We were honoured to welcome Mr. Kevin McCarthy, Secretary General of the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth to visit our Jobstown education centre. The meeting was a fantastic opportunity to show the Secretary General our services and give a first-hand overview and understanding of our Early Years service provision. It was also wonderful to be able to show how An Cosán’s various programmes complement and support early years development. 

The visit kicked off with the Secretary General taking a tour of our Early Years premises. An Cosán CEO Heydi Foster provided Mr. McCarthy with an overview of some of An Cosán’s impact statistics saying “In 2024 alone our facilities provided 14,000 pre-school sessions to 60 children, and 6,000 after-school sessions to 25 children five days per week”. Heydi also explained that many of the children in An Cosán’s Early Years services come from diverse cultural backgrounds and sometimes challenging circumstances. An Cosán is committed to helping each and every child to reach their full potential and all are encouraged to develop in a safe, secure and loving environment. 

An Cosán’s wraparound family support is integral to the wellbeing of the children in our service and fundamental to the ethos of An Cosán. Many parents of our little ones are also learners who can join in with our Access, Further or Higher education programmes. It was wonderful that so many parents were present in the building for the Secretary General’s visit, and they took the opportunity to share with him their inspiring stories. They spoke movingly about the barriers they have overcome and how An Cosán is working with them to make differences in their lives.  

Anne Genockey, Deputy CEO of An Cosán said: “It is always an honour to hear the impact that our services have made in the lives of so many people in the community. The resilience and determination of our parents is truly inspiring, and their stories remind us of the importance of providing opportunities for growth, education, and support. Every day, we witness how a strong, inclusive community can help individuals achieve their full potential, creating lasting change for themselves and their families.” 

The Secretary General’s tour of the An Cosán building also showed him a range of An Cosan’s adult community education programmes. He dropped in on an ESOL Community and Culture class, part of a programme that addresses the linguistic and cultural barriers that some parents might experience. Learners on our ‘Technology for the Terrified’ course were happy to share how they are enhancing their digital literacy, while learners on our Business Administration with Digital Skills course were working hard on their QQI Level 5 course in their bid to return to the workforce. 

Between learners, children, parents and staff, our Jobstown premises sees a footfall of over 425 people per day but as we grow and improve, we find ourselves hitting constraints.  This is particularly so when it comes to our physical space in Jobstown which is in need of renewal and expansion.  The Secretary General was also given an outline of exciting plans to expand and futureproof our building to accommodate more children and learners.  We deeply appreciate the time the Secretary General took out of his busy schedule to visit us in Jobstown. We look forward to future collaboration and cooperation to foster a community where everyone, regardless of age, can access support and education to achieve their full potential.