Summary of ideas submitted in the Social and voluntary category…

• Media campaign to encourage people to volunteer for community projects.
• Morale boosting events like “Blokes Day Out”.
• More community employment places.
• Mutual volunteering system.
• National civic service for 16- to 21-year -olds.
• National Lottery funding.
• National online database of individuals wishing to donate their organs in the case of sudden death.
• National service programme for 18- to 19-year-olds.
• Night classes and summer school.
• Offer people on the dole the opportunity to do one day or more of work per week in their local community.
• One euro should be cut weekly out of every social welfare payment that is paid out in this country.
• Option for ATM users to ‘donate to charity’.
• Organise a copper campaign.
• Organise retired people to help by volunteering.
• Our graveyards need more maintenance.
• Our retired workforce to be enlisted nationally to organise, and manage, receipt and distribution of funds.
• Outreach to elderly in communities.
• Parents of underage drinkers should be fined €100-€200.
• Pay one third of 15-month statutory unemployment benefit up front.
• Pay teenagers an allowance to discourage them from becoming pregnant until they have completed education/training/skills training.
• People claiming single parents allowance could be trained in childcare.
• People on dole to do community work.
• People on dole to do community work.
• People on jobseekers allowance do community work one day per week.
• People on jobseekers allowance do community work to keep the allowance.
• People on the dole should do graveyard research.
• People on unemployment benefit do a few hours’ community service or ‘volunteer’ work.
• People over 55 who get involved in voluntary sports, community committees etc should be given a tax reduction.
• People who have recently lost their job to volunteer some time for local charities.
• Persons in receipt of jobseekers’ allowance/ unemployment benefit should be required (where physically able) to do a certain amount of voluntary work.
• Petty criminals should be given community service instead of being sent to prison.
• Prison system reform.
• Prisoners to be introduced to work.
• Prisoners to do community work.
• Prisoners to do community work.