Cormac Devlin
Ceist:40. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht her plans to ensure ongoing support for local authorities through the Creative Ireland programme. [17289/20]
Amharc ar fhreagraWednesday, 22 July 2020
Ceisteanna (40)
Freagraí scríofa
The Creative Ireland Programme is an all-of-Government, culture-based initiative led by my Department and designed to promote individual, community and national wellbeing through participation in creative activities. All 31 local authorities have been, and will remain, crucial to the successful delivery of the Creative Ireland Programme.
Support for the local authorities under the Creative Ireland Programme comprises of work co-funded by my Department and the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government as well as work that is exclusively funded by my Department.
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between my Department and the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government on 19th July 2019. The objective of this MoU was a commitment to support the implementation and delivery of Pillar 2 of the Programme – Creative Communities - over the period 2019-2022.
Earlier this year, 3-year Service Level Agreements (SLAs) were signed between my Department and each of the 31 Local Authorities reflecting the commitment of both Departments to continue to financially support their delivery of the Creative Ireland Programme until 2022.
Also, encompassed by these SLAs is a separate commitment by my Department to provide funding to each local authority to support the annual delivery each June of Cruinniú na nÓg – our national day of free creative activities for children and young people under 18 years of age.
Notwithstanding the exceptionally challenging circumstances this year, my Department supported the local authorities to deliver an online version of Cruinniú na nÓg in order to support the mental wellbeing of children and their families during social distancing.
In the past few weeks, my officials in the Creative Ireland Programme have been working with Programme partners including in the local authorities to develop a series of newly-funded initiatives in relation to positive ageing and creative wellbeing. I am pleased that, as a result, 16 local authorities will also now receive additional new funding support. The funding will support them to deliver creative initiatives over the coming months in support of the mental wellbeing of our older people at this challenging time.
The matter of funding measures under the Creative Ireland Programme for 2021 and 2022 will be agreed in the context of Programme priorities for those years and, as the Deputy will appreciate, are subject to annual budgetary and estimates processes.