Well-known areas in Cork announced as winners in TidyTown competition

Well-known areas in Cork have been announced as category winners in this year’s TidyTown competition.

Rosscarbery was awarded Ireland’s Tidiest Village and Clonakilty was awarded Ireland’s Tidiest Small Town.

Cobh TidyTowns was highly commended in the Young Persons in TidyTowns category and was one of the large town regional winners in the All-Ireland Pollinator - Local Authority Pollinator Award category.

Cobh Tidy Towns and Clean Coast Cobh were also the regional winners in the Waters and Communities Award category.

Sherkin Island was highly commended in the Island Award category and Bere Island was the national winner of the category.

Over 750 TidyTowns volunteers were present at the SuperValu TidyTowns awards ceremony at the RDS in Dublin, with thousands more watching online.

Trim in Meath was announced as Ireland’s Tidiest Town for 2022.

Announcing Trim as the overall winners, Minister Humphreys said it was a moment of great pride for Trim and the wider county of Meath.

Having first entered the competition in 1959, Trim today continues to showcase all that is good about community and volunteerism.

“I have no doubt that the TidyTowns Group in Trim will receive a warm and deserving homecoming as they celebrate this wonderful occasion.” 

Minister Humphreys said the level of competition was extremely high this year with the third-highest number of entries ever recorded in its almost 65-year history.

“I want to pay tribute to all the winners today but, above all, I want to say a huge thank you to the thousands of TidyTowns volunteers across the country.

The time and effort that you put into making your town or village a better place says so much about your commitment and dedication to your community.

“Your hard work and enthusiasm is nothing short of inspiring,” she said.

Minister Humphreys also thanked SuperValu, the competition’s sponsor.

Managing Director of SuperValu, Ian Allen, said: “On behalf of SuperValu, I would like to congratulate Trim for being named Ireland’s tidiest town for 2022, 50 years since the town first won the competition in 1972.

“It’s a wonderful achievement and a testament to the hard work and commitment of the committee and team of volunteers involved. It’s also important to acknowledge the extraordinary achievement and efforts of the category winners.

“This year marked another milestone year for the SuperValu TidyTowns competition, with a record 1,000 groups engaging in the competition, and an incredible 882 entries.

Congratulations to all the incredible committee members, who, in collaboration with our network of independent retailers, share our desire to build thriving, sustainable communities.

Minister Humphreys also announced a special allocation of €1.4 million in funding to support the work of individual TidyTowns Groups around the country to assist them in their continued efforts to enhance their towns and villages.

This is the sixth consecutive year that funding has been provided to support these groups and brings the total allocated since 2017 to €8.1 million.