Two major Offaly arts developments announced

EXCITING updates on two arts developments, Birr Creative Court and The Animation Residency, were shared during a public meeting in the town's Theatre & Arts Centre last week.
The meeting was held by Birr 20:20 Vision, an organisation which was established in 2014 to contribute to the growth and development of the town. The attendance of about 35 people was told about the planned return of The Birr Animation Residency and the progress of the Birr Creative Court project. Offaly County Council representatives, new Arts Officer Maeve Mulrennan, and former Chairs of Birr 20:20 Salters Sterling and John Carroll, were in attendance to hear how both projects will play a key role in the heritage town's creative and cultural make-up, with information shared through short presentations, a discussion and Q&A, followed by networking.
After a two year break, the Birr Animation Residency returned during the Autumn. Giving young animators the opportunity to live in Birr for six months while working on their passion projects, the residency has been a huge success. As well as producing award-winning work, including two IFTAs (Irish Film and Television Academy) in 2020 and 2023, products of the residency have been shown at prestigious festivals in Ireland, Europe and further afield.
Strong support for its future expansion has been secured via co-funder, the JVM Trench Trust. The long-term hope for the Animation Residency is for it to become an anchor tenant for the Birr Creative Court, strengthening the town as an inspirational destination for animation and creativity, and the town's future attractiveness as a centre for the animation industry.
Also on the evening’s agenda were updates on the Creative Court, which is the name for the redevelopment of Birr Courthouse as a creative arts hub. This is a project which has been in the works since 2019, led by Birr 20:20 Vision and Offaly County Council (OCC). The ambition is for the historic 19th century courthouse, which has been closed since 2013, to become a vibrant home of artists’ studios, rehearsal and exhibition spaces, community rooms and external creative and exhibition areas.
Presentations were given by Michael Hanna, Chair of the Birr 20:20 Courthouse working group, Arlene Guilfoyle, member of the Offaly County Council team coordinating the Council’s application to the Rural Regeneration Development Fund (RRDF) and Gary Hoctor, who has led the development of animation in Birr. Michael said the purpose of the meeting was to ask the public for their support in making a big push for major RRDF funding to complete the project. “We are all hoping that a call for submissions will come before the end of the year,” he said, “ and in that case, we have to be 'shovel ready' to go.”
Denis Shine, chairperson of Birr 2020, welcomed everyone and invited Michael Hanna to summarise the progress over the past 10 years. Michael began with the inclusion of the Courthouse in the Culture and Heritage pillar of Birr 20:20 at a public meeting ten years ago. He took us through Louise Browne’s scoping report, The Birr Festivals Collective report during Covid-19, weatherproofing the building by OCC, the Howley Hayes Cooney conservation masterplan and, most recently, the draft Forvis Mazars Business Case. In the meantime the Courthouse yard has already been used by Birr Vintage Week and Arts Festival and the Animation Bursary is now in its 6th session. Gary Hoctor gave an inspiring presentation about the progress of animation in Birr over this time and its potential to create an animation industry in the town, if proper housing is provided in the Creative Court. With the support of OCC and the Trench Trust, it was pointed out, Birr can now boast a growing alumni of animators who have spent time here pursuing their dreams. Birr has a lot to offer an animation industry here, Gary pointed out, including student bursaries, low set up costs, a supportive community, and inspiring surroundings.
In the Creative Court there will also be spaces for visual artists, young musicians and sound artists, and community groups, and the plans include space in the Courthouse Yard for a new flat-floor extension for exercise and dance. “These spaces,” remarked Michael, “will complement the performance spaces we already have in Birr, including the Birr Theatre and Arts Centre and our two wonderful churches.”
A refurbished courthouse will be leased by Offaly County Council to Birr 20:20 which has the legal status to govern the facility on behalf of the Council. Birr 20:20 will provide a management committee and seek funding for a small management team to run the building and seek grants to support artists to work there. Under the umbrella of the town's Festivals Collective, courthouse spaces will be available for performance and rehearsal.
In the discussion that followed the presentations, Salters Sterling made the point that Birr 20:20 had recognised from the beginning the strategic importance of the courthouse at this key location. What could be worse, he asked, than having a decayed and unused heritage building as the visitor enters the historic, heritage town of Birr? And what could be better than having a restored and repurposed heritage building hosting creative artists – in time perhaps, a whole creative quarter, as the future visitor enters the historic, heritage town of Birr?
Thanks were extended to Councillor Seán Maher for providing support and to Emma Nee Haslam and Birr Theatre for hosting the event, as well as to all those who made the effort to come out on a cold winter’s evening to lend their support and interest. “If the call comes,” remarked Michael Hanna, “it will be all hands on deck to get behind the OCC RRDF team in putting together the final submission for this major project. We ask all who have the good of Birr at heart, who want to see the town’s culture and heritage thrive and flourish; we ask those who live and work in the town, those who have moved away and those who are living abroad (but who still love the childhood home that formed them), please offer your support as we try to get this project over the line.”
Denis Shine told the Tribune that approximately €300,000 has been spent on urgent roof repairs (to prevent water ingress) at the Courthouse since 2021, and on repairs to the windows and the front door. He said the Council has initiated Part 8 Planning for the refurbishment of the Courthouse, and the funding sought for this refurbishment could be between €2 million to €3 million.

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