Bank of Ireland has announced a new pilot initiative to find the most enterprising town in County Roscommon and there are lots of cash prizes up for grabs.
Picture Credit: Gerard O’Loughlin
Bank of Ireland’s Enterprising Town Awards are being run as part of a pilot in four counties this year.
The aim of the Awards is to promote enterprise by bringing business and community groups together to showcase the spirit of enterprise in their town.
The Bank of Ireland Enterprising Town Awards are being organised in collaboration with four County Councils and their economic development teams in 2016 in Mayo, Roscommon, Laois and Kildare. The judging panel will meet with business, community and public sector groups in the nominated towns. They will then select the County Winners and later, an overall Winner from across the four participating counties.
The prize amount for the County Winner is €3,000, with the potential to be awarded an additional €10,000 as Overall Winner. In addition, the judges will, at their discretion, nominate up to eight specific initiatives for merit award funding from a total prize fund of €8,000.
Speaking about the pilot initiative, Joann Hosey, Head of County Sligo, Leitrim and Roscommon for Bank of Ireland commented;
“As Ireland’s Enterprise Bank, we recognise that SME’s, Start-ups and community organisations are a significant driver of the country’s success and spirit. Bank of Ireland’s Enterprising Town Awards will shine a light on this and profile towns, businesses and community groups who demonstrate a collaborative and innovative approach to driving success locally. This is a wonderful opportunity for Roscommon to showcase the breadth and diversity of enterprise across the county.”
Roscommon County Council Chief Executive, Eugene Cummins said:
“Roscommon County Council is committed to supporting business and social enterprise in all its forms throughout the county. We take a massive interest in seeing communities thriving through partnership, imagination and innovation and we value the fantastic work being done in all our towns. This initiative provides a great opportunity for this work to be recognised. The Council is delighted to be working with Bank of Ireland and we strongly encourage every town, large and small, to put themselves forward for the accolade of being named a Bank of Ireland Enterprising Town 2016.”
Applications
Applications from towns are already underway with the deadline of October 28th fast approaching. All towns that have entered will be invited to attend an Awards night where the County, Merit and Overall winners will be announced. The Awards night will be held in Roscommon on the 7th December.
Towns enter by filling in a 200 word application form. Every town that enters will be visited by a team of judges who will meet representatives from the community and conduct a tour of the town.
Criteria
The competition will be judged across a range of criteria including;
· Evidence of enterprising initiatives and networking opportunities which support the local economy, e.g. start-ups, youth and learning initiatives, SMEs
· Town Leadership & Vision: demonstrate innovative forward thinking and planning to support enterprise development
· Community support for local businesses, key services and culture, sports, heritage, environment
· A spirit of collaboration between diverse groups including businesses, local authorities, cultural, educational, sports, heritage and environmental organisations etc.