Just two Dublin communities are likely to benefit from the Department of Justice's new part-funded CCTV scheme in the coming year after just a handful of groups made the deadline for applications.
No city centre organisations were able to submit full applications for the Community-Based CCTV Scheme by the September 20th deadline.
One group in Dublin 10 and another in Dublin 15 made full applications, termed Stage 2 applications, under the scheme.
Applications from 11 other groups in Dublin city and county were made under Stage 1 of the scheme. These are "pre-development" applications or expressions of interest, from which a community can eventually make an application for a CCTV system.
Area Development Management Ltd, which administers the scheme for the Government, received just 32 full applications and a further 51 Stage 1 submissions for the scheme which aims to provide security systems for communities across the State.
The scheme was launched by Minister for Justice Michael McDowell last June to provide grants to communities to install CCTV security systems in their areas to increase public safety and reduce crime.
The scheme provides 70 per cent funding for the cameras, to a maximum of €100,000. The community group must raise at least 15 per cent, and the remainder can be sought from public bodies, including local authorities.
The community groups must meet the running costs of the system for at least five years, and must have the support of the local authority to act as "data controller".
Community groups had three months to complete detailed applications, which, apart from funding guarantees, must show that the group has the ability to manage the system and has the support of the council.
However, several local authorities, including Dublin City Council, indicated that they could not have provisions in place to support the community groups by the deadline.
No full applications were received from within the South Dublin County Council area.
Several counties with large rural towns were also unable to make full applications, including Kilkenny, Wexford, Offaly, Roscommon, Monaghan, Westmeath and Leitrim.
Cork had the greatest number of full applications at six. Limerick had three Stage 2 applications.
Galway had three full applications, while community groups in Sligo, Cavan, Laois, Louth and Meath managed to make two full applications each.
