Stay-at-home parents in Lucan are seeking each other out and, against allthe odds, attempting to build a voice in the community, writes Louise Holden

In the fastest growing suburb in Europe you'd think it would be easy to meet people. Louise Lonergan moved to Lucan in Dublin three years ago to start a family and, in the midst of a thousand homes, she has never felt so lonely in her life.

"I live in an estate with hundreds of other families, but the houses are all empty during the day - everyone is out working. As a stay-at-home mother, I feel totally cut off. I love my children dearly, but I'm tempted to go back to work just for a bit of adult company."

Lucan has a population of 35,000 and this figure is expected to rise to 55,000 over the next decade. This population explosion is not reflected in local services and amenities so stay-at-home parents can find themselves with little choice of activity in the area.

"My friends are all working and very few of them are parents," the 30-year-old graphic designer explains. "I hardly see them anymore. I desperately wanted to meet like-minded people who had chosen to stay at home with their children, but had not switched off their brains in the process."

Lonergan is convinced that there are many other parents in Lucan who spend their days at home with children and long for some meaningful contact with other adults in the same situation. She has taken her two children to mother and toddler groups, but has not found the adult environment she is looking for. "By the time we have played with the kids and discussed nappy brands and feeding problems, the time is up. It doesn't give us a chance to be ourselves and express our personalities and interests. All my life I've been determined to be a stay-at-home mother, but after two years of isolation I've considered returning to work."

Before taking that step, however, Lonergan decided to reach out to others in the community and confirm her suspicion that she was not alone. She wanted to create a forum where stay-at-home parents, male and female, could come together, away from the children, and discuss adult issues, explore creative, political and leisure pursuits and, ultimately, be a voice for stay-at-home parents in Lucan.

The Homemakers' Social Club, run from St Mary's Parish Hall, has met seven times since Lonergan's original, tentative ad in the local newspaper. Its membership has grown steadily from half a dozen the first week up to 20 at the last count. Every week the word has spread a little further and the numbers attending creep up. She is particularly pleased with the response she has had from speakers.

"Every week I invite a new speaker to come and address the group. So far I have pursued issues that interest me -

nutrition for children, Oxfam, Homestart, speech development, travel - but, as the membership grows, I have started to build up a profile of the members' interests and the topics over the coming months will reflect that."

So far, any agency that Lonergan has contacted for a speaker has obliged. It makes sense - stay-at-home parents are often the gatekeepers of the family budget and make decisions regarding leisure activity, food, education, health and family finance.

"When an agency like Oxfam talks to 10 stay-at-home parents they are in essence talking to 10 families and sending a ripple out through the community," Lonergan says.

The club receives no funding and as much as she would like a budget with which to pay speakers and arrange outings, Lonergan is determined to proceed with or without support. "Stay-at-home parents have lost their voice in this society. We are making positive choices for our families, but we are not rewarded for it - successive budgets have been geared towards working parents. We're a small group now, but I hope that when we reach significant numbers we will be in a position to lobby government for better family resources and infrastructure in Lucan."

The Homemaker model has attracted interest from further afield. Lonergan has had calls from parents all over the country looking for their local branch of the club. "I'm always sorry to tell people that it's only available in Lucan, but I hope that more parents take the initiative and set up something for themselves. No one else is going to do it for us."

It's not an easy time to start a community project. The Exchequer is under pressure and small local initiatives are being hit hard. The FÁS Community Employment Scheme, run from St Mary's Parish Hall, has just had its funding withdrawn. Tánaiste Mary Harney is said to have "no faith" in CE schemes, but local project co-ordinator Derek Keating believes she is missing the bigger picture.

"The funding used to run the Lucan CE scheme has put 60 or 70 people back into employment and education, but that's just the start of it. St Mary's Hall has provided a focal point for an under-resourced community. While FÁS has occupied this resource, we have provided a home for many vital local activities - the Homemakers' Social Club, Alcoholics Anonymous, bereavement counselling, the Senior Citizens Club, the Vincent de Paul and many more. Without FÁS, all of these clubs are now homeless. In a community of this size with so little infrastructure, resources like this are absolutely critical," says Keating.

With CE schemes all over the country being hit, dozens more community centres like St Mary's will be hollowed out.

Knowing that her venue is under threat has steeled Lonergan's determination to succeed with the Homemakers' Social Club. "When times are hard, the money will go to the groups with the loudest voice. We have no voice, even though we are a lynchpin of the community. We'll find a venue, we'll fund ourselves - we're not letting this one go."