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SINCE September 2021, The Local Creative Youth Partnership (LCYP) based at Limerick and Clare Education and Training Board, has been working with a very dedicated team of young people to develop Kilkee Youth Theatre. This performing arts initiative offers young people in West Clare a taste of performance and production for stage and screen and is presented in partnership with Clare Arts Office, Cultúrlann Sweeney and St Joseph’s Community College. For spring 2022 a new series of taster workshops has been organised. For 9 to 12 year olds the workshops will take place from 11.30am to 1pm in Cultúrlann Sweeney, Kilkee Library on February 26, March 5, 12, 26, April 2 and,9 with the final session in St Joseph’s. The 13 to 17 year old workshop is from 1.30pm to 3pm in Kilkee Community School on February 26, March 5 and 12,, to be extended subject to demand. Facilitators for the youth theatre include Moyasta native Fiona Claffey-Kelly, Ennistymon resident, …

A STRONG case should be made to secure UNESCO designation for Ardnacrusha Power Station, according to a former fitter and national union organiser who worked for almost 50 years with the ESB. Seán Treacy enjoyed a long and distinguished career with the company, starting out as an apprentice fitter in 1960 before graduating up along the ranks to become a national union official. Mr Treacy believes the power station should be designated as a UNESCO site, saying “Ardnacrusha is an iconic place. At one stage, Ardnacrusha was the distributor for all the country. Workers in the control room turned on and off electricity for the whole country. “It is an iconic place. If I was still involved in the ESB, I would be making a case for this designation. It takes a while to do it, but Ardnacrusha deserves this designation.” Valentia Island is due to become a new UNESCO site within the next two years following work spearheaded by …

FOUR Ennis councillors are included as public representatives on a planning application seeking permission for an unauthorised infill development near a Special Area of Conservation on the outskirts of Ennis. Brendan Keane has lodged a planning application with Clare County Council seeking retention permission for the recently constructed replacement fence and the infilling works to the site at the rear of Ennis Abattoir, Tulla Road, Ennis. Councillor Mary Howard, Councillor Mark Nestor, Councillor Clare Colleran-Molloy and Councillor Pat Daly wrote to the council asking to include them as public representatives on the file. Councillor Colleran-Molloy stated, “it is my understanding that support for this appeal lies in the fact there was need for the works to protect the boundary fence and to allow trucks to turn.” Councillor Nestor said he would like to make representations on behalf of the applicant and hoped this representation would be taken into consideration when a decision is being made. Councillor Howard outlined she would …

A POPULAR Ennis pub has announced it will be calling time and closing its doors for the last time next month, writes Jessica Quinn. McHugh’s pub on Parnell Street, owned by Maeve Sheridan and her brother, Michael Eustace of Western Herd Brewing Company, have confirmed it will be closing on March 6. According to the owners it has been “an absolute pleasure” serving their customers, however the time is now right to close the bar and concentrate on the brewery. A statement on social media read, “After the last few weekends, it seems like we have weathered the worst of the pandemic. With things back to normal, now is the right time for us to step out from behind the bar. “It’s hard to believe that it has been over six years since we pulled our first pint but now we want to concentrate our efforts on the brewery. March 6 will be our final day in McHugh’s. For anyone …

A VISITOR centre for Inis Cealtra is expected to be operational by early to mid-2023, local councillors have been told. Confirmation of the purchase, last year, of the Old Rectory building in Mountshannon, provided a boost for plans to maximise the potential of Holy Island as a major visitor attraction in the east of the county. At the January meeting of the Killaloe Municipal District, Councillor Pat Burke sought an update on work to develop the centre and to provide visitor amenities on the 41-acre island. “The purchase of the Old Rectory last year was great news and very welcome for the whole of East Clare,” Councillor Burke said. “Since then, the dust has settled on that news and I suppose people have been getting curious about what’s happening next and they’re anxious to see progress. “The Holy Island project is eagerly-anticipated across the region and people are very optimistic about it.” A written reply from Tourism Officer Joan Tarmey, …

AS tensions between Russia and Ukraine continue to escalate, an East Clare tour operator planning a “dating tour” to Kiev has said he is not unduly concerned, writes Fiona McGarry. Scariff’s James Treacy told The Champion that he is keeping a watch on the situation ahead of the planned tour and will stick to whatever advice is issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs. Mr Treacy, who previously insisted that there will be no risk to the safety of the 50 men he aims to bring to Ukraine, said he doesn’t see the current crisis along the Ukrainian border as a particular cause for alarm. “Like all other destinations where there has been war, we cannot travel there unless the Department of Foreign Affairs allow us to travel,” he said. The experienced tour operator, who also runs pilgrimages to religious sites around the world, said he has already encountered situations where conflict has necessitated a change of plan. “I remember …

Sinn Féin TD for Clare, Violet-Anne Wynne has called for increased funding to be made available for women’s refuges across the country, writes Owen Ryan. She said that after receiving the response to a parliamentary question she submitted,,she established that capacity at women’s refuges has actually decreased since 2015. The Government is set to publish the third national domestic, sexual and gender-based violence strategy over the coming months.. Last week Sinn Féin brought forward a motion calling for improved coordination between various departments offering supports for victims and survivors, increased funding and more methodical and disaggregated data to be recorded in order to inform effective policy. Deputy Wynne said:“The numbers we have received via the PQ system have exposed how ineffective spending has been in domestic, sexual and gender based violence supports. “Tusla have confirmed that although budgetary allocations have increased over the past 5 year period, capacity at women’s refuges has not. While 142 refuge spaces were available in …

STUDENTS in St Anne’s Community College have pivoted to video in order to put across their message about stopping animal cruelty, writes Dan Danaher. Transition Year students had planned to deliver a power point presentation about animal welfare for primary school students in Killaloe and Ballina. However, they opted not to proceed with these plans due to the high incidence of Covid-19 and are now planning to film students giving an overview of their research project in a new video. Rebecca Rogers, Daniel Spaight, Amy Reilly and Dominik Maslanek are in the media group for their Young Social Innovators project. Having surveyed students in their class, the four teenagers discovered most of them had an animal at home and animal welfare was a topic that really interested the majority of the class. As part of their research for this YSI project, the students looked at Irish case studies of animal cruelty and are making posters to raise public awareness around …