22 October 2020
By Bryan Smyth
bryan@TheCork.ie
As part of Cork County Council’s expansion of Age Friendly Initiatives, Bantry Age Friendly Town Committee recently held their first socially distanced meeting to kick-start its Age Friendly ambitions for the town.
Following Cork County Council’s recent call for funding of potential Age Friendly Towns, four new towns were successful in joining the existing Age Friendly network of Bandon, Cobh, Kinsale and Mitchelstown. Examples of age friendly initiatives implemented in participating towns include accessible public seating, promotion of age friendly businesses, age friendly parking and other public realm enhancements.
Launching the Bantry Age Friendly town Programme 2020/2021, Deirdre Fitzgerald and Winnie O’Sullivan, Bantry age Friendly Town Committee, Cllr Danny Collins, and Noelle Desmond and Mary Creedon, Cork County Council. Pic Tony McElhinney
The Cork Age Friendly County Programme aims to support the development of a network of Age Friendly towns across County Cork. The current fund cycle for 2020 – 2021 will provide financial assistance to the towns of Bantry, Millstreet, Charleville and Passage West/Monkstown. Inaugural meetings for these towns are currently taking place in line with public health guidance on gatherings and social distancing.
Chair of Bantry Municipal District, Cllr. Danny Collins welcomed the allocation of funding for Age Friendly initiatives in Bantry,
‘’Bantry and surrounding areas have a very active retirement community, many of whom work voluntarily with different community organisations in the town such as Bantry Development and Tourism Association, Bantry Tidy Towns, Bantry Project Group and many more. I can envisage that this Age Friendly project through Cork County Council working with the local representatives will only reap added initiatives for the town and I look forward to working together with them on these projects.’’
Niall Healy, Director of Services and Chair of Cork County Age Friendly Alliance congratulated Bantry on their success in securing the funding and noted that there was significant interest in the Council’s 2020 – 2021 Age Friendly Towns Programme,
‘’Great work has been undertaken by the Age Friendly Town Committees in Bandon, Cobh, Kinsale and Mitchelstown and there was huge interest when we advertised the 2020-2021 programme. We are looking forward to working with the four new towns and welcome Bantry in their journey towards achieving Age Friendly Town status.’’
