Community Development

Community facilities are vital to the life of the county.  Schools and other educational facilities, libraries, churches and other places of worship, crèches, youth clubs, meeting spaces, cultural centres (such as Kilkenny Arts office and the Butler Gallery), health centres, clinics, hospitals and social service centres, all help to maintain and nurture a sense of community as well as providing for the educational, cultural, social and health needs of citizens. Similarly a diverse range of recreation and open space facilities such as sports pitches, public parks and demesnes, indoor sports centres (like the Watershed), and walking and cycling routes, are vital to the health and wellbeing of the residents of the county.

Kilkenny has a range of high quality open space, recreational and community facilities provided by the public, private and voluntary sectors. However there continues to be a need for additional facilities and improvements to existing resources to raise standards and serve an expanding population.

Open space forms an important part of the network of green spaces around us, sometimes referred to as our ‘green infrastructure’. ‘Green infrastructure’ planning can help us to plan for open space in the county as a central part of the planning process.

• Is there an adequate provision of schools and educational facilities throughout the County?
• What community facilities are most required in County Kilkenny and should these be distributed in line with the settlement hierarchy?
• Are community facilities for older people, disabled and minority groups adequately met? If not, how do we meet these needs?