Kildare County Council Publishes 2023 Annual Report
782 New Social and Affordable Homes delivered by Kildare County Council and Approved Housing Bodies
Publication of The Kildare Climate Action Plan 2024 – 2029
Official Opening of new Athy Distributor Road
Friday, 14th June: Kildare County Council has today published its Annual Report for 2023, giving an overview of the Council’s programme of work delivered last year.
In addition to the wide range of services provided by Kildare County Council, many changes and improvements were delivered throughout the year to improve service delivery and support the daily lives of the citizens of Kildare and those visiting the county.
Kildare Climate Action Plan
The Kildare Climate Action Plan 2024 - 2029 was adopted in 2023, setting out the mitigation and adoption measures to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions from Council facilities and functional areas by 51% during the lifespan of the plan and lead out in the community. The plan also includes the Decarbonising Zone in Maynooth, which is the test bed for climate action. Positive outcomes will be disseminated to other communities.
Community
A 10-day programme of events took place celebrating the values championed by St Brigid, including faith, biodiversity, arts, social justice and education. As part of the 2-year Brigid 1500 programme, events showcased Kildare’s historic sites, reaching global audiences. Schools as well as local artists and community groups were at the heart of the Brigid 1500 festival.
Elsewhere, over 1,029 community grants were provided totalling funding of €2,283,875, in addition 139 community groups were awarded with LCDC community support funding, totalling €316,206.
Housing & Regeneration
Housing for All build targets were achieved in 2023, with Kildare County Council and Approved Housing Bodies delivering 782 new social and affordable homes. In addition, 1,250 households received an allocation of a social house. 480 private households were approved for grant funding under the Housing Adoption grant and the Housing Aid Grant.
In accordance with the objectives of the Mid East Region Homeless Action Plan, 199 households exited emergency accommodation. Kildare Count Council continued to provide high-quality maintenance service to tenants and continued the programme of property upgrades, including energy upgrades.
Transportation, Mobility & Open Spaces
Over 2,764km of road network was maintained by Kildare County Council in 2023. The new Athy Distributor Road was opened, the 3.4km road includes 5.8km of combined walking and cycling infrastructure, two new roundabouts, new signalized junctions and an 80m single span steel bridge. The scheme has created a safer travel environment in Athy as well as reducing journey times and improving public transport accessibility.
Environment
The environmental Protection Agency published their Environmental Enforcement Performance Report for the previous year, which showed that Kildare County Council achieved the highest results, reaching the required standard across all of the National Enforcement Priorities.
Corporate, People & Cultural Services
A comprehensive upgrade of the Council Chamber was delivered, which included upgrades to the IT systems, with provisions now in place for hybrid meetings.
A new framework document for the delivery of our requirements of the Public Sector Duty Framework under the Human Rights & Equality Commission Guidance was finalised, setting out Kildare County Council’s approach to delivery on requirements under the framework.
Elsewhere, the Arts Service published opportunities for 19 separate Arts & Creative Ireland grants, bursaries and commissions to support arts activities in the county. 13 Creative bursaries were awarded totalling €80,000 as well as 34 other Arts grants totalling funding of €76,250.
Planning, Enterprise & Economic Development
2023 saw the establishment of the new Heritage Conservation and Biodiversity unit, consisting of Heritage, Conservation and the addition of a Biodiversity officer, providing specialist advice to internal and external stakeholders. The County Kildare Heritage Seminar took place in December. In addition, other flagship projects included Heritage Week which saw 110 events taking place across the county as well as 37 events for Biodiversity Week.
Funding of over €5 million was secured from the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF) to deliver the Athy Food, Drinks and Agritech Hub, bringing to 13 the total number of strategic co-working hubs in the county. The hub, when complete will be home to Kildare’s growing food and drink sector, supporting entrepreneurs in developing innovative products and methods. The hubs development will also play a pivotal role in addressing unemployment in Athy and its catchment area, by providing accessible and exciting further education pathways and training.
Kildare Local Enterprise Office partnered with Kildare Village to launch Gather, a creative pop-up showcase of the work of 24 of the best craft and design makers and brands from the Kildare region. Supported by the Design and Craft Council of Ireland, the project was designed to showcase the skills and creative brilliance of master crafts people in Kildare.
In addition, €253,033 in business expansion grants were awarded to 10 businesses in the county as well as €342,855 in start up grants for 11 start-up businesses. Mentoring and business supports are a key part of the work of the economic and enterprise development department, with 679 business clients given expert mentoring and 1,688 businesses provided with business training throughout the year.
Innovation
In 2023, Kildare County Council established a dedicated Innovation Team who work to rollout exciting initiatives and projects to promote and encourage innovation across the organization. A number of key initiatives were delivered, including specific training and development opportunities as well as the launch of the Call for Ideas initiative from staff, which was supported by a dedicated Local Innovation Fund.
Sonya Kavanagh, Chief Executive, Kildare County Council said; “Our Annual Report is a great opportunity for us to take a look back at the achievements and progress of Kildare County Council throughout the year. Every year we strive, not only to maintain adequate service delivery but to exceed it, and to find new and innovative ways to support the daily lives of our citizens and those visiting our county. As a local authority, our commitment to service delivery and the sustainable development of our county remains steadfast, which I hope is evident in the pages of our Annual Report.”
“I’d like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the hard work and dedication of the staff of Kildare County Council, who have helped us to deliver on these high standards that we set for ourselves. As we welcome a new council, I’d like to thank the outgoing Council, of 40 elected members, for their diligence and commitment, not only to what was delivered in 2023, but throughout the last 5 years of their term. We look forward to welcoming and working with the elected members to continue to progress and improve our county, over the next 5 years and beyond.”
Speaking on the final days of his term as Cathaoirleach of the County of Kildare, Cllr Daragh Fitzpatrick said; “The Elected members of Kildare County Council continue to demonstrate great commitment and leadership to deliver important infrastructure and services to our people and communities, as is evident in the 2023 annual report. My sincere thanks to them and to the executive of Kildare County Council for their continued commitment to our county and its people.”
Kildare County Council’s 2023 Annual Report is available to view here – https://kildarecoco.ie/YourCouncil/Publications/
