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With the restrictions due to Covid 19 now being lifted, we at Locals Magazine are asking you all to please abide by the new regulations as we come out of lockdown. With more and more business restrictions being lifted we ask you stay to consider the local business community and when you need to shop, shop local. We are all here considering you, our loyal readership and hope that each and every one of you will keep safe and well in the time ahead as restrictions are eased. Our magazines rely not only on our brilliant team but are only possible because of you,our loyal advertisers, our loyal readership and of course our wonderful contributors. We value each and every one of you, and at this time, we hope all of you reading this on the web and indeed all of us are still healthy and happy and will continue to be when this virus has passed. So, please stay safe and well and keep reading and supporting us on line. Sean, Martin,Tim and all the Locals Team. Swords Local Disclaimer

Every effort is made by Swords Local Magazine to ensure that the information is correct and will not be held responsible for any advertisement or editorial errors. Swords Local reserves the right to decline, suspend or omit any advertisement or article submitted. No liability can be accepted by Swords Local for any printing errors in advertisements or otherwise.

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Local News

FINGAL COUNTY COUNCIL and COVID-19: Help us to help you. Fingal County Council wants to ensure the health and well-being of everyone in our County. To do this, we need your help. We are asking residents to call our Customer Care Unit at 01 8905000 BEFORE visiting our public offices. We want to ensure that no unnecessary visits are made during this unprecedented time as much of what we do can be completed over the phone, by mail or online. Paperwork can be sent by e-mail. E-mail addresses may be found on our website at www.fingal. ie Forms can be dropped off at a special drop-box in County Hall, Swords and Civic Office, Blanchardstown. Currently our playgrounds, museums, libraries and the archives are closed to the public. Your co-operation is greatly appreciated. Phone services: Fingal County Council offers a number of services which can be dealt with by phone. To pay by phone: housing rents, mortgage payments, parking fines. Ph 890 5309 and 890 5154. You may contact our Customer Care Unit by e-mail CustomerCareUnit@fingal.ie For any other information visit www.fingal.ie Our Parks remain open but we would remind you to exercise Social Distancing of 2 metres when visiting and heed our signage and find a quiet time or quieter place to visit. While our Libraries are closed many Online Courses and Eservices are still accessible https://www.fingal.ie/fingallibraries Our recycling centres have become very busy so in order that we can implement Social Distancing we would advise to visit Monday to Thursday rather than Friday and Saturday when they are extremely busy. Health Information: To ensure access to the most up to date and accurate information on the Coronavirus, please use the HSE website https://www2.hse.ie/conditions/coronavirus/coronavirus. html Stay safe! (Please note: you cannot acesss this website by clicking on here.)

Planning for recovery in the arts & cultural sector Fingal County Council’s Arts Office will be the first in Ireland to deliver a coaching support programme for artists and arts organisations on responding to and working within the changed landscape of Covid-19.Fingal County Council Arts Office are extending their ‘Let’s Stay Together’ campaign by offering a specialised one-hour coaching session per individual or organisation to help artists and arts organisations respond to and work within the changed landscape of Covid-19.The programme is in response to the second phase of the Government’s Community Call and the ‘In This Together’ campaign which aims to provide everyone in Ireland with ways and activities to Stay Connected, Stay Active, and take care of their Physical and Mental Wellbeing throughout the Covid-19 emergency.This new initiative is also a response to The Arts Council’s recent Planning for Recovery survey which provides an overview of the impact of Covid-19 on arts organisations and artists. The extensive survey records lost programme activity, audiences and income. AnnMarie Farrelly, Chief Executive of Fingal County Council, said: “I greatly value Fingal’s creative economy, and Fingal County Council will continue to support artists through this and other initiatives.Throughout the Covid-19 situation, Fingal Arts have already been creating and promoting activities to stay connected and support creatives in the County.“In extending 4

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the support this expert coaching will help artists and arts organisations to continue to adapt, work well and respond to a changed environment. Each coaching session will be facilitated by

Janice McAdam, a Strategy and Engagement Consultant and Coach.Coaching sessions with Janice will begin in June and can be booked directly by emailing coaching@janicemcadam.ie Contact us: communitylocalseditor@gmail.com

Reopening Business Getting Ireland Back to Work—Safely The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted our communities and our businesses, but now – thanks to your patience and sacriﬁce – we’re looking ahead to a careful, phased reopening of our country. National and local government, State agencies and representatives of employers and employees have worked together so that businesses can resume, safely and eﬀectively. There are four pathways to help get your business back on its feet:

There is a guidance roadmap in place for gradual business reopening – in five phases – with different starting dates for different business sectors and always subject to change based on health advice at the time.

Employers and Employees – make yourselves aware of the full advice contained in Return to Work, the National Return to Work Safely Protocol — available at Gov.ie

There is a wide range of financial supports available through your Local Enterprise Office, Enterprise Ireland, Microfinance Ireland and other agencies to help with cashflow, payroll, working capital and long-term investment – for example:

If your business model needs to change, the national network of 31 Local Enterprise Offices and other relevant State agencies can help through:

Phased return of outdoor workers, more retail, construction and manufacturing.

As an Employer there are things you must consider, for example:

COVID-19 Trading Online Grants up to €5,000

Limited return to onsite working subject to compliance capability.

Keep your workplace safe and clean

Sustaining Enterprise Fund

Provide training on new work practices and hygiene

Return to low- interaction work.

COVID-19 Business Financial Planning Grant

Return to work, where employees cannot remote work.

Make sure your employees know how to reduce the risk of infection

Restart grants up to €10,000

Mentoring to help businesses identify immediate challenges and solutions. Mentors are business experts working alongside business owners and managers providing practical, useful advice and guidance.

Phased Return to Business

Phased return to work across all sectors. For all phases, remote working continues for all that can do so.

Staying Safe, Staying Healthy

Financial Supports

Advice & Guidance

Three-month commercial rates waiver

Have a procedure in place to identify, isolate and safely transfer from the workplace a worker displaying symptoms of COVID-19

‘Warehousing’ of tax liabilities Wage Subsidy Scheme Lean Business Continuity grants

Make sure your customers are safe

Online Training to develop the skills to steer your business through this challenging time.

COVID-19 low-cost Business Loans

As an Employee there are things you also must consider, for example:

Covid-19 Online Retail Scheme vouchers

Participate in training on new work practices and hygiene

SBCI Working Capital Loans through the banking sector.

Make yourself aware of the signs and symptoms of COVID-19 Monitor your own wellbeing Report to managers if any symptoms develop at work. The following retail activities that may operate for essential supplies and services in Phase 1:

Pharmacies and retailers providing pharmaceuticals or dispensing services

Food, beverages and newspapers (retail and wholesale)

Opticians/Optometrists outlets providing hearing test services, selling hearing aids and appliances

Household consumer products for safety and sanitation of homes and businesses

Retail of medical and orthopaedic goods in specialised stores

Remember — the best way to prevent the spread of COVID-19 is to use proper hand hygiene and respiratory etiquette, and practice social distancing.

Fuel stations and heating fuel providers

Banks, Post Oﬃces and Credit Unions

Oﬃce products and services

Retailers involved in the sale, supply and repair of motor vehicles, motorcycles and bicycles and related facilities

Safety items e.g. work clothes and Personal Protective Equipment

Electrical, IT and phone sales, repair and maintenance services.

Essential items for health and welfare of animals Laundries and Drycleaners

Hardware stores, builders’ merchants and stores selling supplies and tools essential for gardening, farming and agriculture

Tailored business supports for individual sectors are available from all of Ireland’s enterprise agencies.

Please stay the course—help make the return to work safe and eﬀective—and please pay close attention to the health guidelines. For more information go to gov.ie/business

Local News

“From Swords Castle to New York City” The first play performed in Swords Castle is heading for America in what is a tremendous boost for the potential of the Swords Cultural Quarter to deliver a positive platform for the arts in Fingal.The award-winning playwright and performer David Gilna from Swords will make his playwright debut in New York with his award-winning play My Bedsit Window starring Sarah Ryan, Alan Kelly & Michael Mellamphy.David has been involved and supported by Fingal Arts for many years, his play ‘The Unsung Hero’ launched the renovated Atrium in County Hall and his play ‘My Bedsit Window’ was the first play staged in Swords Castle in 2014. My Bedsit Window’ was described in reviews as ‘Wrapped up in a myriad of mesmerising characters who - through Gilna’s energetic vocal agility - burst open the emotional highs and lows of this true story “My Bedsit Window” is a play for today - highly charged - highly recommended.’Fingal Arts Officer, Rory O’Byrne said: ‘Fingal Arts Office is committed to supporting our local artists and is delighted to see and support the success of local playwright David Gilna with his play ‘My Bedsit Window’.”David has sought to build relationships between Fingal artists and the Irish American community through the work of his plays.The opportunity to showcase his work in New York city is an opportunity of a lifetime.David Gilna said about the news: “I was honoured to have my first rehearsed reading of my play with The Irish American Writers & Artists Salon this week introducing my work as a playwright.The people and places of Fingal inspire my work as a playwright. I would thank all those who have helped me achieve all of this.”The two other actors cast are, star of stage and screen Michael Mellamphy and another Fingal local Alan Kelly.

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Taking Care of our Physical and Mental Wellbeing in Fingal COVID-19 is a major public health emergency here in Ireland and around the world and is having a big impact on our lives. Everyone has made a huge eﬀort to stop the spread of the virus and to save lives. Thank You! To help us all get through this diﬃcult time, it’s important that we take care of everyone in our community – and also look after our own physical and mental wellbeing. That’s why National & local Government as well as our voluntary and community sectors have been working together on a wide range of wellbeing initiatives to help you in three ways:

To help you look after your mental wellbeing

To help you stay active

To help you stay connected

With day-to-day coping advice from Healthy Ireland, lots of creative things to do like gardening, cooking, play for children, special supports for young people and their parents, and lots more.

With in-home exercise ideas from sporting organisations and athletes, healthy eating advice – and guidance on how to enjoy the outdoors.

With online libraries, cultural tours, galleries and book clubs, tips on helping in your own community, online workshops and online supports for learners of all ages to help us stay connected.

Here are just a few examples of what’s happening in Fingal: Fingal Digiﬁt – A home workout video series encouraging citizens of all ages and abilities to get ﬁt during the COVID-19 crisis. Wellbeing Activity Booklet – Developed by the COVID-19 Fingal Community Response Project for older and housebound people currently cocooning. Tips for Young People - Fingal Comhairle na nÓg have provided tips on how young people can spend their spare time. Community Hubs – Elderly vulnerable citizens receive a daily visit from community volunteers observing social distancing.

Online Arts Service - Fingal Arts Oﬃce is providing online clinics for Artists and are live streaming arts projects. Kids Skills Challenge – A daily online sports challenge to encourage children to keep active. Housing Information Videos – A suite of informative videos for citizens needing to access housing support services during the COVID-19 crisis. Stay Connected – A YouTube channel from Fingal Libraries with storytimes, online classes, craft ideas and lots more being added weekly.

Discover wellbeing resources to help you and your family at gov.ie/together, and ﬁnd out what’s happening in Fingal at ﬁngal.ie | #inthistogether

Books for Traveller Children – A book gifting initiative which is distributing gift bags to Traveller children across the county. Irish Language Challenge – A 21 day online Irish language challenge to increase your cúpla focal. Information on all these wellbeing activities and a lot more is available from ﬁngal.ie and Fingal County Council’s social media channels.

Local News

Rivervalley Rangers- Tender out for new facilities

River Valley Rangers recently announced that the Recreational Hub planned for Ward Rivervalley Park has gone out to tender. The club say the application is for the, “Design and Construction of Proposed All-weather Pitch facility, car park and associated ancillary works at Ward River Valley Park, Swords, Co. Dublin”. We at ‘Swords Local’ wish the club every sucess in bringing this to fruition. Rivervalley Rangers (RVR) was founded 1981 when Paddy Cole, Gerry Kane and Joe Newman recognised that there was a need for a soccer club in Rivervalley estate which was earmarked for continuous expansion and continues to the present day. The club started out with one senior and one schoolboy team. In the early years much of the focus was on providing football for the adults in the growing community. But it wasn’t long before the ever-growing schoolboy section became the primary focus of the club. Very quickly the need for proper facilities for training/coaching became an issue. In the intervening years, the club has reached out to the boys, girls, men & women in the community providing structured and competitive football to all who wished to participate. With over 300 current members, they now field 17 teams playing in 3 leagues - comprising of 4 senior teams, 4 under-age 11-a-side teams and 9 small sided teams. Additionally we run a pre-league coaching academy and an “over the hills” section. Over the years they have had many successful teams and many excellent players but the highlight of the clubs history was the night in June 1998 when Brian Kerr’s under 16 Irish team were crowned European Champions with two of the team ( John Thompson & Brendan McGill) having come through the ranks at RVR. Many of their former players have played with distinction at representative level, been successful across the water and/or made it at Airtricity league level. There is an abundance of talent in the current crop with a number of players making league representative squads and hopefully some maturing to international level. The future, indeed, looks very bright for the club.

St Colmcilles Ladies -Virtual Walk for Feed the Heroes THAT’S A WRAP!!! The Ladies have SMASHED IT !!!! The club are justly proud of the Ladies who virtually travelled 3121.56km. Some walked, some ran, and others Cycled to virtually travel the Coastline of Ireland, in aid of#feed-the-heroes #getbehindyourlocalclub. The ladies answered this call from the Feed the Heroes organiser: “Since Feed The Heroes was established eight weeks ago, your support has allowed us to provide 156,971 meals to frontline staff through the COVID-19 emergency. We have delivered meals nationwide from Letterkenny to Bantry and from Castlebar to Dublin. Over that time we have spent €950,000 and delivered meals at an average cost of €7 per meal. Our goal has been simple, to ensure that nutritious meals reach teams on the frontline: ambulance paramedics, COVID-19 swab testers, contact tracers, medical scientists, ICU teams, COVID ward teams, and support staff across hospital and nursing home care settings. It has however been so much more than just a meal, but rather a tangible expression of your support and gratitude. Despite everyone’s generosity, we’re in danger of not being able to finish what we started. With the situation still on-going and current expenditure running at €170,000 per week, our finances are running critically short. Unless we receive extra funding, we won’t be able to sustain essential service through the end of May. That’s why we’re asking you to contribute one more time and help fund the final 25,000 meals for the incredible professionals that are spending 12-14 hours a day, 7 days a week to keep us safe and allowing us to stay home. “ Congratulations and well done to everyone involved. Swords is proud of you ladies.

SWORDS LOCAL-JUNE 2020

Phase 1 Roadmap for Reopening Society and Business The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted our lives. Now, thanks to your patience and sacriﬁce, we are taking the ﬁrst steps on a 5-phase reopening of our country. It is important to be aware of Public Health restrictions and guidance:

Work from home if you can. Bear in mind that most workplaces, especially offices, remain closed.

The 5km limit applies to outdoor exercise, social visits and visits to public amenities.

Social distancing, hygiene measures and coughing and sneezing etiquette must always be observed. Wash your hands regularly.

Stay home and self-isolate if sick.

Older and vulnerable people who are cocooning should stay indoors, apart from brief outdoor exercise.

These are some of the things that change from Monday, 18th May:

Community Health

Education & Childcare

Economic Activity & Work

Retail, Services & Commercial Activity

Cultural & Social

Transport & Travel

Small groups of up to 4 people – family or friends – may meet outdoors within 5km of home.

School and college buildings may reopen for teachers and staﬀ for the organisation and distribution of learning materials, related activities and essential administration

Construction workers where it is safe to do so can return to work.

Certain essential retailers and service providers may reopen – see below.

Non-essential overseas travel should be avoided.

Farmers’ markets, gardeners and other outdoor workers return to work: social distancing requirements continue to apply.

Garden centres and other retail outlets that are primarily outdoors may reopen.

Outdoor public amenities and tourism sites, e.g. carparks, beaches and mountain walks may reopen provided social distancing can be maintained.

It is recommended that face coverings be worn in public places such as shops and on busy public transport — go to gov.ie for guidance and advice on face coverings. Always maintain social distancing.

The purpose of school and college opening is solely to facilitate remote learning.

Exercise must take place within 5km of home.

Remote working continues for all others that can do so. The Return to Work Safely Protocol is the operative guide for employers and employees.

Remote working continues for all who can do so. The Return to Work Safely Protocol is the operative guide for employers and employees.

Outdoor public sports amenities, e.g. playing pitches, tennis courts and golf courses may reopen provided that social distancing can be maintained. Outdoor sporting and ﬁtness activities, either individually or in groups of no more than four people, are permitted provided that social distancing can be maintained and there is no physical contact. Note that the 5km from home restriction applies to all outdoor activity.

The following are the main retail activities that may operate from 18th May for essential supplies and services:

Food, beverages and newspapers (retail and wholesale) Household consumer products for safety and sanitation of homes and businesses Pharmacies and retailers providing pharmaceuticals or dispensing services Opticians/Optometrists outlets providing hearing test services, selling hearing aids and appliances Retail of medical and orthopaedic goods in specialised stores

Please stay the course, and please continue to save lives by staying apart. Details of the phased reopening of our country are available on gov.ie/phase1

Fuel stations and heating fuel providers Retailers involved in the sale, supply and repair of motor vehicles, motorcycles and bicycles and related facilities Essential items for health and welfare of animals Laundries and Drycleaners Banks, Post Oﬃces and Credit Unions Safety items e.g. work clothes and Personal Protective Equipment

Hardware stores, builders’ merchants and stores selling supplies and tools essential for gardening, farming and agriculture Oﬃce products and services Electrical, IT and phone sales, repair and maintenance services.

Local News

Swords Tidy Towns -making a difference

A beautiful sunny Swords, the yearly colourful display of flowers were put out by Fingal County Council all down Main St, makes such a difference. The river walk and park looking fab, pity about the vandalism done to the postbox.A beautiful sunny Swords today, the yearly colourful display of flowers were put out by Fingal County Council all down Main St,

makes such a difference. The river walk and park looking fab, pity about the vandalism done to the postbox.Also Great work done beside the river maintaining social distancing at all times. 4 bags of litter also picked on the Main Street, inside the Park entrance and along the river. Well done folks

www.facebook.com/SwordsLocal www.facebook.com/BalbrigganLocal

SWORDS LOCAL-JUNE 2020

Feature

Home schooling with dyslexia is not easy

by Siobhán O’Neill White

Home schooling is not easy! It’s difficult trying to stay on top of all the work the children are given and it can be tough when you have more than one child. Our 12 year old also has Dyslexia, which puts adds pressure. She has trouble with reading and spelling, which makes schoolwork difficult for her. Home schooling her can be challenging, as she often gets frustrated with reading and spelling. This makes her feel upset and frustrated and is hard on all of us. We wanted to make home schooling easier for her, to reduce her stress and also, honestly, to reduce our stress too. The first thing we did was speak with her teacher to explain she was feeling overwhelmed with the amount of work and the difficulty of it. He advised that she aim to do around 70%, to ease the workload for her and to make it more manageable. Straight away, that helped.Next thing we did was introduce a scanning pen into schoolwork. Scanning pens are so brilliant, especially for children with

Dyslexia. Now, when she is reading and comes across a word she does not understand, she rolls the pen over the word on the page of the book, and the pen reads the word aloud to her. It also has a dictionary function, so she can get the meaning of the word too. You can check out the pens at www.scanningpens. co.uk for a 14 day free parent trial. For sales advise and user support in Ireland, contact Brian Vickers at www.compupacit.ie He can answer your questions and help you decide if a scanning pen would be good for your child. The Dyslexia Association of Ireland are very helpful too. If you or your child is feeling overwhelmed, please don’t be afraid to speak with their teacher about it. The most important thing is that your child is healthy and well. They need exercise, play time, activities, good food and plenty of sleep. If they don’t get all the work done that’s ok. Their mental and physical health is the main priority. For more tips and support for families during this worrying time, log onto free parenting website, www.mams.ie

SWORDS LOCAL-JUNE 2020

Local News

Bleeding Pig Festival cancelled for this year The Bleeding Pig cultural Festival today announced that the 2020 Festival, due to run from 10-20 September, will not take place as originally planned this year.Larry Carolan on behalf of the committee and team at The Bleeding Pig Cultural Festival, said: ‘“We are so disappointed to announce that The Bleeding Pig Cultural Festival, as we know and love it, will not happen in its 8th year this September. The decision follows consultation of the Government’s roadmap for reopening society and business, and ongoing consultation with artists and partners. The health and safety of audiences, artists, volunteers and local citizens, remains the top priority and all activity will be within Government guidelines.We would like to sincerely thank all our sponsors, the local business community, schools, churches, volunteers, friends and audiences for their continued support and commitment to our Festival over the past years and we hope that we will be back again in 2021 to deliver your Festival in a safer and more settled time.In the meantime we will continue to update our Facebook page and website with items we feel will interest our audience.

Come a crisis, come Ireland’s call., We answer

The Irish are answering the call around the world to make a difference during the COVID-19 crisis.As we move into the next chapter of Ireland’s story, EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum invites people to share their #EPICIrish stories for a new exhibition. Watch the video at https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=DMhNFgOLgTg. Download from https://www.dropbox.com/sh/obz7m26592kiff3/ AAB5dM-_MulR2OMHKuQWvvy3a?dl=0 As an emigrating nation, the Irish have always been separated by land, seas and oceans. To many, we’re a nation defined by distance. Despite this, we’ve done alright. We’ve become politicians and scientists; built cities, developed schools 12

SWORDS LOCAL-JUNE 2020

and hospitals and invented colour photography and submarines. There’s always been a collective movement whether in Bandon or Boston to contribute to the local community, county and country .COVID-19 has stopped us in our tracks. Despite enforced separation, we’re seeing that same Irishness shine through. Volunteers helping the elderly, entertaining the isolated, feeding the hungry and bringing us closer by staying apart.“No one can be certain of when these uncertain times will come to a close.As a storytelling museum, EPIC is hoping that we can collectively document the impact of the Irish worldwide during the crisis. These stories will form a new chapter in our nation’s story.

We are inspired by Dr. Mike Ryan’s calm but consistently brilliant rallying cries, Irish medics travelling thousands of miles to come home to work and so many other supportive acts.” said Dr Patrick Greene, Museum Director and CEO.The stories will document and celebrate the difference Irish people at home and abroad are making in response to COVID-19.EPIC asks people to share any stories that show the difference the Irish continue to make at home and abroad, no matter the size, with the #EPICIrish hashtag and on their website at https://dublin.epicchq.com/ share-your-covid19-story Contact us: communitylocalseditor@gmail.com

Local News

Have your say in annual review of bathing waters

Fingal County Council is inviting people to have their say as part of the annual review of bathing waters across the region.Local authorities must identify official bathing areas in their area every year so that they can be monitored for safety, water quality and their level of use. To help with this process, Fingal County Council is asking people who swim at beaches, lakes and rivers to tell them if they think they should maintain existing designated bathing waters designations or give a new official bathing area designation to areas that are commonly used for swimming, but not identified at the moment.Under European and Irish law, Irish local authorities must identify bathing waters each year so that these areas can be monitored to ensure they meet stringent microbiological water quality standards. In some cases, the official bathing areas are also the areas where local authorities focus their

resources providing lifeguards during the summer season.These laws also require that the local authority prepares detailed descriptions or profiles for each of the identified bathing water sites that describe not just the bathing area but also areas in the surface waters catchment area that could be a source of pollution. The profiles include an assessment the risk of pollution and what action would be taken if pollution occurs.If you are a regular swimmer and want to help your Council decide which bathing areas should be classified as such, it might be helpful to consider the following:How your swimming area has been used up to now, How many people use the site, What facilities exist at the site and how accessible it is, Any safety issues.The public consultation is available to view at https://consult.fingal.ie/en/browse. The closing date for submissions is June 22.

Applications open for Restart Grant Applications for the Restart Grant which will give direct grant aid to micro and small businesses to help them with the costs associated with either staying open or reopening and reemploying workers following COVID-19 closures are being accepted from today, Friday, May 22.Businesses in Fingal, which fulfill the criteria, must apply for the Restart Grant though Fingal County Council. Applications are to be submitted on-line at https://submit.link/E5RPFand details of the scheme are also available on the Fingal County Council website,www. fingal.ie/businessThe Grant will be equivalent to the rates bill of the business in 2019, with a minimum payment of €2,000 and a maximum payment of €10,000. It will be available to businesses with a turnover of less than €5m and employing 50 people or less, which were closed or impacted by at least a 25% loss in revenue from April 1, 2020 to June 30, 2020. Eligible businesses who have stayed open throughout the

crisis, as well as those who are reopening under Phase 1 (from 18 May) and Phase 2 (8 June) of the Government’s Roadmap for Reopening Society and Business, are encouraged to apply now for the Restart Grant. These applications will be prioritised for payment. Other businesses are requested to wait until a few weeks before their business is due to reopen before submitting their application. To avail of the Restart Grant:A business must have a turnover of less than €5m and have 50 or less employees.The business must have suffered a projected 25%+ loss in revenue from 1st April 2020 to 30th June 2020.The business must commit to remain open or to reopen if it was closed. The business must also declare the intention to retain employees that are benefitting from the Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme (TWSS).Businesses should retain supporting documentation as spot-checks may be carried out to verify a declaration to this effect.

SWORDS LOCAL-JUNE 2020

Local News

Fingal CC finalists in the Royal Town Planning Institute UK

Lesotho Town and Regional Planning Institute Conference.

Fingal County Council were named as finalists in the RTPI Planning awards for the work in delivering quality planning and development training in Lesotho alongside Action Ireland Trust and Portmarnock Community School.This nomination in the category of “International Award for Planning Excellence” is a great recognition of the hard work, commitment and partnership with Action Ireland Trust and Portmarnock Community School in the delivery of quality planning and development in Lesotho.The Mayor of Fingal, Cllr. Eoghan O’ Brien, said: “It’s great to hear that our work with Action Ireland Trust and Portmarnock Community School in Lesotho has been recognized by being named as a finalist in the RTPI awards. Fingal County Council has undertaken a multi-focus planning initiative to support town planning in Lesotho which involves mapping, Local Area Plan production, capacity building and national planning guidance.Lesotho is now the most mapped country on the continent of Africa and the training undertaken by Fingal County Council Planners in 14

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Lesotho has been far reaching. UNICEF and other NGOs are keen to utilize these maps to plan their projects in Lesotho.A significant number of Lesotho planners are now on course to obtain a Masters in Spatial Planning from TU Dublin through the significant scholarship program that has been facilitated by Fingal County Council.Fran Whelan, CEO of Action Ireland Trust, said: “Without doubt the full extent of the Fingal County Council partnership is immeasurable in many ways particularly for the students of Portmarnock Community School who have been exposed to the importance of mapping and quality planning and development in Ireland and Lesotho.” The second Lesotho Town and Regional Planning Institute Conference, in conjunction with the Irish Planning Institute and Fingal County Council, took place this year looking at the impacts of climate change and planning. This was a historic event for planning and development in Lesotho that was attended by over 100 planners and professionals who travelled from across the country to attend the event.

Planning pic 2 School and schoolchildren in Lesotho.

Local News

A new immersive mobile digital installation for Fingal

Aoife Dunne with her “Transcending Time” Installation Van

“Transcending Time”, a new immersive mobile digital installation aims to brighten up the lives of Fingal residents during the Covid-19 pandemic by bringing on-demand uplifting artwork straight to their doorsteps by contacting the artist Aoife Dunne at the designated project website www.transcendingtime.ie where they can request a drive by visit from the installation van.This insightful new commission is presented under Fingal’s County Council’s Arts Office’s Public Art Programme and forms part of ‘Let’s Stay Together’ initiative.Visual vanguard Aoife Dunne is the inventor of this new outdoor exhibition where she re-envisages materials which constitute the physical world seen in her bespoke designs and 3D creations. Fingal residents will get the opportunity to request the mobile digital artwork to exhibit outside their houses/area, by visiting www. transcendingtime.ie. (not accessible through this article) Starting from Monday, June 8, the Transcending Time installation will be out on the road conjuring the absurd and fantastic into a fully travelling wonderland.The Mayor of Fingal, Cllr. Eoghan O’Brien, said: “Fingal Arts Office is committed to the local and national “In this Together” campaign where Departments across Fingal County Council are delivering a range of programmes and initiatives to support people’s physical and emotional wellbeing during Covid 19, while continuing to work on their objectives as

set out in their recently published Arts Strategy 2019 – 2025: Connecting People and Ideas and Bringing Fingal to Life Through the Arts.” Fingal residents will be given the opportunity to request the installation to their house/hospital/community centre by contacting Aoife via her dedicated website (see above) where she hopes to make Fingal citizens’ lives much brighter and more colourful by offering something new and special to see and talk about while they remain close to their homes. The Artist has considered all Health & Safety Guidelines during the development of this work.Transcending Time is an evocative 3D art installation which has been created specifically for the current times we are living in, where everyone is house-bound and feeling incredibly anxious and lacking inspiration. Artist Aoife Dunne thought it would be worth creating something to uplift the whole community, bringing a new lease of life and colour to the streets. This site-specific work will be delivered straight to Fingal residents’ front doors over the course of three days initially, by a van with large digital screens. It promises to mesmerize its suburban spectators with Aoife’s multi-disciplinary confections. Providing her trademark esoteric visual and audio elements, this work will offer a much-needed release from the ennui of lockdown, and the perfect escapism into the sublime worlds of her creation.

Council Appeal - Take Your Litter Home! Fingal County Council has appealed to park and beach users to respect social distancing and take their litter home when exercising within a 5km radius of their homes over the Bank Holiday weekend.The Council is alarmed at the dramatic increase this week in littering and dumping at parks and beaches across Fingal as well as the rise in the number of incidents of anti-social behaviour and the disturbance being caused to residents.Fingal County Council’s Director of Operations, David Storey, said: “We are particularly concerned that people are entering our parks after closing time and our park rangers have found significant levels of littering and dumping taking place overnight. Our parks close at 9pm each evening and the Gardaí Contact us: communitylocalseditor@gmail.com

will have extra night-time patrols to prevent gatherings at night. We work hard to maintain our parks to a high standard but we need people to act responsibly and safely, especially at this time because of the COVID-19 crisis.” Fingal County Council is asking people to:Only exercise within 5km of your home,Only gather in groups of up to four people, Observe the 2 metres social distancing protocol,Find somewhere quieter to exercise if a park, beach or open space is busy, Respect the designated time for cocooners to exercise in parks, which is 1.30pm to 3.30pm each afternoon,Do not dump your litter if a litter bin is full. Take it home and put it in your own refuse bin, Do not enter parks after the 9pm closing time. SWORDS LOCAL-JUNE 2020

Local News

Have your say: Fingal Voices App is live now

Fingal County Councilâ€™s Fingal Voices public consultation app is now publicly available.After some months of beta testing, the new mobile application called Fingal Voices is now publicly available on app stores. The app enables Fingal County Council residents to participate in decisionmaking, make their voices heard and engage with their local government in an innovative and fun manner.Residents can access public consultations directly via the smartphone app and will accrue points through their engagement which are convertible for vouchers and gifts at various local retail partners.Users can vote, rate and comment on specific consultations and questionnaires, submit ideas and suggest improvements, and access local and community news and events information.This is an additional service available to Fingal residents and does not replace the existing consultation mechanisms such as the Fingal County Council Consultation Portal. The app is available for Android at https://play.google.com/store/apps/ details?id=io.smartfutures.fingal.unheard_voices&ah=msoN0fTqJeJ6gFV8 pZGFsntfPVI and can be accessed for Apple devices at:https://apps.apple. com/us/app/fingal-voices/id1463183382

Swords Meals on Wheels welcomes PPE delivery Cllr Dean Mulligan dropped up another large donation of PPE and ancillary supplies recently to Swords Meals on wheels for distribution to our volunteer drivers and our clients to keep everyone safe in these ongoing difficult times, these are part of a very kind donation that Dean received from You & Us insurance ( Joe Bell) Local insurance broker of Swords, who is donating â‚Ź1000 worth of PPE supported by The Plaza Pharmacy. The various items which include masks, hand sanitizer and soap, as well as Swords Meals on Wheels, other local groups will benefit from this kind donation....Thank you Joe Bell and thank you again Dean Mulligan...great support and always appreciated... 16

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Local Sports

Fingal CC launches a star-studded new online video series

Former Ireland Tennis player and Federations Cup Captain, Yvonne Doyle

Mayor of Fingal Cllr Eoghan O Brien

Mayor of Fingal Cllr Eoghan O’Brien kicked off the series by encouraging young people to keep active and demonstrating his own ‘keepyuppy’ football skills, in a video accessible at https://bit.ly/3bWhKFk – followed by a Twitter challenge to all Fingal Councillors. The Mayor tweeted: “Hey @FingalSports let’s make this interesting! How many @Fingalcoco Cllrs can we get to post their sports skills Contact us: communitylocalseditor@gmail.com

Dublin Ladies Footballer and 4 time All Ireland winner, Lyndsey Davey.

challenge? I’ll donate €10 to a local charity for every skills vid uploaded by a Cllr. A tenner forfeit for anyone who ducks out maybe?” The Fingal Sports Stars videos to be released over the coming weeks will include information on the athlete and their road to success, their background and advice. The videos finish with a fun skills challenge for viewers to try at home. During the Covid-19 situation Fingal County

Dublin Senior Footballer and 6 time All Ireland winner, Eric Lowndes.

Council Sports Office continue to encourage people to stay at home and stay active.It has produced a number of ‘Fingal Digifit’ home exercise and sporting skills videos along with other activity sheets to keep children occupied. These can be found on the Healthy Fingal Learning Portal at https://learning.fingal.ie/ (cannot be accessed through this site)

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WIN €50 !!! WIN €50 !!! WIN €50 !!! WIN €50 !!! This is easy… we are offering you the chance to win €50. All you have to do is correctly fill in the crossword and discover the name of an area in Fingal spelt out in the coloured squares. Then send the completed crossword and your answer by email, with your name, address and telephone number to communitylocals@ gmail.com before 5pm on June 16. The first correct entry to be drawnwill win €50..Good luck

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Down

1. Paintings on walls. (6) 5. Division of a diocese. (6) 10. The real material. (7) 11. Likely to perform unpredictably. (7) 12. Skewer for meat and a disgusting habit. (4) 13. The first fruit. (5) 15. Case from which playing cards are dealt one at a time. (4) 17. A long period of time. (3) 19. Old man is a nut! (6) 21. Put to death. (6) 22. Protective glasses set in a flexible frame. (7) 23. Porter gives a short account of the news. (6) 25. Could be belly, pages or fever. (6) 28. Lightly strike the faucet. (3) 30. A fit of often silent anger or bad temper. (4) 31. Melon is another fruit. (5) 32. A confused murmur or flurry of activity. (4) 35. Make troops hard or harder. (7) 36. Tears up the inventor of partial sterilisation of a substance. (7) 37. Valuable stones. (6) 38. An assistant with power to act when a superior is absent. (6)

2. Radioactive element. (7)

3. A dull and persistent pain. (4) 4. Gather money together with difficulty. (6)

5. Spanish dish. (6)

6. Of meat only cooked a short time. (4)

7. Bag for school books. (7)

8. Sarah Palin was Governor here. (6) 9. A smooth final surface of a

substance, such as concrete, applied to a floor. (6)

14. You run it on a computer. (7)

16. Severely inflamed and painful. (5) 18. Sires for salary increases. (5) 20. A small spot, a speck. (3) 21. Opener. (3)

23. Far away, secluded. (6)

24. Fresh fruit and vegetables grown for the market. (7)

26. Tousled is the noisiest. (7)

27. A male magician or sorcerer. (6) 28. A game involving love. (6) 29. Slangily exhausted. (6)

33. Fit a horse with an outer foot covering. (4)

34. An invitation to reply. (4)

SUDOKU ANSWERS

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