Urban Animation Scheme

This scheme is now closed.

Fáilte Ireland’s Urban Animation Capital Investment Scheme is a new pilot Capital Grants Scheme for Local Authorities aimed at supporting sustainable tourism development through public realm and urban animation projects that have the potential to transform and re-imagine urban centres for visitors and communities. 

Tourism has been one of the worst affected sectors by the COVID-19 pandemic with tourism and hospitality businesses closed for lengthy periods. Consumer research undertaken by Fáilte Ireland during the pandemic has shown that the public and visitors remain interested in our key urban centres, but anxieties regarding personal safety continue. As a result, Fáilte Ireland considers that urban animation will play an increasingly important role in transforming and re-imagining our public spaces as safe, welcoming, vibrant places and as destinations to live, work and visit and help support their economic recovery. As the COVID-19 roadmap levels decrease from higher to lower risk levels, it will be a significant challenge to attract people back into public streets and spaces, particularly urban centres most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.  

The Scheme will be delivered under Fáilte Ireland’s ‘Opening the Outdoors’ Pillar of its 2021 Business Plan which aims to capitalise on our outdoor assets and re-imagine our urban spaces by working through Local Authorities. Fáilte Ireland has developed Best Practice Guidelines for Outdoor Seating and Urban Animation which are available to all Local Authorities to offer inspiration.