Smart Village Training for Carrickmacross Town

Monaghan Integrated Development, are looking for individuals, businesses and community groups of Carrickmacross Town, who are passionate about their area, to participate in the new and exciting Smart Village initiative that is being delivered in and for Carrickmacross!

Smart Village Training for Carrickmacross Town starts on Tuesday 29th March 2022 at 7pm in The Carrickmacross Workhouse. Interested? Contact Laura at lmartin@midl.ie to receive the training registration link.

This is a blended course, delivered both face-to-face and online, and will comprise of 4 training sessions spread over 6 weeks with participants encouraged to meet inbetween sessions to further their Smart Village Plan. Participants of the Smart Village training for Tydavnet, Scotstown, Knockatallon, Milltown and Ballinode are completing their final sessions and said that ‘this plan is the building blocks of the future, I have been to many committee meetings over the years and believe this is the strongest plan that gives you the tools that we need for the development of our community’. On completion of the course, participants become ‘Smart Village Champions’ in their communities, trained in bringing various stakeholders together and coordinating the program annually.

What is a Smart Village? Smart Villages are communities in rural areas that use innovative solutions to improve their resilience, building on local strengths and opportunities. Through the Smart Village approach, we want to build on the success of the LEADER programme over the last 30 years and seek to support local communities to work smarter and more effectively. The program seeks to; promote greater collaboration between local organisations and communities, encourage on-boarding of new volunteers by building teams of people with similar interests and complementary skills, support community champions in handing over responsibility to the next generation, reducing the administration workload and building a more fluid support relationship between communities, Local Development Companies and Councils. This training is delivered by Etownz under the LEADER Programme.

Not from Carrickmacross but interested in the initiative? We are identifying further areas in the county to participate in future Smart Village Training! Contact Laura to learn more, at lmartin@midl.ie / 087 173 7690

Monaghan Local Action Group (LAG) is administering the LEADER RDP 2014-2022 in County Monaghan for the Department of Rural and Community Development and the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development. The County Monaghan Local Community Development Committee (LCDC) is operating as the LAG for the County. Monaghan Integrated Development the Local Development Company for County Monaghan is the implementing partner and Monaghan County Council is the lead financial partner.