4 March 2022
By Mary Bermingham
mary@TheCork.ie
Cork County Council has announced the Local Festival Fund for 2022 is now open for applications. A total of €65,000 is available through this year’s fund and applicants can apply for amounts ranging from €500 up to a maximum of €6,000 per festival.
Welcoming the return of live festivals and events, Mayor of the County of Cork, Cllr. Gillian Coughlan said “Cork County is internationally renowned as a festival haven and the return of live music and entertainment to our towns and villages has been much anticipated. The Local Festival Fund has enabled the hosting of some of our finest and most unique festivals over the years, such as Youghal Medieval Festival, Ballydehob Jazz Festival and A Taste of Fermoy to name but a few. It is also important to note the many social gains from festivals; they entertain, they celebrate, they encourage participation within our communities, and they offer a snapshot of the unique cultural identity of our county. I strongly encourage festival and event organisers to take a look at the criteria and consider making an application.”
The fund, which is targeted at festivals that drive domestic tourism in Cork County, forms an important part of the Council’s financial support of festivals, resulting in investment by the Local Authority to the value of €1.6 million between the period 2018-2021.
Chief Executive of Cork County Council Tim Lucey added “While the hosting of physical festivals and events over the last two years was considerably limited by the Covid-19 pandemic, Cork County Council has been committed to the continued support of local festivals. We have supported the development of virtual festival programmes and digital platforms, as well as hosting a series of Festival Development Workshops and providing funding to a smaller number of festivals that successfully hosted physical events during this period. The Local Festival Fund will be an important boost to local festivals and will be instrumental in this critical stage of recovery from the pandemic. Festivals and events will help to regenerate the economies of our towns and villages and will be a further incentive for visitors to make that return trip to Cork County.”
Ciara Sugrue, Head of Festivals at Fáilte Ireland said “Festivals and events play a key role in delivering brilliant visitor experiences, providing a unique reason for visitors to choose a destination and increasing footfall for local businesses, supporting jobs and revenue generation. Domestic tourism will be hugely important again this year as we work towards recovery. Managed by Cork County Council, the Local Festival Fund will support festivals that drive domestic demand across Cork County.”
Formerly known as the ‘Fáilte Ireland Regional Festival Fund’, Cork County Council took over management of the Local Festival Fund in 2018, allocating a total of €220,000 between 2018-2021 to the support of local festivals and events.
The application process has been streamlined to a digital and paper-free process this year, enabling applicants to complete all steps from application to drawdown on the Council’s online customer service portal. The Local Festival Fund criteria and online application is now available on www.yourcouncil.ie and will close on Tuesday 8 of March at 5.00 pm.
For further information, email local.festivalfund@corkcoco.ie
