THE CEO of Vitalograph Ireland has said plans for the development of a new Centre of Excellence in Ennis “will offer many opportunities” with confirmation that the move will create 72 new jobs. As reported in last week’s Clare Champion, Clare County Council and Ennis 2040 are selling the Ballymaley Enterprise and Innovation Centre building to Vitalograph Ireland for the development of its new Clinical Trials Services Centre of Excellence. Speaking this week on the plans Frank Keane, CEO, Vitalograph Ireland, said, “This expansion represents a significant development for our company and Vitalograph’s commitment to its Irish operations as well as the local community in County Clare. “The new premises will enable us to support the international growth of our ground-breaking clinical trial solutions. Creating a ‘Centre of Excellence’ here in Ennis reflects the talent and skill that exists in the Vitalograph workforce and will offer many opportunities to people looking to build their careers in this exciting business.” Vitalograph, …

THE Australian Ambassador to Ireland His Excellency Mr Gary Gray will visit Ennis this week, giving a talk on Tuesday, October 11 at the Old Ground Hotel. The event, organised by the Clare Labour Party, will be held at 7.30pm in the Ennis hotel. The special guest is an experienced Australian Labour Party member having served in the Bob Hawke and Paul Keating Governments, going on to become a minister. He also worked in the energy sector in Western Australia. Denis Vaughan, chair of the Clare Labour Party says all are welcome to attend this Tuesday’s talk. “In 1985 it was calculated that a third of all Australians were of Irish extraction and coincided with the first Irish state visit to Australia by President Paddy Hillery. This met with widespread acclaim including front page coverage in all the major newspapers and TV coverage. “Australia and Ireland have many cultural and sporting links. You only have to mention Ned Kelly and …

A DECISION to rename an Ennis laneway ‘Shepherd’s Lane’ following a ballot of local residents has been described as “positive news” by the Mayor of Ennis Councillor Clare Colleran Molloy, as well as being welcomed by other members of the Ennis Municipal District. As previously reported in The Clare Champion the residents of St Flannan’s Terrace had called for a proper name to be given to a back lane which had been known locally as ‘The Laneway’ and ‘The Car Road’. A residents’ association was formed earlier this year and a ballot of all 46 houses in the area was undertaken to determine a suitable name for the site. The results of the ballot saw Shepherd’s Lane come out as the favourite by the majority of the people who responded to the survey. Prior to 1912 the site on which the houses were built was known as the Shepherd’s Field. This month’s meeting of the Ennis Municipal District was told …

ENNIS is in the running to be named Ireland’s Friendliest Place for 2022. The people of Clare, and further afield, are being urged to show some love for Ennis by voting for the town to take the coveted overall title at this year’s Retail Excellence Awards. The county capital has made it to the top five, with Ennis now vying against Ashbourne, Carrick-on-Shannon, Monaghan and Moynalty to be named Ireland’s Friendliest Place. Voting for the awards will be accepted between now and October 17 at https://strawpoll.com/polls/YVyP2px1kgN. The winners of the awards will be named at a gala event in the Galmont, Dublin on November 12. A spokesperson for Retail Excellence has urged the public to have their say on which place should take the title. “Five of Ireland’s best and brightest towns have been nominated for our prestigious Friendliest Place award, but who deserves it most? We want to hear from residents and tourists alike all across the country. “Get …

RESEARCH shows connecting is one of the simple things you can do as part of your daily life to protect your mental health the Ennis Mental Health Association have highlighted ahead of Mental Health Week. With this in mind the local association are hosting a Connect Café in Ennis this Monday at 10.30am in glór, as well as encouraging people to host their own cafe, among many other free events organised to mark Mental Health Week running from October 10 to 15. “The goal of Mental Health Ireland’s ‘Connect Café’ concept is to open conversations, strengthening the connection with ourselves, with others and with our communities. We encourage you to organise a Connect Café event in your own workplace, home, or community,” said a spokesperson for the local organisation. “To help you to do this, you will find a free downloadable toolkit & additional resources at www.worldmentalhealthmonth-mhi.ie. Alternatively, we invite you to join Ennis Mental Health Association for conversation and …

A MEMORIAL site dedicated to Clare’s war dead has been damaged and littered in recent days with one “disgusted” local councillor describing those behind it as “cowards”. One of four stone benches which have been installed at Clare’s World War 1 memorial in the Clare Peace Park near glór has had a piece broken off in recent days. Rubbish left in the area has also become “an ongoing issue” according to Dr Keir McNamara of the Clare Peace Park Committee. Efforts are now being made to repair the damage to the stone bench ahead of the annual remembrance service for those who lost their lives in World War 1 this November. Fortunately the glass memorial itself was not harmed. Councillor Mary Howard, a member of the Clare Peace Park committee, hit out at those behind the damage at a meeting of the Ennis Municipal District this week saying she felt “disgusted when this happened”. She continued by describing the culprit …

AFTER 18 years of helping the homeless in Ennis and throughout Clare Josie O’Brien has revealed that this will be her last year cooking Christmas dinner for the county’s most vulnerable. Over the years Josie has invited people to her home for Christmas and Easter dinner, as well as preparing food to be delivered to people in need. Covid-19 meant that the dinners at her home were stopped, but Josie and her team continued to supply hampers and meals. However, the 69-year-old says this Christmas will be her last time taking on the mammoth endeavour, telling us she is “burned out” from years of campaigning, fundraising and supporting those living on the streets as well as others in difficulty. Josie is hopeful that someone else may step in to help keep the annual Christmas dinner going, saying she feels the homeless situation is “getting worse” however she has done all that she can at this stage. “I’m doing this for …

AN Ennis cafe is serving up something different in a bid to showcase local artists and boost the county capital’s night time economy. Sweet n Green Café have come on board with a new scheme aimed at promoting evening events and as part of this will be hosting a series of art exhibitions featuring the talent of Clare’s artists. The government launched the ‘Night Time Economy Support Scheme (NTESS) 2022’ last June and Ennis Chamber encouraged members in the hospitality sector to apply. The initiative set out to support the promotion of live events/arts on days other than weekend nights and scheduled early in the evening, before 9pm. Sweet n Green Café was one of the businesses to follow through committing to host a minimum of four events.  They decided to host four art exhibitions to raise awareness of the extraordinary artist talent within the county and to support local artists. This month sees the plan roll into action with …