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Clare County Council is encouraging people to make submissions to Ireland’s National Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage, launched by Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht. Once compiled, the Inventory will acknowledge and promote Ireland’s living culture through official State recognition. In tandem with this, it will fulfil Ireland’s obligations under the 2003 UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, which Ireland signed up to in December 2015 to raise awareness of, and respect for, our unique living culture. Congella McGuire, Clare Heritage Officer, said, “The goal is to record elements of our national and local living heritage that are still being practiced and passed down from generation to generation. The practices must be living practices in one form or another: still taught or practiced, and passed on. The idea is that the more that becomes known of these practices, then the better their active cultural contribution is acknowledged.” She continued, “There’s such a wealth of cultural …

THE mood amongst the small business community at the start of 2018 is cautiously optimistic, with nearly two-thirds of owner-managers believing that the business environment is improving. That’s according to the Small Firms’ Association (SFA), the Ibec group, in its Small Firms Outlook 2018 report, which was published this week. SFA director, Sven Spollen-Behrens did however add a caution. “2017 has been a challenging year for small business. Whilst cautious optimism seems to be returning amid emerging wage demands, the increasing cost of doing business and Brexit dampens the mood. “However, nearly 60% of SFA members say their businesses are growing, with only 4% declining. This shows that 2018 has the potential to be a strong year, if the risks are managed effectively at firm level and Government level.” Mr Spollen-Behrens noted 71% of survey respondents indicated their intention to recruit over the coming year, up substantially from the SFA survey in May of last year. “Small firms already employ …

AS a young man, John Bradley was at the scene of one the greatest tragedies to ever occur in Ennis, when eight people died after a hotel floor collapsed during a busy auction. Now, 60 years after the Carmody’s Hotel disaster, John will launch a new book, remembering those who lost their lives and also those affected by the incident, which sent shockwaves across the country and the world. Next Sunday, January 14, as part of Carmody’s Hotel commemoration ceremony, Clare Roots Society will be launching their first book of 2018, Carmody’s Hotel, Ennis. Mayor of Ennis, Paul Murphy will formally launch the book at 12.30pm at the parish centre at the rear of Ennis Cathedral. The launch will be preceded by a mass of remembrance for the eight people who lost their lives on January 15, 1958. In this book, John has captured details of the Carmody tragedy, using newspaper reports and also through interviews with survivors and people …

Fine Gael is celebrating the 100th anniversary of women getting the vote in Ireland with a year-long programme to highlight the contribution women have made to Irish public life. On the eve of Nollaig na mBan (January 6), An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar launched the Fine Gael programme saying, “This year marks the centenary of Irish women getting the vote and the right to stand in elections. Fine Gael will be celebrating this historical landmark with a programme of events at national and local level. I hope to see both party members and the wider public embrace the opportunity to get involved. “The centenary of women’s suffrage provides an opportunity to reflect on how women’s rights have improved in Ireland over the last 100 years, and look at what still needs to be done. Fine Gael will draft a Women’s Charter in 2018 which will set out a path for the further advancement of women’s rights in Ireland and will be …

MEMBERS of the Garda Armed Response Unit assisted Clare County Council with an inspection at a site in Ashline on the Kilrush Road in Ennis today. Council officials inspected the site  where there are six burned out housing units. While the site has been used for Traveller accommodation in the past, Clare County Council are planning to put a new social housing development in place there.  The local authority is currently seeking a High Court injunction against Bernard and Helen McDonagh, which would compel them to leave the site.    

THE Mayor of Ennis said the announcement that the county capital is Ireland’s Cleanest Town is “testament to the year-round effort” by volunteers, Ennis Tidy Towns Committee, Clare County Council and the business community. Councillor Paul Murphy said, “Ennis is a vibrant tourism town and a popular shopping destination, which benefits greatly from the collective efforts of residents, visitors, the local authority, businesses and voluntary groups to keeping the streets and public spaces free of litter. The greatest example of this work was seen during Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann when the streets were kept clean, as more than 400,000 people visited the town,” he said. He added that the recent naming of Ennis as a Coach Friendly Destination and as winner of the Retail Excellence Ireland Friendliest Place Award is “a vote of confidence in the partnership approach adopted by Clare County Council, Ennis Chamber and the local community to developing and promoting the Clare county capital”. Meanwhile Minister of …

A BAREFIELD woman, whose quick action helped save the life of a man in Ennis at the weekend, is calling for greater availability of defibrillators and urging people to get CPR training. Modest Trish Baker says she was “just in the right place at the right time”, when she came to the aid of a man who had gone into cardiac arrest in Cairde café on Barrack Street on Saturday morning. The trained nurse sprang into action, when her daughter raised concerns about one of the customers. “I was out the back in the store room, when my daughter, Erin, came out to tell me he was asleep and he had gone a very funny colour. I came in and realised that he actually had arrested. On assessment, he didn’t have a pulse and he wasn’t breathing. “My training as a nurse and as a CPR instructor just kicked in. I surprised myself. I’ve taught hundreds and hundreds of people …

Apart for minor flooding in some costal areas and a power outage at Spanish Point, County Clare escaped lightly from Storm Eleanor, which swept the country last evening and late into the night. Clare County Council staff members were out early today (Wednesday) to clear debris from roads and deal with some fallen trees. Today, stormy conditions followed on the back of Eleanor. High tides, driven by strong gusting winds, made for dramatic scenes along many headlands, harbours and beaches. Again the council’s senior engineer Tom Tiernan asked members of the public to exercise care around piers and resort car parks.