Back Row L-R: Jim Finn, North Tipperary LEADER Partnership, Isabel Cambie, South Tipperary Development Co., Attracta Lyons, Tipperary County Council, Michael Murray, North Tipperary LEADER Partnership Front Row L- R: Charles Stanley Smith, Tipperary Local Community Development Committee, and Heather Humphreys, T.D., Minister For Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs.
The new LEADER 2014-2020 (Rural Development Programme) was officially launched on 8th July by Heather Humphreys TD, the Minister for Arts, Heritage and Gaeltacht. Minister Humphreys stated that the programme will focus on the three key themes of Economic Development, Enterprise Development & Job Creation: Social Inclusion; and Rural Environment. The total budget nationally for LEADER 2104-2020 is €200m of which €10.1m has been allocated to Co. Tipperary.
The programme will be rolled out in County Tipperary by the Tipperary Local Community Development Committee (LCDC), a sub-committee of Tipperary County Council. The programme will be delivered at local level by South Tipperary Development Company (STDC) and North Tipperary LEADER Partnership (NTLP). In its role as Implementing Partner, STDC will cover the geographic areas of the Borough District of Clonmel, the Municipal Districts of Tipperary/Cashel and Carrick-on-Suir. NTLP will cover the geographic area of the Municipal Districts of Thurles/Templemore and Nenagh.
Mr. Charles Stanley- Smith, Chairperson of Tipperary LCDC expressed his delight at the imminent commencement of the LEADER programme in Tipperary. He stated that “The new LEADER programme for Tipperary will bring much needed funding into the county for the development of enterprise and tourism, community and social inclusion and environmental projects with an indicative funding allocation of €10.1m. He went on to say that under the previous LEADER programme significant community infrastructure development had been delivered to rural Tipperary, this new LEADER programme would focus on maximising the use of that infrastructure for the benefit of everyone in their rural areas. Tipperary LCDC is delighted to work in Partnership with South Tipperary Development Company(STDC) and North Tipperary LEADER Partnership(NTLP). Both of these companies bring a wealth of experience to the delivery of the Programme. I also welcome Tipperary County Council coming on board as a Financial Partner”.
Mr Martin Quinn, Chairperson of South Tipperary Development Company and Mr Jim Finn, Chairperson of North Tipperary LEADER Partnership welcomed the announcement of the commencement of the new programme. “Our board and staff are really looking forward to rolling out the programme in association with Tipperary LCDC. We have received so many enquiries over the past number of months it is nice to be able to respond to these. We see challenges ahead with a much reduced budget for the County but it is incumbent on us all to make the best use of our limited resources for all of our communities.”
Cllr. Siobhan Ambrose, Cathaoirleach of Tipperary County Council, acknowledged the commencement of the programme stating that “the new LEADER Programme will be a vital support to rural Ireland in terms of enhancing the competitiveness of the local economy and local enterprises, managing natural resources in a sustainable manner, and ensuring the balanced development of rural areas. This vital source of funding will support the sustainable development of rural communities the length and breadth of County Tipperary. I look forward to seeing and hearing about the projects that will be developed in the county as a result of this funding which will, I have no doubt, make a significant tangible difference to the lives of many communities”.
The budget for the programme is significantly less than the previous programme and there are some changes to the programme. For example, the programme will be delivered through a mixture of “targeted calls” and rolling (continuous) applications. Before making an application for funding, promoters of potential projects must submit an “Expression of Interest” (EOI) form to either STDC or NTLP, as relevant – contact STDC (www.stdc.ie) on 052 7442652 or NTLP(www.ntlp.ie) on 067 56676