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The Minister for Rural and Community Development Heather Humphreys has today (Wednesday, 7 February 2024) announced a €4.5 million package to support our rural towns and villages.
As part of a suite of measures, a new Town Team Support Fund will be established to build and develop a network of Town Teams nationwide.
Under the Town and Village Renewal Scheme, up to €50,000 will be invested in supporting the development of projects designed to breathe new life into rural communities. And additional funding will be provided for projects submitted by counties in the North West – recognising the specific challenges facing the region.
Furthermore, towns will also be provided with up to €30,000 in funding to develop their own Town Centre First (TCF) Plans.
These have already proven to be crucial in terms of helping other towns and villages to generate investment and tackle issues such as vacancy and dereliction.
Announcing suite of measures today, Minister Humphreys said:
“I’m delighted to announce a package of over €4.5 million to support the development of our Rural towns and villages across the country.
“This is about empowering our communities to realise their vision. It’s about giving them the tools and supports they need to generate investment, attract tourism and above all, become better places to live, work and raise a family. Central to this multi-million euro initiative is the establishment of a new Town Team Support Fund.
“We all know that our Town Teams do fantastic work in many parts of the country. But in other parts, there is no town team at all. So under this new Fund, we are going to provide up to €10,000 per town to help them establish a new Town Team or to build up the one already in place. I’m also going to provide up to €30,000 for the development of Town Centre First Plans, which are really key to revitalising our town centres.
“And finally, I’m opening applications for funding under the Town and Village Renewal Scheme with a particular focus on supporting counties in the North West Region. This significant package of supports will be administered through the local authorities and the Town Regeneration Officers and I’m encouraging all communities to get involved.”
The new measures announced today follow on from the launch of the government’s first ever Town Centre First Policy in 2022.
This has seen the development of specific Town Centre First Plans in 2026 towns nationwide.
These have helped empower those specific communities to develop their own vision for the future of their towns.
The package is designed to further enhance government support towards the revitalisation of rural towns and villages, making them more attractive places in which to live, work, visit and invest.
The new package of supports will support the following measures:
These supports will specifically target rural towns with a population of under 10,000 people. Detail of the Town Centre First Suite of Supports initiative.
Our Rural Future is the whole-of-government policy for rural Ireland for the period 2021-2025. It represents a new milestone in the approach to rural development policy for Ireland. The policy’s objectives are being achieved through the delivery of 161 measures, implemented progressively over the life of the policy across a range of government departments and agencies. Annual work programmes enable new actions to be added over the policy’s lifecycle, to respond to the emerging needs of rural communities.
Town Centre First contains 33 unique actions which will give our towns the tools and resources they need to become more viable and attractive places in which to live, work, visit and run a business. Town Regeneration Officers in all relevant local authority areas are being funded by the department to drive forward Town Centre First on a local level.
The establishment of the National Town Centre First Implementation Office is key to the success of the policy. The Office supports Town Regeneration Officers (TRO) in driving implementation at a local level, capturing best practices and coordinating stakeholder engagement.
A Town Team is a group of local residents, business people, community representatives and other stakeholders who come together to make their area a better place to live, work, visit and invest. They represent diverse sectors and backgrounds. They have a unique position in the community to become ‘local experts’ in their area and to take a lead on the development of interventions that can make positive long-term changes for the town. The effectiveness of this local involvement in town regeneration has been seen across the country in recent years.
Town Regeneration Officers support the establishment and ongoing work of Town Teams, providing technical, communications, administrative and project management assistance to Town Teams and supporting key stakeholders in accessing available funding. They are an essential link between Town Teams and the local authority.
| Eligible Local Authorities | Previously selected towns to complete a TCF Plan (Under Phase 1) |
| Carlow | Tullow |
| Cavan | Baileborough |
| Clare | Sixmilebridge |
| Cork | Skibereen |
| Donegal | Milford |
| Fingal | Lusk |
| Galway | Gort |
| Kerry | Milltown |
| Kildare | Clane |
| Kilkenny | Urlingford |
| Laois | Rathdowney |
| Leitrim | Carrick-on-Shannon |
| Limerick | Abbeyfeale |
| Longford | Longford Town |
| Louth | Dunleer |
| Mayo | Killala |
| Meath | Enfield |
| Monaghan | Carrickmacross |
| Offaly | Clara |
| Roscommon | Strokestown |
| Sligo | Tubbercurry |
| Tipperary | Roscrea |
| Waterford | Portlaw |
| Westmeath | Moate |
| Wexford | New Ross |
| Wicklow | Blessington |
North-West Counties
| Eligible Local Authorities |
| Cavan |
| Donegal |
| Galway |
| Leitrim |
| Mayo |
| Monaghan |
| Roscommon |
| Sligo |