The Workhouse Campus Project

Monaghan County Council in partnership with Farney Community Development Group.

The Farney Community Development Committee has been based in the Carrickmacross Workhouse since 2003. The group has invested over €2.3 million over the past 18 years preserving the buildings and providing community services to the people of South Monaghan. In 2019, Monaghan County Council acquired the 6 acre site, securing the future of the facility for community use. A new tourism and visitor attraction centre based on the Workhouse Experience and the Famine was developed in 2020.

Now the Council together with Farney Community Development Committee are seeking funding to develop the whole site as a centre for community activity and use. The Workhouse Campus Project will encompass the restoration and repurposing of the old buildings on the site together with new-built designed centre to cater for the needs identified. The Iontas Centre in Castleblayney would be a model to aspire to for the people of Carrickmacross and south Monaghan.

The first step on the way is to ascertain what are the views and the needs of the people of Carrickmacross and its people. What services would they wish to see hosted in a newly developed Workhouse Campus? At present the Workhouse serves as a tourism and visitor attraction on the Famine, hosts a Community Childcare Creche, provides facilities for training and learning.

This moment provides an opportunity for other community groups and individuals to highlight facilities and services that could benefit the town and its catchment. For example the Arts sector is one that lacks a base in the town. During the pandemic, parents have state that young people require a safe place to meet. We are asking that you complete this short survey to give your initial thoughts on what could be facilitated in a newly developed Workhouse Campus. This is the first step on a journey to provide a new modern home for community, social and recreational services in Carrickmacross.

The sky is the limit in terms of our ambition to develop services and facilities for the community, so join in, complete the survey and get your friends and family to give their views also.

The survey is now closed.

The proposed plan provides a natural layout to blend into the exiting landscape.
The native wild flower meadow will provide food for pollinators. We also propose to plant a mix of native fruit trees.
If you have any submissions/objections to the plan proposed, please notify Carrickmacross-Castleblayney Municipal District Council on or before Friday the 25th of June at 5:00p.m.

All submissions or any queries should be made in writing to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Alternatively you can write to:-
Carrickmacross-Castleblayney Municipal District Council,
Riverside Road,
Carrickmacross,
Co. Monaghan
A81 RY22.

Biodiversity Plans - Gallows Hill (PDF)

International Bee Day takes place on May 20^th.  Carrickmacross Tidy Town Committee and the Environmental Services Department in Monaghan County Council want to raise awareness of ways people can help Bees, Butterflies and wildlife in general as the Bee population is decreasing at an alarming rate in Ireland.

We are running a competition for 2^nd Level students in the South Monaghan Area, asking the students to build a Bee Hotel that could be placed in a public area in Carrickmacross.  This can be an individual or team entry. There will be prizes of Carrickmacross Gift Vouchers for the winning entries:

1^st Prize €100 Gift Voucher

2^nd Prize €70 Gift Voucher

3^rd Prize €50 Gift Voucher

Application forms will be available to download here >>

The closing date for entries is June 11^th, entries should be left at Carrickmacross Workhouse on this date between 9am and 5pm. 

We hope when COVID 19 restrictions are lifted we can have a display of the winning Bee Hotels in the Civic Centre in Carrickmacross and we will feature them on our Facebook page. We will then erect them in public places in the town. The entries will become property of the Carrickmacross Tidy Town Committee, they will not be returned.

For information that might help the students get ideas please visit

https://www.carrickmacross.ie/bees

https://www.rte.ie/lifestyle/living/2019/0520/1050567-world-bee-day-how-to-make-a-bee-hotel-in-5-simple-steps/

"The book was written in 2007 and parked til the author's retirement in 2019. He had six positive responses from the seventy odd letters he wrote to publishers, including an expression of interest from Penguin. But utimately RJ signed a book deal with an American publisher Atmosphere Press. He wanted the book to have international appeal, so wanted the title to sound American and it's cover to have an edgy look, both of which he achieved." - Full article in the Northern Standard.

Ulser is available locally in Keegan's newsagents now. 

See RJ Deeds Facebook and website here:

https://www.facebook.com/rj.deeds.902

https://www.rjdeeds.com/

At a total estimated cost of €3.5 million, this project will see the delivery of a new 1,450sqm Co-Working Enterprise Hub in Carrickmacross Town. The Hub will provide workspace for business start-ups, re-locating enterprises and co-workers seeking to locate in Carrickmacross Town. The development will support talent retention within the South Monaghan area, provide a regional base for former commuters, and attract new start-ups from within the community and Northern Ireland. The facility will provide affordable office space with high speed connectivity, offering a healthier lifestyle choice to employers in the region.

Carrickmacross Chamber of Commerce welcomed the news and congratulated the Monaghan County Council staff and local Councillors who worked on this proposal over the last few years.

The Outdoor Seating & Accessories for Tourism & Hospitality Business’ scheme is being delivered in partnership between Fáilte Ireland and Local Authorities across the country. The Scheme will provide funding for individual tourism and hospitality businesses to develop and increase their own outdoor seating capacity.

The scheme opens for applications on 12 April 2021 and will close on the 30th of September 2021.

The focus of this scheme is to provide a level of financial support to tourism and hospitality businesses, in our town centres, to purchase or upgrade equipment to provide additional outdoor seating and, therefore, increase their outdoor dining capacity for the summer of 2021. This scheme will financially assist and support independent tourism and hospitality business owners to create outdoor dining experiences in a regulated and accessible manner. Funding under the scheme is only available to existing businesses.

For further Information and Application Form, please click here >>

Join us for a FREE Webinar with Dr. Fiona MacGowan, Consultant Ecologist, Botanist and National Tidy Town Adjudicator on 23rd March 2021 at 7.30pm.

This webinar is open to individuals, groups, Tidy Town committees, students/teachers, or sports clubs looking to get started or for some advice

Register at www.monaghan.ie/pollinator/

Virtual St. Patrick’s Day Parade

Carrickmacross-Castleblayney Municipal District are currently organising the annual St. Patricks day parade in Carrickmacross Town.

This year we are going virtual, and we are asking groups, bands, indivudals and businesses interested in participating, to submit a video, no longer than 30 seconds, capturing your St. Patrick’s Day event.  It is important that you have your phone/tablet on the landscape setting when recording and use the hashtag #CarrickmacrossParade. There is a prize award for the best video posted on social media on St. Patrick’s Day using the #CarrickmacrossParade

We must emphasise that all submissions must comply with current Covid-19 restrictions.

Our civic building will be lit up green to celebrate the event and we encourage all businesses with shopfronts to “Turn your Business Green” by decorating your shop windows in honour of our patron saint.

0 to 3K Beginner Walk To Jog Podcast Programme: Monaghan Sports Partnership 01st March Registration is through Eventbrite: http://monaghansportspartnership.eventbrite.com 0-3k Beginner Walk to Jog Podcast Programme is specifically suited for complete beginners, to increase walking fitness and progress to jogging with relative ease. Over a 6-week period, participants will receive two podcasts each week to guide them through each session, making the transition from walking to jogging easier and more fun.