Celbridge Business Breakfast , September 25th
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Author Archives: Frank O' Rourke
FREE! Personal Development programme in Celbridge for unemployed adults
Details of “Finding Your Feet”
– a FREE 8-week personal development programme
starting in Celbridge on 8th September. It is open to adults (18 years+) who are unemployed. The programme is run by County Kildare LEADER Partnership.
Kildare sports clubs can now apply for reduced commercial rates under FF initiative – O’Rourke
CERTAIN SPORTS CLUBS IN KILDARE CAN NOW APPLY FOR AN EXEMPTION TO COMMERCIAL RATES UNDER A FIANNA FÁIL PLAN THAT HAS BEEN INITIATED IN A NEW LAW.
Local sports organisations which have a bar on their premises are now able to apply to have their commercial rates reduced so that they would only apply to the licensed premises and not the full sports grounds. Applications are being accepted up to Tuesday, September 15th.
Fianna Fáil General Election Candidate for Kildare North Cllr Frank O’Rourke has welcomed progress on the Fianna Fáil initiative and is urging all clubs in Kildare to check if they can avail of the reduced rates.
Cllr O’Rourke commented, “At the moment, clubs with licensed premises must pay commercial rates on all of their premises despite the fact that the vast majority of their space is used for sporting and voluntary purposes. This unfairly penalises clubs that have bars and I am delighted that the Government has seen the merits in this common sense measure and included it in the Valuation Act 2015.
“The Valuation Office is now placing adverts in newspapers highlighting the fact that sports clubs can now apply to have their commercial rates reduced if they have a bar on their grounds. Many sporting organisations have been hit by cuts to funding by Government and they’re finding it hard to keep going.
“In order to get the benefit of this partial exemption in commercial rates sports clubs need to be registered under the Registration of Clubs Act, complete an application form and supply supporting documentation on or before September 15th next. The application forms and full details are available online from the Valuation Office at www.valoff.ie, by email at valuationservices@valoff.ie or by phone, 01-8171033.
“This is really positive initiative for clubs in Kildare and across the country. Our sports clubs are part of the very fabric of our local communities and should continue to support them as best we can. Legislative changes such as this can have a really positive impact and I’m pleased to see it being implemented,” concluded Cllr O’Rourke.
Further Improvements in Celbridge
I am delighted to see that the road has been re-surfaced from the Clane road car park along English Row to the Village Inn Restaurant. In addition to this, the footpath and kerbs were all replaced at the entrance to the Mill. I have made representations on both of these projects for some time and it is great to see this work now completed.
These completed projects will give a much improved and safer surfacing for both motorists and pedestrians while improving the ascetics. I will continue to work to secure additional funding for Celbridge and the greater area so projects such as these can be completed. I want to thank the public for bringing these issues to my attention and Kildare County Council for their assistance in having these projects delivered.
Celbridge Street Fest 2015 – A Success
The 2015 Celbridge Street Fest was a great success. The feed back from the public who attended it are saying that it was even better than previous years. The weather was brilliant, the crowd was fantastic and the street entertainment was full of variety with something for everyone. The main stage gave a brilliant display of talent which was managed by our MC Keith Shanley who done a super job as always.
It was a pleasure for me to work with Mick Lothian and the Committee who worked really hard in putting together this event. The Street Fest would not be possible without the help of the volunteers, Garda, Civil Defence, Kildare Co Co, St. John’s Ambulance, Haven Hire, Tidy Towns and the Businesses. This is another example of everyone working together in partnership to deliver an event for Celbridge and the surrounding area.
A BIG thank you to the people for coming on the day to enjoy and support the Street Fest.
Roll on 2016 as this is now an annual event……..!!!!!!!
Fianna Fáil calls for expanded civilian recruitment with Gardaí
Fianna Fáil calls for expanded civilian recruitment with Gardaí
Civilians should be posted to garda stations to carry out administrative work
Fianna Fáil has called for an expansion of the civilian recruitment programme within An Garda Síochána to free up gardaí for community duties.
According to Kildare North general election candidate, Cllr Frank O’Rourke, sustained cuts to garda resources have left many gardaí who should be on the beat stuck in garda stations filling out paper work.
Cllr O’Rourke explained, “The gardaí are currently overburdened with paperwork and administrative duties. Given the huge reduction in garda numbers over the past 5 years, it is a shame that our highly qualified gardaí are often stuck to their desks doing basic work that could be carried out by clerical staff.
“The reality is that gardaí in every community across the country are being expected to do a lot more with a lot less resources. We should be utilising their skills and training, by ensuring that they are out and about in the community preventing and investigating crime. It is a complete waste to have them stuck indoors stamping forms and answering the phone.
“I am calling on the Minister for Justice Frances Fitzgerald and the Garda Commissioner Nóirín O’Sullivan to consider posting civilian employees to garda stations to carry out basic clerical work and allow gardaí to get away from desk work. This could include answering phones and processing forms relating to motor tax, social welfare payments, electoral register changes and passport renewals. It would allow our highly trained gardaí to get out into the community and do the job that they were trained to do.
“It is crucial that these clerical staff would not be seen as a replacement for qualified gardaí. Rather, this system must be used in tandem with an accelerated garda recruitment process. Garda numbers have fallen to dangerously low levels. In my own county of Kildare, there is now just 1 garda for every 650 people. There is no doubt that the cuts to garda resources have had a direct impact on crime levels. We need more gardaí and we need a better system to ensure that our trained professionals are not wasted on basic paperwork.”
Local Economic and Community Plan Survey for Kildare
Dear All,
As you are aware work is well underway to develop the first Local Economic and Community Plan for Kildare. The general public are now invited to input into the plan from this week until Friday 11th September 2015. An extensive range of consultation and stakeholder engagement is planned over the coming weeks and months. I’d encourage you all to take a look at information provided in the links below, in particular the comprehensive baseline report produced with Maynooth University and also to carry out the short survey. A hardcopy of the report will be sent you next week. Continue reading
Irish Cancer Society ‘Care to Drive’ Seek Volounteers
Irish Cancer Society ‘Care to Drive’ Seek Volounteers
The Irish Cancer Society’s Care to Drive service is currently seeking volunteer drivers from all over Kildare to drive local patients to and from their treatments.
Tel: Rebecca on 01 2316642 or email transport@irishcancer.ie
Further information on how you can volunteer available on Irish Cancer Society website.
9,000 FREE higher education courses available through Springboard+
9,000 FREE higher education courses are now available through Springboard+.
Springboard+ allows unemployed people to re-skill in areas where we know there are sustainable jobs, and eligible participants are able to retain their social protection payment whilst on the course.
Intel Pride of Place Competition
The Intel Pride of Place competition brings to you a variety of environmental ideas which have been generated by the Tidy Town committees of Maynooth, Celbridge and Leixlip. Each committee has submitted three proposals for plans they wish to implement in their communities and Intel will fund the project which receives the most public votes.The winner be announced at a prize giving ceremony on the 10th of September at 6.30pm in the Intel Leixlip campus.