All you need to know about Mulranny's Entente Florale bid
The community of Mulranny and Mayo County Council are looking forward to welcoming the judges from the Entente Florale competition on Friday to adjudicate their entry in the 2019 Entente Florale Competition
Mary Joyce is the chair of the Entente Florale Steering Committee in Mulranny and she says: “It’s an exciting time for the village and we look forward to celebrating as we welcome our international guests on Friday.”
She explained how Mulranny was chosen to represent Ireland on the European stage.
“It started with a phone call from the National Tidy Towns unit to see would we participate. The Irish judges visited Mulranny and sat with us along with some personnel from Mayo County Council. Two weeks after Christmas they contacted us to say we had been selected so the work started then.
“From that point on we have been absolutely busy. We had a public meeting with the mentors and the public to see could we get people to buy into it. We had a lot of work to do in the village, particularly in relation to the church, the school, the community centre and the cemetery.”
What is Entente Florale?
Entente Florale Europe is a social, cultural and environmental competition for towns and villages. Each participating country puts forward a representative town and village. Participating towns and villages are visited by the jury and an on-site assessment is made.
The competition was founded about 41 years ago, initially between Great Britain and France.
At present there are 12 affiliated countries and further applications for membership are being processed.
There are three categories, Cities/Towns with a population over 30,000, Towns with populations between 5,000 & 30,000, and Villages with a population below 5,000. Every member country can put forward two entries from two different categories.
Judging
The judges will be in Mulranny to inspect a number of different aspects in the village:
Planning & Development – this includes the Environmental components, the community’s role in planning & development, and the sustainability of a Green Plan for the village.
Sustainable Environment – The water quality, waste management and Green Plan in the village.
Built Environment – The knitting together of the various building styles in Mulranny with the natural lush vegetation and future conservation plans for Mulranny.
Landscape – The beautiful landscape offered by Mulranny including the soil quality and how the rare Old Irish Goat thrives there.
Green Spaces – The use of green spaces in the village, including the Golf Course, Greenway and Loop Walks.
Planting – How Mulranny has focused it’s efforts on enhancing and sustaining the natural environment through grass cutting, floral displays and treating invasive species outbreaks.
Environmental Education – Community groups using outside resources such as the beach and participating in a variety of environmental programmes in the local school.
Effort & Involvement – The work put into the village by various associations and organisations including the Tidy Towns Committee, Men’s Shed and the Old Irish Goat Society.
Tourism & Leisure – Mulranny Tourism and their work, how the village has embraced the County Mayo Tourism Strategy & Action Plan and what activities are available for visitors to the village.
Communications – The work being done to market Mulranny as a destination for domestic and international visitors.
What's happening and when
There will be a flag-raising ceremony at the promenade at 11.30 a.m. with a presentation to the judges at 1 p.m.. This will be followed by a question and answer session.
The judges will begin their official tour of Mulranny at 1.45 p.m., visiting 12 locations on foot, by bike and by bus.
The locations are: the Environmental Centre, Mulranny Cemetery, Mulranny Amenity Centre, St Brendan’s Village, the Promenade, Tourist Office, Centenary Garden, Old Station House, Mulranny Greenway, Mulranny School, the beach and the pier
The judges tour finishes at the pier at 5 p.m. and they will then offer their feedback to the committee before leaving the village.
Ann Moore, leading out behalf of Mayo County Council, believes the tour is a great opportunity for Mulranny and Mayo.
“This will be an opportunity for Mulranny to showcase themselves and show how much the village has achieved.”
“It’s a fantastic opportunity for both Mulranny and the county. It’s an opportunity to showcase the village and the excellent work that has been done by various voluntary organisations in Mulranny and to promote Mulranny on a national and European stage.”
Mary Joyce agrees.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity for Mulranny. When Tidy Towns set up in 1991 we never imagined we would be chosen to represent Ireland. There had been many hiccups along the way but we kept working hard, improving our markings and our village year on year. Here we are now representing Ireland and we’re delighted to do it.
“Anything that puts Mulranny on the map is a good thing. RTE’s Nationwide will be coming to the village as well to film for their programme. This will be a great promotional opportunity for the hotel, guesthouses and businesses in the village.”