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SANTA may be a while off coming down the chimney but for the young- sters at the Raheen Woods Steiner School, Christmas started at the weekend.

The children at the school were joined by staff, parents, friends and neighbours for their annual Advent Fair.

It was a fair with flair as young- sters got to grips with arts and crafts, making Christmas decorations and gifts that will be treasured for many

a year by older relatives.

Adults visiting the fair had a chance to buy some very special and unique Christmas gifts from the stalls dis- playing the work of local artisans.

Art works, jewellery, apparel and accessories were all on display and quite a few will find their way under Christmas trees in east Clare

Because Christmas shopping and decorating is a hungry business, the organisers laid on delicious soups, teas and coffees.

‘The emphasis in the fair is allow- ing children to participate and there

were lots of activities and games for them as well as a play”, a spokesman for the school said.

After years of campaigning, the two Clare Steiner schools were given official recognition by the Depart- ment of Education this year so they will now receive funding reducing the need for parents and the school to pay for the entire running of the school, including teachers’ salaries.

But that didn’t mean that the an- nual fund-raising Advent Fair was any less necessary than in previous years.

‘Every school could do with extra funds for equipment and activities and we also have a special bursary to help families who need assistance with the costs of schooling so some of the money raised will go towards that”, the spokesman said.

THE fallout from last weeks CAP Health Check continued to dominate affairs this week with a war of words erupting between Agriculture Minis- ter, Brendan Smith, and the farming organisations.

Following negative comments from the organisation on the results of the EU talks, Minister Smith accused the organisations of misunderstand- ing the results of the Health Check and of spreading “misleading” infor- mation about its results.

Last Thursday, the president of the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers’ As- sociation (ICSA), Malcolm Thomp-

son, challenged Smith’s assertion that Irish farmers are being misled and that they will not lose out from the increase in modulation announced as part of the Health Check.

‘The minister 1s ignoring the fact that money deducted from the Single Farm Payment may not be accessed by farmers so readily.

“Some farmers will certainly lose out, and those who gain will be faced with additional onerous conditions in order to draw down the funding un- der rural development schemes such as REPS,” he said.

Speaking in May EU Commis- sioner Fischer Boel emphasised that one of the main benefits of modula-

tion was that the member states were expected to match the modulated funds euro for euro with exchequer funding.

However, the final outcome of the negotiations was that the 50 per cent matching funding from mem- ber states was reduced to just 25 per cent.

“Worryingly, the minister has made no reference to this in his statements. ICSA is calling on the minister to confirm that this matching excheq- uer funding will be put in place,” said Thompson.

“ICSA welcomes the minister’s success 1n gaining access to unused funds which he has reassured farm-

ers will be worth €23 million per annum from 2010 onwards.

“However, farmers will remain sceptical until the details of how this money will be allocated are out- lined.”

Moving to reassure farmers Min- ister Smith said that Irish farmers would “not lose one cent” from the increase 1n modulation.

“The gain to farmers would come from the access to unused funds in our single farm payment ceilings.

“It was a tough battle in the nego- tiations to get access to these funds and I am very pleased that this was agreed in the final meeting this week,” he said.

SHANNON town has much on offer to suit wide-ranging interests — an at- tractive shopping outlet, a good mix of ambitious, thriving businesses and an ideal location close to many tour- ist attractions.

Much has been achieved in the town over the years, in terms of plan- ning and development, while several other key projects are currently being planned.

The local town council ensures that the upkeep of the town is a priority, while dozens of community and vol- untary groups aim to enhance the lives of the residents in the town.

From the schools’ activities, to the sports clubs, to the talent groups, to the senior citizens group, every age group 1s catered for in Shannon. The establishment of international group Le Chéile na Sionna is a reflection of the changing nature of the town, where many foreign nationals have come to live in recent years.

While there is an abundance of hobbies available for the people of Shannon, plans are ongoing in rela- tion to new, welcome initiatives.

Plans are afoot to establish a walk- ing trail in the region. The trail will take the shape of a loop, taking in Shannon and Bunratty. While the proposal is still in its infancy, it has created a huge amount of interest and

there is a sense of optimism that it will get off the ground.

The development of a pitch and putt course is also a strong possibility and four sites have been identified in the town. A recent public meeting to dis- cuss this yielded positive feedback and the people of Shannon firmly believe that such a facility would be a huge boost to the town.

The SkyCourt shopping centre of- fers a wide range of choice to shop- pers in the mid-west. Since it opened in 2004, SkyCourt has attracted several top names in retail and has

earned a fine reputation as a reputa- ble shopping outlet.

Its recent launch of the gift card scheme will undoubtedly augur well for SkyCourt, which boasts a rich blend of fashion, food and conven- ience outlets in its malls.

Newer shops including Lifestyle Sports, Apache Pizza and Subway have joined outlets such as Dunnes Stores, O’Brien’s Sandwich Bar and Xtra Vision, which have been in ex- istence for a number of years.

Given that Shannon Airport is lo- cated in the area, every effort has

been made to ensure many tourist options are available to those who travel into the country. Shannon Development plays a major role in promoting tourist activities in the immediate area, where the local ho- tels and restaurants in Shannon and surrounding areas are top class. Given that many businesses are lo- cated in the town, the role of Shan- non Chamber of Commerce is criti- cal. It is recognised as one of the fastest growing chambers in the country. More than 170 companies are members, which represents 8,500

employees.

Shannon Chamber of Commerce works for the economic development of Shannon town and the adjoining area. The chamber makes every ef- fort to ensure that Shannon becomes a dynamic centre with cultural, sport- ing and educational facilities suitable for a town of its size. As Shannon is largely dependent on industry, it also works towards attracting new busi- nesses to the town, with a view to creating employment.

The chamber actively engages in ways to assist its members and en- courage development. It has set up its own online poll, a service that allows its members to express views on is- sues that impact on their businesses. The chamber uses this information to better understand any concerns its members may have and address these TESS CoaSe

It has four sub-committees that en- sure a cross-section of the commu- nity benefits from its work — retail; school and youth career support; liv- ing, working and investing in Shan- non and enterprise and industry.

All of these groups work together to promote Shannon and to ensure that the town will continue to thrive in every way.

ALTHOUGH conditions in Kilkee courthouse were unsuitable for court sittings, the last ever court held in the town last week was tinged with sad- ness and nostalgia.

The courthouse in Kilkee is damp and dilapidated and has not been ideal for court sittings for some time. However the decision to move Kilkee court sittings to Kilrush came as part of a national initiative to centralise CLOUT MMT RB ENTS

The Kilkee move is one of sev- eral changes in court venues in the county, to take effect from the start of 2009. No longer will court sittings take place in Miltown Malbay, Lis- doonvarna, Corofin, Tulla, Scariff and Kildyart. The courts in Ennis, Kilrush, Killaloe and Ennistymon (which currently sits in Kilrush, until a suitable venue is found in the north Clare town), instead, will become bigger with longer lists prevailing.

Solicitor Gearodid Williams said in Kilkee court last Tuesday morning that it was a sad day to see the final court taking place in the town hall there.

Judge Joseph Mangan said it was no longer appropriate to hold courts in poor conditions and noted that a new courthouse would not be built in Kul- kee. He thanked the people of Kilkee for their co-operation over several years of court sittings in the town.

The question arises – what will hap- pen to the old town hall which has hosted the Kilkee court sittings over the years? According to Clare County Council, the building – a listed build- ing – remains in the control of the lo- CHIE: TUM eleven

However, it is unlikely that it will be refurbished. “It would take sub- stantial resources to do it up. No substantial programme of works has been done there for years. However, we are open to ideas,’ said a council spokesman.

‘Whatever future work will be done will require substantial refurbish- ments and there is no money for it,” he added.

“The first thing we must do is to establish its future use. Secondly we must look at what refurbishments have to be undertaken and then to es- tablish a source of funding for that. All of those matters have to be taken into consideration,’ he added.

The local town council traditionally met at the venue a number of years ago but has since moved to the lo- cal library for its monthly meetings, meaning that the building will be left idle in the immediate future.

Although the court sittings have only been held at those locations across the county monthly, or in some cases just three or four times a year, the local communities did enjoy the hustle and bustle associated with them over the years.

A LEADING Clare constrution com- pany has revealed they have business worth €10 milion lined up which may have to be put on ice because of the credit squeeze.

And following reports in The Clare People last week that migrant wotk- ers are giving up on the Celtic Tiger and going home, a Clare councillor has called for planners to cut de- velopers some slack to keep skilled

people here.

Keco’s Bernard Bartley say they have millions worth of building work lined up, but , he warned, a lack of credit means many lucrative projects are being put on the back burner .

‘We would have work lined up for next year that would be worth €10 million but the banks are not giving out money and until they start lend- ing again, it will cause problems.

Last week, a Lithuanian company held jobs fairs here to encourage for-

eign nationals who came to Ireland to seek work to return home.

And Orla Ni Eili of Clare’s Im- migrant Suport Service, said that the service has seen “a lot of people leaving and some planning to leave. Work is much harder to get now, par- ticularly in the building trade.”

Labour councillor, Pascal Fitzger- ald has called on the planners in Clare County Council to do their ut- most to grant planning permissions and keep skilled craftsmen from

leaving the country.

“I’m concerned about the number of skilled young people who are head- ing for the airport every day to take off for Australia and other places where they can find work”, he said.

The councillor said that while he understands there has been a huge drop in the number of planning ap- plications which are coming before the council, where at all possible, he has asked that the planners give per- misssions.

Further eveidence of the slump in the building trade emerged last week when Killaloe builders, Tom Hayes Ltd, commented that building com- panies have “no option” but to let Staff go”.

Meanwhile, the Mid West Branch of the Construction Industry Federa- tion (CIF) has stated it is “delighted with the decision taken by their ex- ecutive to unanimously reject the na- tional pay agreement and seek a 10 per cent reduction in pay rates.

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THE weekend action involving the Kilmihil ladies and men in All-Ire- land and provincial final action re- spectively will prove to be a family affairs in many ways. That’s because of the links between the two sides.

Where to start!

The three O’Hallorans, Lorraine, Joan and Denise, on the ladies team are sisters of Enda who has made a telling contribution to the men’s team when introduced as a substitute in the county final, provincial quar- ter-final and semi-final.

Keith Considine was also a signifi- cant sub in Kilmihil’s victory over the “Barrs last day out — he’s a broth- er of the two stars of the Kilmihil ladies attack in the persons of Ailish and Eimear Considine.

Edel McMahon is a daughter of the team trainer James McMahon, while Karl Downes, who is wing-back on the men’s team is a brother of Una and Colette Downes.

Una Downes is one of two mem- bers of the Kilmihil team involved with the county intermediate team that reached the All-Ireland final this year. Downes, was a member of the Kildoon Gaels team that won the senior championship back in 2003,

That team was an amalgamation of Kimihil and Doonbeg and five years on there’s a strong Doonbeg connec- tion with Kilmihil’s march to the All-Ireland final. Edel Conway, Sa- rah Cahill, Yvonne Downes, Linda Russell and Mairéad Nugent are the Doonbeg contingent on the Kilmihil panel.

‘“There’s a great atmosphere build- ing up in Kilmihil this week,” says Una Downes. “All the shops have bunting up and as the countdown to the two final starts. The build-up has been great with the two teams look- ing forward to finals.

“At the start of year when we began training we weren’t thinking of an All-Ireland. We didn’t expect to be here but we’ve worked very hard. In all are games since the county final we’ve come from behind, so in this final we’ll be hoping to make a bet- ter start.”