Our support of Ringsend District Response to Drugs project, which is delivering real results for the Ringsend area, was shortlisted by Chambers Ireland for the President's CSR Awards.
The Ringsend & District Response to Drugs Project (RDRD) was established in 1995, as a result of local concern over an escalating drugs problem in the area. The Project is a community based rehabilitation and support service for drugs users and their families in the Ringsend area of Dublin.
The main emphasis of the project is to support individuals in becoming free of drugs. The principal philosophy of the programme is built on community involvement and empowering the local community to tackle the drug problem in a constructive way through a process of education and training.
As the RDRD plays a pivotal role in supporting drug users and their families, the project presented the ideal platform from which Dublin Port Company could provide resources to actively support the community in a lasting and meaningful way as well as playing its part in taking a hands on approach in tackling social issues in local port communities.
The key objectives of the project are as follows;
Over the past 16 years over 100 hundred people have graduated through the drug awareness programme with certificates funded by Dublin Port Company. As well, many of those who have graduated through the programme have remained on a full time basis with the project, providing essential services to drug users struggling with addiction and their families.
In 2009 Dublin Port COmpany helped RDRD purchase a retreat house in Co. Wexford to facilitate weekends away for families affected by drug addiction. Teresa Weafer, Manager of RDRD, explains what this support means to the work of RDRD.
Without Dublin Port Company’s support we simply wouldn’t be in a position to provide the programmes, aftercare, research or rapid response needed to deal with drug use in our community. It means we’re able to move with the times and offer awareness programmes when it matters, for example in response to the recent and increased use of ‘head shop’ products. We were also able to make a DVD as part of the’ head shop’ programme, which was then distributed to libraries and schools so that parents and people in the community would be able to recognise and tackle the early warning signs of this new type of drug abuse.
The retreat house has proven to be a huge resource for the community. RDRD has since been approached by other community groups asking permission to use it from time to time. It’s given others a reason to engage with us, find out about the work we’re doing and break down barriers in the community about drug rehabilitation. The knock on effect is that RDRD is now in a position to give something back to other groups in our society.
We really have come a long way and we’re making progress on drug awareness and abuse in the community. At our Annual Graduation Ceremony this year, eight people graduated drug free from the programme and 54 people have maintained their drug free status ever since. Dublin Port Company doesn’t just fund this service, they’re part of it. They’re very hands on and they’ve helped change people’s lives for the better.