The Men's Project:
Background

On the 14th of June 1995, a conference titled "Men in the Family" was held in Cultra Manor, Holywood, Co. Down. This event was organised by an inter-agency body coordinated by Parents Advice Centre and attracted 130 participants from Northern Ireland and beyond.

Participants were invited to consider the changing role of fathers and, more generally, men's role in society. Due to the very positive response to this venture, the organising group decided to continue to meet, and to consider ways in which the debate about men's issues in the North of Ireland could be expanded.

The organising group recognised that the needs of men - and practical projects which work on men's issues - are, still, mostly uncharted territory in our local situation. What is certain is that many men are not, necessarily, coping well with modern life. Nor, indeed, do they have access to the help, advice, support, training, personal development or funding networks that they need.

The Men's Project was established to begin to address these needs. In September 1998, Colin Fowler was appointed as the Development Worker, and he later became the Regional Manager of this initiative. Trisha McQueen joined the Project in 2003 as Assistant to the Regional Manager. Both of these people moved on in Autumn 2009.