Links with the community and civil society groups is an integral part of the B.A. in Social, Political & Community Studies. Students on the degree programme have the opportunity to work with community groups and also visit various community projects. One such project was the U-Casadh Project which was established with the Waterford Area Partnership. The project was originally set up to work with ex-prisoners and their families in 1984. In more recent years the project has broadened out its service provision through creating specialized programs for many groups. U-Casadh now provides specialized services through a Community Employment scheme and Roma men’s programme. Some of the key agencies that refer into U-Casadh are the Probation Service, Drug Treatment Services, Homeless Services and the Integration and Support Unit among others.