Press release
Successful applicants for the Night-Time Economy Support Scheme announced
From Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media
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- rural applications account for over half of the applications awarded funding
- thousands of performance employment days generated
The Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, Catherine Martin, has today announced the successful applicants of the €4 million in funding to assist off peak entertainment in our towns and cities. A total of 433 organisations have been offered funding from the Night-Time Economy Support Scheme. Applications were received from a wide range of venues including pubs, nightclubs, cafés, theatres, arts centres, galleries, museums and retail outlets.
There was a high level of interest in this pilot scheme, with over 470 creative and diverse applications submitted for consideration, reflecting the willingness of the night-time economy sector to be innovative and creative in their offerings. Well in excess of 2,000 events in every county across the country, have been approved for funding, they include live music, ranging from traditional music to electronic music, DJ nights, theatre, comedy, dance, literature, art and photographic exhibitions.
The Scheme included a specific strand of funding for unlicensed premises such as cafés, dry bars and other suitable venues to support diversification and inclusivity in our Night-Time Economy. Cafés and unlicensed premises have been awarded over €434,000 in funding.
Venues in rural towns and villages were also supported and funding was awarded to 252 venues outside of our cities.
The fund has been an important source of employment for Artists and Performers across the country with thousands of employment days generated by this Scheme.
Minister Martin said:
"A vibrant, diverse and inclusive night-time economy is important for our towns and cities, it boosts the local economy, makes our towns and cities more attractive places to visit and to live in. There has been a great reaction from the night-time sector to this pilot scheme. It is also extremely important that we ensure that there is a balance between alcohol and alcohol free activities to ensure that a wider demographic can engage with the Night-Time Economy and it was also really encouraging to see the response from this sector.
"I recently announced that I secured €6 million as part of Budget 2023 to assist the night-time economy sector. I am currently considering the development of further initiatives and we will continue to work with key stakeholders in the Night-Time Economy to examine other opportunities to open up existing venues to more Night-Time Economy activity."
The Report of the Night-Time Economy Taskforce was published on 15 September 2021.
The Taskforce recommended that a new scheme should be developed to support venues, such as pubs, cafés and alcohol free venues, to trial new events, activities and initiatives at night, with a particular focus on off-peak times, to encourage an increased variety of night-time entertainment offerings, increase footfall in our towns and cities in the evenings and create employment for artists/performers, with a particular focus on new and emerging acts. The Taskforce Report also recognised that there was a need to have increased diversification and inclusivity in our Night-Time Economy and that having a balance between alcohol and alcohol free activities ensures that a wider demographic can engage with the Night-Time Economy. The department consulted and developed the scheme with a wide range of Stakeholders which included the Licensed Vintners Association, Vintners’ Federation of Ireland, Irish Business and Employers Confederation, Restaurant Association of Ireland and Give Us The Night.
Applications were invited under two separate Strands:
Strand A: Licensed premises – pubs, restaurants and wine bars, nightclubs and other suitable licensed premises that operate in the Evening and Night-Time Economy, who want to trial a series of events/cultural activities (minimum of four events, but not limited to 4 events) during off peak times from Monday to Thursday (excluding weekends) from 6pm onwards.
Strand B: Unlicensed premises – cafés, including cafés that may have their premises in a retail outlet, dry bars, local galleries and other suitable non-licensed premises, who want to trial a series of events/cultural activities (minimum of four events, but not limited to 4 events) in the later evening or night-time hours from 6pm, with a commitment to open until at least 9pm in the evening, from Monday to Sunday.
This scheme operated with a limited fund of €4 million. The scheme provided 75% of the required funding, with applicants required to fund the remaining 25%. A maximum allowable grant of €10,000 per business or venue was available. It was a condition of funding that all artists and performers were paid.
The Scheme closed for applications on 4 August. A total of 472 applications for funding were received. Well in excess of 2,000 events have been awarded funding.
- The Factory nightclub in Waterford were allocated funding for a number of off-peak electronic music events throughout October
- Tramline in Dublin hosted 4 high profile DJ and dancing nights every Wednesday in September
- THE OL' 55 in Galway City, held a series of events, in October, focusing on grassroots female performers only who are based in Galway City
- Baggotonia – a number of pubs along Baggot Street celebrated the literary history and famous literary figures associated with the venues on this street through theatrical performances this month
- Birr Theatre and Arts Centre ran “Women In Comedy” - a series of comedy evenings on Thursdays in September
- Windmill Lane Recording Studios, Artists included ‘The 4 of Us’, LGBTQ artist ‘Tadhg’, Bell X1 frontman, Paul Noonan and Daithí Ó Drónaí's new joint musical endeavour, ‘House Plants’. Taking place weekly in November 2022. These events will be filmed and posted on social media and the Windmill Lane Recording YouTube channel
- The Circus Factory, Cork, turned their regular training space into a late night venue during October
- Kerry Writers’ Museum held a ten week programme of performances by some of Kerry’s leading artists, called “The Rambling Sessions”
The list of successful applicants is available in the document below.
