A total of €238,000 will be shared by community and voluntary organisations in the Tralee Municipal District to progress a number of initiatives and projects thanks to grants provided by Kerry County Council’s Community Support Fund. A total of 72 community projects in the Tralee Municipal District are to benefit in 2017.
Groups and projects in Ballymacelligott, Brosna, Kielduff, Knocknagoshel and Lyreacrompane were successful in their applications.
Benefit to Local Communities
The Community Support Fund – which is now in its third year – is a Kerry County Council initiative which supports a wide range of community, sporting and voluntary organisations across Kerry and a range of projects which are of benefit to local communities.
Tralee Municipal District councillors today Monday, March 6th. agreed to allocate funding of €136,000 to 73 projects in the area (full details attached) with a further €40,000 set aside for projects and initiatives deemed to have the potential for co-funding with other sources such as the Leader Programme and which have a wider strategic aim.
An Annual Basis
In addition, €62,000 is being provided for projects and events which have been funded on an annual basis in recent years such as Christmas lighting in Tralee and projects and events which were historically supported financially by Tralee Town Council, for example, the Tralee Sports Complex.
Mayor of Tralee, Cllr Terry O’Brien said: “Kerry County Council has long recognised the challenge faced by community organisations who often find it difficult to access funding supports for various schemes and projects they are involved. The Community Support Fund has those groups very much in mind. Through this Fund, the Council is supporting groups which are serving and enhancing our communities and we look forward to continuing to do so in the years ahead.
Target Funding to Projects
“One of our objectives this year is to strategically target funding to projects and groups which would be potentially eligible for co-funding under other schemes and to see how best that funding can be leveraged and maximised so €40,000 is being set aside for this purpose in the Tralee Municipal District over the coming year,” he said.
The Community Support Fund, which is now in its third year, has supported over 700 projects across the county since its inception in 2015 to the value of €1.5million. It recognises the valuable contribution of the community and voluntary sectors in Kerry and the vital work that those organisations do. Those supported over the past two years include community groups, sports clubs, residents’ committees, Tidy Towns groups, Chamber Alliances and other organisations across the four Municipal Districts in Kerry.
A Number of Workshops
To assists applicants, Kerry County Council’s Community Department this year facilitated a number of workshops to explain the fund to applicants and the application process.
This year, for the first time, some of the Community Support Fund will be used to target strategic projects in Municipal Districts and will be used to co-fund projects which are in receipt of grants from other sources. It may also be used by groups to help leverage grants under programmes such as the Town and Village Renewal Scheme and the Rural Economic Development Zone Scheme (REDZ). A portion of the fund is being retained in each Municipal District to provide matching funding for approved LEADER projects that have a broad community gain associated with them.
105 applications for funding were received in the Tralee Municipal District in 2017 and those who did not succeed or were deemed ineligible for funding are being invited to contact the Community Department of Kerry County Council to discuss their applications.
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