Kelly wants return of community grants scheme

The return of a Clare County Council community grants scheme would kickstart development throughout the county, according to Councillor PJ Kelly.

Councillor Kelly has urged the council to introduce a community grants scheme based on the original model, which was first introduced in 1979.
Expressing concern about the lack of a grants scheme in Clare, Councillor Kelly recalled the levy of two pence in the pound had a huge impact over 30 years ago and helped provide community and sporting facilities in the four corners of the county.
Stating the overall model was good, he pointed out that some communities did better than others and proposed that a modest grant should be provided to ensure that as many projects received some form of funding.
“For every one pound that was provided it generated another ten in the community and was used to leverage Government funding from a variety of agencies. Clare led the way back then and other counties followed.
“I think it is time that we brought in a new scheme which would provide huge benefits for local communities,” he said.
He was supported by Councillor Michael Begley who noted the Government’s capital sports scheme had helped finance several sporting and community developments throughout the county over the last decade.
Councillor Begley claimed there was up to €53 million in grants sitting in different Government agencies because of a combination of political and legal reasons.
Stating that fundraising was harder in the midst of a recession, he called on the Government to redistribute this funding as quickly as possible.
Councillor Oliver Garry said the Community Playground Scheme, Community Employment and FAS schemes have proved to be very successful and backed Councillor Kelly’s proposal.
Mayor of Clare, Councillor Christy Curtin cited the Clonlara Community Sports and Leisure Centre as an example of what could be achieved when communities worked in partnership with Clare County Council and Government agencies.
County manager, Tom Coughlan acknowledged that community projects had contributed a great deal to developments in the county.
“The introduction of a community grants scheme would have to be considered as part of the overall Council Estimates. We will start work on looking on our budget and resources next month.
“I can’t give an assurance about a new scheme until I find out what funding will be provided overall. It may be necessary to introduce cutbacks in other areas or generate extra income to bring in this scheme,” he said.
Director of services, Bernadette Kinsella confirmed the most recent Community Grants Scheme operated by the council was deferred in 2008 due to severe financial restrictions.