Press Release - Kildare Commits Support to new Creative Ireland Culture and Creativity Strategy
€872,087.00 allocated to Creative Ireland projects in County Kildare since 2017
€161,161.00 to be allocated for core Creative Ireland initiatives in County Kildare in 2023
Kildare County Council has welcomed the announcement the roll out of 31 new Local Authority Creative Ireland Culture and Creativity Strategies ( 2023-2027) by Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sports and Media Catherine Martin TD and Minister of State with responsibility for Local Government and Planning Kieran O’Donnell TD.
The launch outlined a new vision for creative activity in County Kildare that was devised in consultation with the people of the county and will be delivered by Kildare County Council’s Culture and Creativity team led by Lucina Russell the Creative Ireland Coordinator and Kildare County Arts Officer.
Over the last year the original culture and creativity strategies that were devised in 2017 were reviewed and changes introduced that reflect the evolving priorities of the community, incorporating contributions from community stakeholders that will encourage people to engage, participate and enable their creative potential.
The new Kildare County Culture and Creativity Strategy reflects the creative ambitions of the county that will be supported by the Creative Ireland Programme 2023-2027. Emphasis will be placed on building creative responses to climate and biodiversity crises through focused actions, embedding equality, cultural diversity and integration across the Creative Ireland programmes, enhancing wellbeing through creative participation across programmes that support mental and physical health, providing creative opportunities to explore Sense of Place, Heritage and Identity, enhancing and supporting the Kildare cultural and creative communities by providing a tailored series of programming, networking and mentoring opportunities.
Commenting on the work undertaken by the 31 local authority Culture and Creativity teams Minister Catherine Martin said. “Your teams are the key strength of the Creative Communities initiative and the engine that drives our collective efforts. The agility of the local authority teams has facilitated a collaborative and flexible approach to reshaping how creativity and culture is valued within and across local authorities. Through the Creative Ireland Programme, my Department will continue to work with collaborators across Government to activate the power of creativity in every community.”
Creative Ireland have allocated over €872,087.75 for the implementation of Creative Ireland initiatives in Kildare County since 2017. Highlights include;
- Athy Sing and Sign Club worked with Creative Kildare to host their 2020 Irish Sign Language Festival
- Claire Murphy’s visual art project with Women’s Sheds across County Kildare culminated in a series of individual and group portraits for exhibition at Culture Night 2021
- South! Always South! a collaboration between County Kildare Orchestra, piper Brian Hughes and writer John Mac Kenna marking the 100th anniversary of Shackleton’s epic Antarctic rescue in music, word and visuals in 2022.
Between 2017-22 Creative Ireland allocated €29.8 million to support thousands of local authority initiatives that have unlocked a national ecosystem of creativity. The 31 local authority Culture and Creative Strategies have been key to the successful delivery of creative opportunities directly into communities. This year Ministers Martin and O’Donnell announced funding of €6.1 million for the 2023 Creative Ireland Programme Creative Communities initiative.
Reiterating Minister Martin’s praise, Minister of State Kieran O’Donnell TD said, “I would like to sincerely thank all of the Culture and Creativity teams in our Local Authorities who have been working hard in recent months to drive the key ambitions in the Creative Ireland programme. Travelling around the country and to each of our Local Authorities I get to see the ambitious plans they have to promote creativity. The power of culture cannot be overestimated; arts and culture can open our minds, enliven our communities and enrich everyone’s lives,” he concluded.
For more information about Creative Ireland’s programme of Creative Communities initiatives please go to www.creativeireland.gov.ie
