, having grown up in lower Ballyfermot and, at 19-years-old, being part of the committee that founded Ballyfermot Youth Service in 1985.

From that point, he volunteered in the service before he was appointed manager in the late 1990s and has witnessed the changes in the area since the service began.

“It was very different times [before the service started],” Gerry told The Echo.

“There were no services for young people in Ballyfermot at the time so that was always a big struggle.

“We started the youth service with one staff member and volunteers in the 1980s and it continued to develop.”

Projects developed over the years include the Le Fanu Skatepark, the adventure centre in Park West, and an outdoor education centre and residential house in Wicklow.

“We have things like the adventure centre and the skatepark now, but before all of that there was actually nothing,” added Gerry.

“And that was also at the height of the heroin epidemic of the 80s, which was huge in Ballyfermot at the time.

“The development of youth services only really started with investment into drug task forces in 1999/2000.

“That was a political decision all over Dublin to invest in services for young people, because of the heroin epidemic.”

The results of this investment in the area are clear to see, particularly in terms of educational attainment among young people.

According to Gerry, when the service started in the 1980s only five per cent of young people in Ballyfermot went on to third-level education, now that number is around 40 per cent.

Alongside the increase in educational prospects, he added that one of his proudest achievements as manager has been the implementation of the Erasmus+ programme.

The programme allows young people from Ballyfermot Youth Service to travel to other youth services in Europe for an exchange and vice versa.

Another facet of Gerry’s role has been supporting the community and trying to combat negative press about the area by organising community events.

After Cherry Orchard made national news last year when a garda car was rammed, Gerry organised a well-attended vigil outside Ballyfermot Garda Station to show that gardaí had the community’s support.

“We go through phases of this all the time, where one incident is blown out of proportion,” explained Gerry.

“But that’s life, and we just have to keep fighting against that.

“It’s a very strong community, but obviously there are some issues and people who need more support.”

Now embarking on his well-earned retirement, Gerry said he plans to stay involved in Ballyfermot Youth Service but only in a voluntary capacity going forward.

He’s also planning to travel more – at the time of talking to The Echo was preparing to travel to Los Angeles – and spend more time with his family, and he’s considering starting a silver surfers club.

When asked how he feels about being retired, Gerry said: “I have no problem with it whatsoever.

“There’s a very good team there, and I’ll be staying involved as a volunteer.”