Louth initiatives awarded almost €350,000 to support young people's mental health
Creative Spark CLG in Dundalk has been awarded €99,700 for its Blooming Minds Club
Two Louth initiatives supporting young people's mental health through creativity have secured almost €350,000 in Government funding under the Creative Youth Nurture Fund.
Creative Spark CLG in Dundalk has been awarded €99,700 for its Blooming Minds Club: Voice, Space & Influence in Creative Recovery project, while Crisis Cafe Youth Mental Service Northern Ireland has secured €250,000 for its cross-border initiative, Release: The Letter I Would Never Send, which will be delivered across Down and Louth.
The funding was announced by Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport Patrick O'Donovan TD as part of the latest Creative Youth Nurture Fund awards, with 15 projects selected nationwide following a competitive application process.
Creative Spark's funding comes under the Creative Youth Nurture Fund (Strand A), with just nine projects selected nationally.
The award builds on the success of the existing Blooming Minds Club, a youth-led, artist-supported creative arts hub based at Creative Spark in Dundalk, with outreach workshops also taking place in Drogheda.
The programme is designed specifically for young people experiencing mental health difficulties who are attending, or have previously attended, Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) in North Louth, South Louth and the East Louth Mental Health Service (ELMS).
Rather than simply providing activities, the project places young people at the centre of the creative process, enabling them to co-design and shape the arts hub while exploring a range of creative disciplines in a supportive environment.
The initiative aims to foster creativity, confidence and belonging, while giving participants a safe space to connect with others through artistic expression.
The second successful project with a Louth connection forms part of the Creative Youth Nurture Fund's Shared Island strand.
Crisis Cafe Youth Mental Service Northern Ireland has secured €250,000 for Release: The Letter I Would Never Send, a cross-border creative initiative linking young people in Counties Down and Louth.
The Shared Island funding supports projects that bring together young people from both jurisdictions to build understanding, collaboration and lasting connections through creativity.
Crisis Cafe provides accessible, community-based mental health support for young people by removing many of the barriers associated with traditional services. The organisation operates without referrals or waiting lists, allowing young people to access support when they need it.
Alongside one-to-one support, Crisis Cafe offers workshops, group activities and practical tools designed to help young people build resilience, confidence and positive mental wellbeing.
Overall, the Creative Youth Nurture Fund will invest more than €2.19 million across 15 projects nationwide.
Nine projects under the Creative Youth Nurture Fund will share more than €733,000 to support children and young people who often face barriers to accessing creative opportunities, with programmes running until the end of 2027.
A further six Shared Island projects will receive €1.46 million to deliver cross-border creative programmes through to 2028.
Announcing the funding, Minister Patrick O'Donovan said the projects reflect Creative Ireland's commitment to ensuring every child and young person has the opportunity to realise their creative potential.
"The ambition of the Creative Ireland Programme is to inspire and transform people, places and communities through creativity," he said.
"These projects will reach children and young people across the island and nurture their innate creativity, giving them the time, support and agency to be creative and build connections, from across communities, and even within challenging environments."