Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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49. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the initiatives in County Galway that will benefit from the national creativity fund; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [47306/18]

Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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The Creative Ireland National Creativity Fund was launched on 17 May 2018 with a closing deadline of the 15 June. A total number of 287 applications were received in respect of the fund, far exceeding expectations. Following an initial review by officials by my Department, 77 of these these were submitted to an independent expert panel for analysis and scoring against published set criteria. A total of 30 projects were ultimately approved for funding, with grants varying from a minimum of €10,000 to a maximum of €70,000. Cumulatively, the total funding being made available to support these projects across 2018 and 2019 amounts to approximately €1.2m.

The purpose of the National Creativity Fund is to develop strategic collaborationswith a variety of organisations/individuals in order to identify and develop new initiatives that support the broad objectives of the Creative Ireland Programme and help inform policy and/or cross-sectoral development in the area of culture, creativity and wellbeing.

Two projects in Galway are being supported under the Fund. The Galway University Hospitals Arts Trust Limitedwill be rolling out a comprehensive programme of exhibitions, events, and public engagement for and with the hospital community across Ireland’s largest geographical Hospital Group - the Saolta University Health Care Group, over the next twelve months. This will include workshops, public performances, the development of a strategic arts policy for the Saolta University Health Care Group, a series of arts interventions in public spaces, a month long pilot for a poet doctor programme and a 6-month artist residency pilot.

The Galway Childcare Committee and Groundswell Arts will pilot ‘The Lullaby Project’ which will partner professional musicians with parents, carers, and early years practitioners to compose bespoke personalised songs for young children in three diverse early years settings. The project will build on Galway’s strong musical traditions and raise the profile of how music in early years can support and nurture children, increase wellbeing, support inclusion and build lasting relationships with families.

Full details on the projects supported under the scheme are available on the Creative Ireland Programme website .