Kildare County Council pressed to provide more support for festivals
KCC supports 150 festival groups
Local politicians are urging Kildare County Council to provide more support for festivals.
Among the suggestions put forward is for KCC to buy equipment such as stages, scaffolding, a sound system and crowd barriers which would be used at various events staged around the county.
Fianna Fáil councillor Suzanne Doyle told a KCC meeting that it should use economies of scale to deliver cost savings as well as expertise in event management and promotion. She said this would boost the local economy and positive opportunities for community integration and pride of place.
She said the county should have at least three festivals of national importance and one could be staged in Leixlip around the history of Arthur Guinness.
Independent councillor Bill Clear said a mobile stage should be bought because it is expensive to hire one at short notice but Cllr Bernard Caldwell said each festival should operate on its own because of the risk of disputes when the organisers of events want to use the same equipment at the same time.
Cllr Tom McDonnell said some equipment like barriers and scaffolding could be bought relatively cheaply and he said festivals “bring people together.”
According to KCC, it assists several groups and festivals across the county with significant funding. In 2024, 150 festival groups were supported through the Community Festival scheme and the Brigid 1500 celebrations. KCC official Marian Higgins said this will continue.
The Brigid celebrations were directly managed by a small team within the community department in Kildare County Council.
However she said the development of a dedicated festivals section within KCC would “require a significant increase in staffing which is not currently available or budgeted for.
KCC is unable to undertake any additional events, she added.
Ms Higgins also said 80,000 people participated in the Brigid 1500 events. Referring to a suggestion that the county should have one festival a month, she said this would be “a huge ask.”