Baltinglass Gets Buckets Of Arts Council Moolah

Baltinglass Abbey, yesterday, just after lunch…

atest press release from the Arts Council, issued on Monday, May 30th 2022…

The people of Baltinglass will benefit from an investment programme to develop and sustain new creative opportunities for all age groups.

The Arts Council has expanded its Creative Places programme nationally and a successful application was led by Wicklow County Council in partnership with local community development organisations in Baltinglass and West Wicklow.

The opportunity was open to places which had not benefitted from sustained arts investment in the past. It will build upon existing cultural strengths in the town to create a new momentum which will ensure more people in the town can choose, take part in and benefit from brilliant arts experiences. Baltinglass, will be one of 12 places who are now part of the expanded national Creative Places programme, which includes small towns, urban areas, rural and island communities.

Director of the Arts Council, Maureen Kennelly said, “We are delighted to be awarding Creative Places Baltinglass; it is not a place where we have not been able to invest before and it is very important to us that public investment in the arts reaches and benefits more people in a sustained and meaningful way. We are very excited to see how the people of Baltinglass will respond to what matters to them most, and we look forward to working further with the community and Wicklow County Council”.

The Square, Baltinglass

Reacting to the announcement, Cathaoirleach of Wicklow County Council Shay Cullen said “The community of Baltinglass is extremely excited to have received this investment through the Arts Council’s Creative Places programme. The amount of investment is unprecedented and will be really well received. The application was well supported by the community and voluntary sector from the area who will now work collaboratively with Wicklow County Council and the agencies to ensure the initiative will have maximum impact.”

Over the summer the programme will be getting established, a coordinator will be appointed and conversations with the community will get underway.

To follow how the project develops, the programme will be managed by the Guide’s old buddy in the Wicklow Arts Office, Jenny Sherwin, contactable by some on jsherwin@wicklowcoco.ie.