Kerry County Council has been delighted to be involved in the Pride of Place competition for many years now.

Like all other counties across Ireland, throughout County Kerry we have lots of diverse groups, associations and organisations who selflessly provide a wide range of services across many sectors. These organisations work in and support every community. They support people with disabilities and medical conditions, children, young people, older people, migrants, people experiencing poverty. They advocate for environmental causes and campaign for social justice. They promote arts and culture and, in many cases, provide supports and services that Government is not able to provide.

Pride of Place is an ideal platform to recognise the huge efforts being made by these communities and to thank the local volunteers for their selfless efforts in making local communities better places to live and work in.

The competition is based on the selected entrants demonstrating directly to the judges their pride in their place by oral presentation, exhibitions of community activities and culture and a tour of the area highlighting the aspects of which they are particularly proud. Many of the volunteers may not have had the opportunity to represent their County before and the Pride of Place competition gives that unique opportunity to put the best foot forward.

In preparing for adjudication, the council’s designated liaison officer works closely with each of the entrants to support the demonstration of good governance and whole community involvement and to maximise the opportunity to compete positively in the Pride of Place assessment process. This involves networking, the exchange of ideas and an opportunity to learn from others.

Throughout this process, real partnerships between the communities and their local council are developed and strengthened. The relationships formed sustain well beyond the competition.

From the Council’s perspective, the competition gives an opportunity to experience at first-hand the remarkable work that goes on in local communities that may otherwise go unacknowledged.

From the communities’ perspective, the experience in Kerry has been an overwhelming positive feedback and an acknowledgment of the tangible benefits from participation in the competition, e.g. increased sense of pride, motivation to continue the commitment to provide excellent community facilities and programmes and increased recognition for the work from the local council and local community.