Minister Humphreys was in Clones, Co Monaghan, this Tuesday to launch this year’s Rural Town and Village Renewal Scheme, which allocates €380,000 to each of the 26 counties for projects in up to eight towns or villages with fewer than 10,000 in habitants.

“I have more than doubled the allocation for the scheme from €4m to €10m, reflecting the Government’s commitment to the development of rural Ireland,” Minister Humphreys said. “Up to 200 towns and villages right across the country will benefit from the scheme this year.”

Focus on smaller towns

New rules specify that more than half of project proposals and funding value within each county must go to towns and villages of fewer than 5,000 inhabitants.

Projects eligible to the scheme include those that improve the commercial, cultural, social or environmental attractiveness of a town or village, or tackle “minor physical infrastructural deficits and land assembly issues”, ie lack of large enough sites to develop public amenities.

It is critical that towns and villages become areas where economic activity can flourish, where people can live and work

Each project can receive up to €100,000 covering a maximum of 85% of costs and Minister Humphreys’ department will issue details to local authorities in the coming days to allow them to apply for the grants in September.

“It is critical that towns and villages become areas where economic activity can flourish, where people can live and work, and where people can meet at a social level,” Minister Humphreys said.

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