Tipp village to feature on Nuacht TG4

There was great excitement in Rossmore on Friday, April 8, as Matt and Marian from Matt Kelly Productions (MKP) arrived to film a segment to be aired on Nuacht TG4 on Monday evening.

Tidy Villages, Community Hall and National School residents gave them a warm welcome as Gaeilge and were delighted to showcase their village and its unique offerings.

Their first port of call was the especially wonderful mural on the village wall arranged by Rossmore Tidy Villages which depicts ‘Dancing at the crossroads’ created by local artist Alan O’Dwyer. MKP were so impressed as the images are so lifelike, they commented that you felt you were at the dance watching and waiting to be asked onto the floor.

Having spent some time in the village they then went to visit the Rossmore Community hall BCP which has been recently restored thanks to Department of Rural and Community Development (DRCD), Business funding and the village fundraising also.

The Community Hall is now a fit for purpose venue for the local primary school, community events, meetings but the icing on the cake is that the Hall is one of 21 community-based Broadband Connection Points (BCP’s) in the County.

The Department of Rural and Community Development is working with Tipperary County Council and the local communities to deliver high speed broadband to specified Broadband Connection Points (BCPs) across the county. These locations will be connected with high speed broadband in Year Two/ Three of the NBP State intervention deployment - while waiting for the wider deployment to reach their area. The BCPs will leverage the high-speed broadband connection through a range of initiatives, for example, providing free public Wi-Fi. Some will also have hot-desks, Remote Working Facilities and some will be digital hub business centres where digital training, business information events and other SME supports are organised. In total, 21 Broadband Connection Points are being delivered in County Tipperary, including Rossmore Community hall BCP, Rossmore, Cashel, Co. Tipperary, E25D429.

The success of this project will act as a catalyst for the regeneration of our rural areas in County Tipperary, as, by facilitating Remote working opportunity in the parishes of these rural communities, they will ensure the retention of individuals in the Community and thus the growth of the local economy.

Brema Horan who runs Rossmore Community hall BCP on behalf of the Community is delighted with this opportunity to support the sustainability of rural communities by enabling more people to continue to live and work in rural locations and encouraging others to relocate to rural areas through the offering of high-quality digital connectivity and a remote work location in the village.

Simon Howe, Broadband Officer Tipperary County Council added that “High quality digital connectivity as delivered in Rossmore Community hall BCP offers an unprecedented opportunity to transform this area of rural Tipperary. It will support the sustainability of the rural community by enabling more people to continue to live and work in this area.

The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of digital connectivity in supporting many aspects of our daily lives. Throughout the crisis, digital connectivity helped many people to avoid becoming socially isolated; it enabled students to continue their education through on-line learning; and it demonstrated its potential to support economic activity through remote working and the delivery of services on-line.

Acquiring digital skills is as important as physical access to broadband infrastructure to enable

individuals and communities to maximise the benefits of high-speed broadband connectivity.

The internet and digital technologies are transforming the way people live and work.

Developing digital capability within the enterprise sector, especially amongst SMEs and microenterprises, is critical for competitiveness and business sustainability.”

A number of Digital Skills Training Programmes are planned to be rolled out in the Broadband Connection Points in County Tipperary including Rossmore Community hall BCP in 2022 including:

OurKidsCode,

Hi-Digital (over 65)

Microsoft Dream Space Den

Smart Skills for Farming Communities (Tipperary)

Kinia Creative with Technology