Seed funding for projects in disadvantaged areas
Parts of Cavan feature among 15 areas to receive funding under a new programme, SÍOL, totalling €5M this year, or capital funding of €31.5M up to 2030 under the National Development Plan.
The money will be spent on initiatives in urban areas with the highest concentration of disadvantage. Included on the list are Cavan Urban, Cavan Rural, Ballyhaise, Clonervy, and Moynehall.
Cavan County Council will be invited to submit projects, relevant to these areas, that focus on improving public spaces, supporting health and wellbeing and access to training.
The funding has been jointly announced this morning by the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Department of Transport, and confirmed to this newspaper by Deputy Brendan Smith (FF).
The new programme - SÍOL, ‘Seed’ in English, stands for Scéim Infheistíochta ag Obair Le Chéile, and this translates to the ‘Working Together Investment Scheme’.
The SÍOL programme will also provide access to education and training for people living in some of the most disadvantaged urban areas of the country.
Announcing the new programme today, Minister Dara Calleary said the new SÍOL programme will provide a "solid foundation" for targeted investment in urban areas where there is the "most extreme disadvantage".
He added: “Working on the previous RAPID model, SÍOL will make real differences in communities that need it most.
The new programme has been designed based on statistical information available through both the Central Statistics Office, and Pobal’s deprivation index. An analysis of ‘Urban and Rural Life in Ireland’ conducted by the ESRI was also taken into consideration. All of this analysis was done to ensure that the funding is targeted at the most disadvantaged areas within the designated towns and cities.
Cavan-Monaghan Fianna Fáil TD Brendan Smith welcomed the announcement.
"I warmly welcome this new initiative by Minister Dara Calleary and Cavan Town and its environs, Castletara and Ballyhaise areas will benefit from a number of new investment schemes with an emphasis on the provision of improved public spaces, health and wellbeing and better access to training and education opportunities."
He added that Cavan County Council will work with local communities to prepare suitable applications and funding is available for developments this year. "This scheme will enable further investment in human and physical resources in the greater Cavan Town area and Ballyhaise. These areas have not been able to avail of Clar funding which has been so beneficial to communities throughout Cavan and Monaghan," stated Deputy Smith.
The Department of Rural and Community Development will issue a call for proposals to local authorities with responsibility for areas that are eligible for funding under the SÍOL programme.
Local authorities will then be invited to submit projects to the Department for approval, and it is expected that the successful projects will be announced in late 2026.