Significant funding boost for local Tidy Towns groups
GALWAY County Council have awarded €100,000 in funding to Tidy Towns groups across the county as they bid to push towards securing the overall crown.
Twelve community projects were chosen to benefit from the Local Environmental Action Fund (LEAF), with half the money coming from Irish Public Bodies (IPB) to mark its centenary, and a further €50,000 contributed by Galway County Council.
“This is about helping the groups that have recently won bronze, silver and gold medals to improve their score with the aim of taking home the overall title,” explained Michael Owens, Director of Services for Community Development with the County Council, during last week's plenary meeting.
“We also plan to host a workshop later this year for all the Tidy Towns groups in Galway. It will allow the smaller and newer groups to get some advice and mentoring from the towns and villages who have already established a trend of succeeding in the competition.
“Engaging with the national winners will help bring the standards up across the county and help us towards the goal of securing the overall crown. That is what the €100,000 in funding is hoping to achieve.”
Funding Allocations
Gold medallists in 2025, Milltown Tidy Towns received €19,195 from the fund, one of the largest allocations of the 12 recipients. It will be used to create an accessible picnic area in Milltown, a sensory space and sit down area, to transform an unused ball alley into a community garden and for wildflower habitats and path upgrades across the village.
Tuam Tidy Towns have won bronze medals for the past two years. They received €6,072 in funding to create a green corridor and a pocket nut orchard. It will be located along the River Nanny, the Joe O'Toole Road and the Mill Grounds in the centre of the town.
The project will help protect wildlife habitats, strengthen biodiversity and improve the ecological health of one of the town’s most valuable natural assets.
Ballygar Tidy Towns have been improving their score significantly over the past few years. They have been allocated €12,523 to help towards de-carbonising their equipment. Ballygar Men’s Shed, BNT Cloud 9 Youth Club, Colaiste Mhuire, and volunteers from the Courthouse Café will also benefit from this funding as they all look to reduce their carbon footprint.
“I’ve seen the great work done by the likes of Abbeyknockmoy, Milltown and Tuam Tidy Towns,” commented Tuam District Councillor Siobhán McHugh Ryan.
“Tuam Tidy Towns have put in phenomenal amounts of work to make the town look its best, especially with the new sensory garden. I want to thank the director for his work in driving this new initiative."
Other groups to benefit from the LEAF funding were Kilkerrin Tidy Towns and the Mountbellew District & Development Association.
Kilkerrin were awarded €1,127 for the planting of trees as well as a leaf blower and strimmer for ongoing maintenance, while Mountbellew received €3,000 to develop a pollinator garden. All 12 projects were approved by councillors during Monday’s meeting.