RSS
2009
Work in the West: The Western Region’s Employment & Unemployment Challenge
Work in the West: The Western Region’s Employment & Unemployment Challenge examines the current employment and unemployment situation in the Western Region and analyses the key challenges which arise from this (adjusting to the decline in construction employment, the possible return of the brain drain and the delivery of education and training in the region). The WDC also makes recommendations on what is needed to position the region for future growth.
Download Full Report (PDF 5.2 Mb)
Download “Executive Summary and Recommendations” (PDF 1.2 Mb)
Travel to Work and Labour Catchments in the Western Region: A Profile of Seven Town Labour Catchments
In this publication, the WDC draws on previously un-released Census data to examine the travel to work patterns to each of the principal towns in the seven counties of the Western Region. This report identifies 45 labour catchments in the Western Region and provides a detailed labour market profile for seven towns; Galway, Ennis, Sligo, Letterkenny, Castlebar, Roscommon and Carrick-on-Shannon.
Creative Industries, Innovation & the Smart Economy: Seminar Proceedings
The current economic downturn provides practitioners, policymakers and industry analysts with a unique opportunity to reflect on the importance of creativity in innovative pursuits. Building on our Creative West: The creative sector in the Western Region report, the WDC, in conjunction with the Centre for Innovation & Structural Change at NUI Galway, organised a seminar to bring together different sub-groups within the creative sector to discuss the sector’s role in Ireland, and the West’s future economy. The presentations from the seminar, held on 25 November are given below:
Session 1: Competitiveness and Creativity: Evidence from the UK’s Regions
Professor Robert Huggins, Cardiff School of Management, University of Wales Institute, Cardiff and Director of Centre for International Competitiveness – Download pdf (1.2 Mb)
Dr Patrick Collins, Centre for Innovation & Structural Change at NUI, Galway – Download pdf (1.2Mb)
Session 2: Addressing the Role of Creativity in the Smart Economy: A Policy Perspective
Ms Vera Kelly, Principal Officer, Department of Arts, Sport & Tourism
Ms Pauline White, Policy Analyst, Western Development Commission – Download pdf (0.3Mb)
Session 3: Creative Production in Practice
Mr. Paul Cummins, CEO, Telegael
Ms. Helen Murphy, Head of Education, Training and Development, Crafts Council of Ireland – Download pdf (5Mb)
Moving West: An Exploratory Study of the Social and Economic Effects of the Relocation of Public Sector Offices to Towns in the Western Region
Relatively little data exists on the impact of the relocation of public sector offices in Ireland, either on the people who relocate or the towns involved. Moving West is an exploratory study that examines the effects of recent relocations to two towns in the Western Region. It investigates the reasons why employees chose to relocate and the impact it has had on their quality of life; as well as the social and economic impact of the relocations on the two towns.
Creative West: The Creative Sector in the Western Region
The creative sector refers to businesses such as arts, crafts, design, software development, architecture and film making, which are centred on human creativity to generate original goods and services. The Western Region has a strong creative legacy and Creative West examines the size and importance of the creative sector in the Western Region, the main issues for enterprises in the sector and makes recommendations on how the sector can grow in the future.
Baseline Research on the Creative Industries Sector in the Western Region of Ireland
The creative sector refers to businesses such as arts, crafts, design, software development, architecture and film making, which are centred on human creativity to generate original goods and services. This report by contains comprehensive baseline research on the creative sector in the Western Region and provides the background data for the WDC report Creative West: The Creative Sector in the Western Region.
