Eugene Kierans has unquestioning faith that a Village of Ability being built by the Order of Malta for disabled people in Drogheda will allow better integration between them and able-bodied people.

He is on the board of management of the order in Drogheda which dreamt up the idea of building the village in the centre of the town so the public can have full access to it as well as encouraging contact with their "clients" who have a range of special needs.

The Village of Ability will cover two-thirds of an acre in a much sought after location in the centre of the town. It will be made up of three three-storey houses which date from the late 1700s and once formed the Presentation Convent.

They face Fair Street, which turns down towards the town centre, via Duke Street. The main entrance to the village will be situated here and give access to a craft shop, coffee shop and a newspaper kiosk.

Around a green area in front of the premises, the order is building self-contained flats. These will be allocated to some of its clients while others will be kept for respite care. This means that families can take a holiday, possibly their first in many years, knowing their child is being taken care of in a suitable environment.

As well as 20 self-contained flats, the village will have training and development units and community and administration areas. It will, the order says, "encourage absolute openness to the general community".

"The reality is that able-bodied people are actually more afraid of disabled people than disabled people are of the able-bodied. There is a social barrier between them and it is unquantifiable; that's why this concept is to be built in the middle of the town. We believe it is right to put it there," says Sean Roche, of the order's management committee.

Since it was established in Drogheda in 1969, the Order of Malta has providing training for adults with special needs. The project began with seven trainees and now has 85 adults who attend each weekday from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m.

Some 80 per cent of them have learning disabilities. The order runs workshops which teach them about health and safety, life skills, literacy and numeracy, drama and personal hygiene.

One of the most important training programmes involves placing a trainee in the workplace alongside able-bodied employees. The Order of Malta has got great support for this from employers, who found their businesses have benefited in many ways from the input of these special people.

"A study in the UK indicated that productivity went up and fellow-workers started taking responsibility for the trainees", says Mr Gary Downey, who liaises between employers and the trainees. "My role is to be with them in work so that time is not taken from another worker and then I start being pushed out as the fellow-worker takes over.

"The employers we have worked with have all been extremely positive and are provided with ongoing permanent support. In fact, I just got a call from Brother Ireland offering a post." Briscoe Electrics is a small chain of family-run shops. Last June it took on Jimmy in its Drogheda shop. "I feel it has been very productive for him and for us and, indeed, for the business to have Jimmy working here", said Mr Mark Briscoe. "He fits in very well with the staff and the customers enjoy his company.

"I had no experience of this and was very wary at the start but I have no fears anymore. I would recommend it to employers." The Order of Malta believes that building the village and moving a lot of its workshops into it will attract able-bodied people who will be welcome to look around the village and have full access to common-rooms as well as the craft and coffee shops.

"This is part of what we have worked towards for 30 years. We have always planned for this. We began a workshop here after being told none was being given to us and we would have to go to Dundalk," says chief executive Dermot Kierans.

"We were training in work skills and getting some of them into open employment but this was less than 20 per cent. After a few months, we found the `alien' environment sent the trainees back to us so we decided to set up our own businesses," says Mr Sean Roche.

The result was Boyneside Leather & Sewing Company, Classic Catering Services Ltd, and The Olde Gate Bakery, where 45 able-bodied and disabled people work side by side and interact with the public.

Brendan Purtill is being trained in basic catering at the order's training unit, currently situated on the town's industrial estate.

"I love it because I want to follow in my sister's footsteps. She manages a hotel in England and has given me a few tips. I work here and then make me dad his dinner at home in the evening."

Brendan spoke at the official launch of the project last Thursday. Guest of honour was the Environment and Local Government Minister, Mr Dempsey.

"Voluntary groups have roles to play in developing communities and self-help . . . and enabling people to be actively involved in shaping their own future. The plans are a unique approach, combining a living and training environment in a village concept," he said.

Also at the launch was Liam Murtagh, the National Rehabilitation board's adviser for Co Louth. "I welcome the project. It improves people's quality of accommodation and is adaptable to their needs. It would, though, be better to see a mix of disabled and other groups living in the village from the point of view of integration.

"The disabled like to feel they can work and live alongside the able-bodied as much as possible. I see this as a positive development but would also like to see that area further developed."

The Village of Ability and other projects developed by the Order of Malta in Drogheda are being copied in Sicily and Spain by other voluntary groups who work with the disabled. While the idea of building a village is a new concept to the overseas groups, they do have units where disabled and able-bodied people live side by side.

The Village of Ability is currently before the planning department of Drogheda Corporation and will cost around £2.5 million to complete. Provided planning permission is granted, it will be up and running next year.

"The title celebrates the ability of people we refer to as having special needs. It gets away from the idea of psychiatric hospitals etc. and instead is a holistic approach looking at the internal and external aspects of the problem of integration," said Mr Roche.