Eighteen podcasts and Slugger blogs were produced in the second series of the Holywell Trust’s Forward Together programme. With the completion of that programme, the Holywell Trust held a discussion on the themes considered by the series, which focused on creating a better governed society, with more integration and improved outcomes.
The discussion was held as part of Good Relations Week 2020, bringing together the chief executive of the Pivotal think-tank, Ann Watt; Northern Ireland’s interim Mental Health Champion Siobhan O’Neill, who is also Professor of Mental Health Sciences at Ulster University, along with Paul Gosling, as the interviewer of the 18 experts, and Gerard Deane, chief executive of Holywell Trust.
The discussion considered the lessons that can be learnt regarding governance and accountability in Northern Irish society and how to improve public services, including education. The Forward Together programme has been funded by the Community Relations Council’s Media Grant Scheme. Past podcasts can be accessed on the Holywell Trust website. A book will be published in the coming weeks, bringing together the thoughts and ideas from the first series of Forward Together interviews.
Gerard Deane and Paul Gosling host a new series of podcasts - explainers of some of the challenging issues that our society faces of promoting a wider, more inclusive and engaged conversation about how we make progress and further solidify peace and create a genuinely shared and integrated society in Northern Ireland. Holywell Trust is curating a discussion that is mutually respectful, forward focused and positive. The podcast considers the real challenges that Northern Ireland's society faces in the coming years and begins to arrive at practical and honest approaches to address these.