Results of Cloughjordan survey

As part of the 'Get Involved' local newspaper project in association with the Nenagh Guardian, The Makery in Cloughjordan organised a local survey. Here is a progress update from the local group:

We would like to start by thanking the Nenagh Guardian for selecting The Makery to be its representative for the nationwide Get Involved competition! There is lots to report from our project in Cloughjordan…
Since The Makery’s core group has agreed that the current premises will not meet our future needs and the idea of starting a community co-operative was presented so tangibly by Mary at the award winning Loughmore Cottage, we are on the co-op buzz! With this in mind we made surveys available to every member of Cloughjordan (with thanks to Pat and Aiden, Murphy’s, Rowan’s, Centra Shops and the Post Office).
On November 5th a public meeting was held to discuss the high percentage of surveys that were completed and returned. The response was very positive. We are happy to say that many members of the Cloughjordan community feel the opening of a non-affiliated social meeting space would be a valuable contribution to the town.
Here are a few of the survey results for you. It was considered by a large majority that serving good food in a café was ‘very important’, which was followed by the wish for a place to buy local farm produce, and finally the need for a space where teens can hang out. Traditional Irish food was the most favoured, then seafood/fish and finally ethnic/world cuisine. A craft shop that sells craft supplies and local craft products was heavily supported.  
In order to delve deeper into the opinions of the community members who came to the meeting, four sheets were located around the room, to which everyone was asked to add their own ideas. They were titled 'Café'; 'Local Products' and 'Future Possibilities'. Suggestions ranged from a future co-operative ice rink (!) to the more workable idea of hand crafted tea cosies served on your teapot being available for purchase in the craft shop.
We even had a 'Names' sheet to consider a possible new name for the co-op project that The Makery is becoming. This made us think that involving people in the creation of a brand new name would be a valuable part of the project. Suggestions included The Hive Café, The CCC (Cj Community Co-op) and Pulse Cafe. The ‘naming’ may even turn into a competition – who knows?!
By asking the question of what ‘Local Products’ people would like to see, we discovered that Cloughjordan has a wealth of many small businesses that produce some amazing art, crafts and foods such as basketry and apple juice. 
Future possibilities are likely to include a community kitchen that people can book to try out their food idea to see if it could be a possible business venture. The idea is that one could rent the heath board approved kitchen space, make a large batch and see how well it sells in the local markets and co-op.
Workshop rooms are currently part of the plan to ensure the co-op is also a place for learning and development – which is being brought forward from the original ethos of the Makery. They could be used for something like teaching basic sewing skills, learning ‘cottage crafts’ or preparing one’s beautiful handmade items for the Christmas markets.
At the end of the meeting, we invited people to sign up if they are willing to help and volunteer their time, ideas, skills and help with fundraising and project financing. We were delighted with the response, which included everything from waitressing help from some kind teenagers to architectural help should we need to refurbish our future premises.
Although there still are ongoing classes such as ‘Bangladeshi Food’ and ‘Christmas Crafts’ at The Makery at AE House, it will close its doors at Christmas to leave us time to work on the new home of the co-op. However, there will be co-op events happening in different locations in Cloughjordan leading up to the official opening of the co-op.
Mark your calendar for the ‘Light Up Cloughjordan’ event at 6pm on November 28th as the co-op will be offering free homemade treats. The co-op will also have stalls on both Christmas markets in Cloughjordan the 5th, 12th and 13th of December. Do keep an eye on our Facebook page and website for more pop-up events -www.cloughjordanmakery.com , where we will announce our new co-op website and name!