The organisers of the north’s only County Fleadh to be turned down for funding from its local council have described the lack of support as a “slap in the face”.
The Derry County Fleadh was hosted in Derry city earlier this month and was the only such event to not receive financial support from its branch of local government.
County fleadhs are annual festivals and competitions which showcase traditional Irish music and dance, with entrants going on to compete at provincial and All-Ireland fleadhanna.
The city became the first northern host of the Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann in 2013, which will return to the north when it is held in Belfast next year.
Host branch CCÉ Baile na gCailleach applied for Community Festival Funding from Derry City and Strabane District Council (DCSDC) to host this year’s event but was unsuccessful.
Similar community festival funds were awarded by Causeway Coast & Glens Borough Council to the hosts of the Antrim Fleadh in Ballycastle (£750) and Fermanagh & Omagh District Council to the county fleadhs in Fermanagh (£3,500) and Tyrone (£5,900).
Meanwhile, the amount awarded to the Down and Armagh organisers by Newry, Mourne & Down District Council (NMDDC) has not yet been publicly disclosed.
Ring of Gullion CCÉ has already publicly thanked NMDDC for supporting its Armagh Fleadh in Mullaghbawn and Forkhill.
The council has also moved to support the Ulster Fleadh, which is being held in its district this summer, and in 2024/25 provided Down Fleadh hosts Newcastle CCÉ and Ulster Fleadh hosts Warrenpoint CCÉ with £9,879 and £10,000 in arts and culture funding respectively.
County Derry Fleadh co-chair Ollie Green told The Irish News that the lack of support for a second year in a row was “disappointing” and a “slap in the face”.
“Our branch, CCÉ Baile na gCailleach, have hosted the county fleadh for the last two years and very successfully,” he said.
“We had a great fleadh this year despite lack of support from council, and it was the same last year, but at this stage you’re relying on local businesses and sponsorship and a huge amount of work by volunteers.
“We were very disappointed in terms of our council that they didn’t seem fit to support.”
He said that in previous years, when the council had awarded them funding, there had been a noticeable difference in the size and scale of the event.
Musicians at the launch of the All-Ireland Fleadh 2026 at Belfast City Hall earlier this year.
PICTURE COLM LENAGHAN
“We were able to do things; we were able to bring the fleadh into the city centre,” he said.
“We had 500 kids dancing on the Peace Bridge, we had the president of Comhaltas coming over from England.”
Mr Green added that there seemed to be a “lack of ambition” with regards to “potentially supporting the growth and development of traditional Irish arts in the city”.
“It’s live and it’s vibrant and we have some outstanding young musicians coming through our ranks,” he said.
“You would have liked to have thought your local council would have identified and seen that, in supporting traditional Irish arts, as they do in other counties.”
Following on from the success of the city hosting the All-Ireland festival, he added that it was “worth investing in its grassroots”.
A DCSDC spokesperson said that the council is “committed to supporting all areas of arts and culture” throughout the district and that it “works closely with members of the Arts and Culture Co-delivery Group to assist in identifying and securing funding opportunities”.
“Unfortunately this year there has been a significant increase in demand for council’s Cultural Grant Aid programme which exceeded the available budget,” they said.
They added that it was a “competitive process” with funding allocated “through a robust assessment, criteria and scoring process” and unsuccessful applicants receiving feedback and assistance on how to avail of other funding sources.