Case Study Example of Festival Funding

Cavan-Monaghan LEADER (CML) recognises the importance of community based festivals for social/cultural benefit of the local community and the economic impact which results from these events. The continued success of these festivals is maintained by a combination of hard working voluntary committees and volunteers who help to maintain the momentum year after year. Festival committees often find it difficult to find the financial resources to cover all the costs associated with running an efficient event.

Castleblayney Community Enterprise Limited in County Monaghan brought together six local festival groups from the town to develop a proposal and form an umbrella group called “Castleblayney Festivals Group”. This group successfully applied to CML Rural Development Programme to implement a local marketing campaign and purchase infrastructure which could be shared among the six festivals.

Marketing: Each of the six festivals received support for local advertising, promotional banners, flyers and inclusion on a festival calendar which would be used to promote all events during the following year. The project also included pop-up banners which are displayed in prominent local business premises in the run up to the each event as promotional tool.
Infrastructure: The group also received support for the purchase of a number of items of equipment including a PA (public address) system, crowd control barriers, street cones and semi-permanent signs for each main access road to the town. The semi-permanent signs are made to allow the actual sign to be changed for each of the festivals as the event date approaches. Two of the six festivals that are benefiting from this initiative are the May Day Parade and the Muckno Mania Festival.

CML are now promoting this approach as a model of best practice for festivals which can help to sustain the vibrancy of these events, whilst maximising promotional opportunities and keeping running costs to a minimum. If you are interested in developing a similar approach in your area, please contact one of our Development Officers for further information and support or alternatively please complete our Expression of Interest Form which can be found on RDP Application Process page.