The Waters and Communities Special Award is open for applications with a deadline of 23rd May 2018. The Award is run in conjunction with the main Super Valu Tidy Towns Awards, which this year celebrates its 60th year of encouraging and rewarding community effort.

The Waters and Communities Special Award 2018 aims to encourage communities to get more involved with their local water bodies by helping to preserve, promote and fully utilise their local natural heritage. Community groups who have shown an appreciation for their water environment and water heritage by engaging in initiatives or projects during the time span from June 2017 to May 2018 will be considered (examples include: clean ups; provision or upgrading of amenities; support to biodiversity and heritage; promotion of angling; awareness raising; etc).

To read about the winners of the Waters and Communities Special Awards in 2017 see https://www.catchments.ie/tidytowns-waters-communities-special-award/

All applications will be assessed by a panel of judges appointed by Inland Fisheries Ireland, Waterways Ireland and the Local Authority Waters & Communities Office. The judges will assess each application for initiatives undertaken between June 2017 and May 2018 based on the following criteria:

  1. Awareness raising (15 Marks)
  2. Community involvement (20 Marks)
  3. Stakeholder engagement (15 Marks)
  4. Project benefits (40 Marks)
  5. Lessons learned and plans for the future (10 Marks)

The Waters and Communities Award is open to any community group to apply and is sponsored by Inland Fisheries Ireland, Waterways Ireland and the Local Authority Waters and Communities Office. The award has a total prize fund of €7,000. Closing date for receipt of entries is 23rd May 2018.

The Application form is available on the TidyTowns website http://www.tidytowns.ie/  or it can be downloaded here 2018 Waters and Communities Special Award