Tidy Towns awards for Mountshannon and Tuamgraney

Two East Clare villages have stood out as this year’s Tidy Towns results were announced, with prizes going to Mountshannon and Tuamgraney, while three other villages have come up in the ranks on their previous performances.

Mountshannon has secured an overall Bronze Medal Award of €400 topping category A with 287 points, while Tuamgraney scooped a special award of €1,000 for nature and biodiversity for its community woodland, which is located at the top of Raheen Road.
Damien Heaney, chairman of the Tuamgraney Development Association, said the group was delighted with the special award, which he said joined the host of other awards the village has won in this competition.
“We have a lot of work put into the park and a lot more yet to do. For the most part we let nature do a lot of the work for us. We involved the local national school and Raheen Wood Steiner School who came over on a number of occasions and planted oak trees which came out of the ancient oak wood in Raheen Wood. We have also involved students from Scariff Community College,” he said.
Tuamgraney Community Native Woodland Project has been developed over the last three years and is managed by Tuamgraney Development Association in conjunction with The Heritage Council, The Woodland League, CELT and Clare County Council.
The project has been developed to conserve, enhance and raise awareness of native biodiversity within the community.
“The wood will act as an outdoor classroom for local schools. To date, non-trees and shrubs have been removed to encourage native trees and plants to thrive. Tuamgraney Development Association is very honoured to receive this special award for the Mid-West region and will use the prize money to further enhance the woodland by providing easier access for the public and provide walkways throughout the park,” Mr Heaney explained.
Meanwhile, commenting on the bronze award, John Harvey, chairperson of the Mountshannon Community Council, said it was a great thing to be rewarded for something that the community put a lot of work into.
“We would like to also acknowledge the work done through the CE scheme and the workers have been backbone of this year’s effort alongside the local community. We formed a new community council just three months ago and we are hoping to continue with the work that had been going on up to now and hope to keep going on that.
“What I would say is if you are living in a tidy village then people are more inclined to keep it tidy and the people of Mountshannon are very good on clearing litter up and keeping the place looking well. The prize money will all help towards that in the future. We were happy with the comments and some of the marks have gone up for us this year and with some luck we will aim to bring it up again next year,” Mr Harvey added.
In the tidy towns report, Mountshannon excelled in a number of headings most notably in its overall development approach, which earned the village 48 points out of a possible 50. The village jumped three points on its performance last year, gaining a point in the built environment, landscaping, litter control, roads streets and back areas, but dropping a point in the wildlife and natural amenity areas category.
It was noted under the overall general impression as being blessed with remarkable built and natural resources. The adjudicator gave Mountshannon eight out of 10 in this heading and commented, “you are currently in the top tier of towns in this competition – a position that requires hard work and innovation to maintain. For next year why not develop projects under the wildlife or waste minimisation headings to gain points here?”
Tuamgraney jumped five points in the overall competition from 287 to 292 picking up a point each under the headings overall development approach, built environment, wildlife and natural amenities, litter control and waste management.
The report noted under the overall development approach that the adjudicator, on his first ever visit to Tuamgraney, “was highly impressed with the level of organisation, not to mention the workload, that has been achieved by the Tidy Towns committee. You have even managed to expand your committee on last year which is a fine achievement. Your strategic approach, spreading projects over each of the categories, is a recipe for success for which you are already reaping dividends – well done”.
The village was also commended for its “immaculately maintained” building stock around the Memorial Park. The Heritage Centre building and Teach Uí Bhrian was also commented upon as “among those that stand out”. While the redeveloped derelict buildings were also referred to as “a fantastic indicator of vitality in the town and are highly complimentary of the setting”.
The report also referred to the bi-lingual community woodland sign as showing the way to an excellent project that brings local people into direct contact with nature. The sapling oaks were also noted.
This adjudicator concluded by congratulating all those involved “for such a high standard of entry to the Tidy Towns competition. It is hoped that you see this reward within your community and that you are proud of your achievement”.
Other villages in East Clare to jump in their ratings were Quin which improved by three points on last year achieving 283 points, with its highest score under landscaping earning it 45 points of a possible 50 and it received eight out of ten in the general impression heading. It gained a point each under the headings landscaping, litter control and tidiness but maintained its previous record in the other headings.
Scariff jumped one from 238 to 239, gaining a point in the overall development approach heading. Its highest marks were 36/50, built environment and litter control but slipping one point in waste minimization and in wildlife and natural amenities.
Meanwhile Tulla gained four points up from 223 to 227, picking up a point under built environment, landscaping, litter control and waste minimisation. The town received its highest points for landscaping receiving 35 out of 50.