Other News In Brief

ANB Council Hosts Annual Spirit of Christmas Awards

Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council has recognised remarkable contributions made by local businesses, schools, churches, community groups and individuals to bring an extra special touch to the Christmas season.

The council has hosted their annual Spirit of Christmas Awards in the Oriel Gallery at Antrim Castle Gardens.

The winners were as follows;

• Light Up Award – Awarded to Tidal, Toome for the magnificent illuminations at the Duneane Community Garden, which provided a spectacular experience for children and families within the community.

• Rocking Around the Christmas Tree Award – Awarded to Newtownabbey Women's Group, for their efforts to bring Santa's workshop and outdoor entertainment to the children and families of Rathcoole at their annual Switch On event held in the Dunanney Centre on Saturday 2 December.

• Reason for the Season Award – Awarded to The Bridge Association, Antrim, for bringing festive sparkle to Castle Mall, Antrim with their wonderful window display. The group also provided festive treats at the Antrim Christmas Lights Switch On event on Thursday 23 November, with their own Quirky Choir providing entertainment within the Mall.

• The Making an Entrance Award – Awarded to Pots of Pleasure, Ballyclare, for enhancing the festive spirit around The Square, by creating beautiful window displays, reminding us of what a traditional Christmas used to be.

• Traditional Christmas Award – Awarded to Muckamore Parish Development Association for operating a Christmas Toy Scheme and giving out gifts to families in need. The group's generosity and kindness makes Christmas extra special for many families within the community.

• Eco Angels Award – Awarded to Creavery Primary School, for producing delightful festive decorations made from recycled materials, all of which will be dismantled or repurposed into building new bug hotel habitats or composted in the New Year.

• Mayor's Award – Awarded to David McCrea, Monkstown Community Association, for his dedication to fundraising and charitable work. This was presented to David during the group's annual Christmas dinner last Friday.

Mayor of Antrim and Newtownabbey, Councillor Mark Cooper said: "I am pleased to witness the positive impact of our community's goodwill on residents within the Borough, resulting in an outstanding number of nominations for this year's Spirit of Christmas Awards. I extend my gratitude to all the local businesses, schools, churches, community groups, and individuals for going above and beyond this Christmas season."

Work Of Coleraine Business Improvement District Recognised

The Mayor of Causeway Coast and Glens has praised the work of Coleraine Business Improvement District (BID) – a non-profit organisation made up of local business leaders who volunteer their time to oversee projects which aim to improve trade in the town centre.

The projects delivered by BID throughout the past year have attracted visitors to the town centre and have earned the organisation several prestigious accolades - most recently at the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) awards, where BID's CQ magazine project scooped the gold award in the Not-for-Profit category and silver in the Best Publication category.

Other notable recent successes have included BID winning the 2022/23 Northern Ireland High Street of the Year award and 2023 Runner up in the Rising Star category of the 'UK Let's Celebrate High Streets awards'.

Meanwhile, Coleraine BID was also the 2023 Finalist NI Digital Social Media awards, and became the first BID in Northern Ireland to be awarded the BID Foundation Industry Standards kite mark in recognition of high standards of transparency, accountability, responsible governance, professionalism and reporting.

Honouring the organisation for its many successes, the Mayor, Councillor Steven Callaghan said: "I am delighted that the hard work and dedication of Coleraine BID has paid off. Their efforts have had such a positive impact, and the constant passion of Coleraine BID to improve the surroundings and economic flow into the town through projects such as CQ magazine is admirable."

Ian Donaghey MBE, Chair of Coleraine BID added: "On behalf of the Board and members of Coleraine BID, I wish to thank the Mayor for his continued support of local businesses in our town.

"The BID team continues to work incredibly hard to deliver projects ranging from our communications programme with town radio, magazine and online marketing to our year-round calendar of events and other projects which are so important to the future economic viability of our town."

DUP Welcomes Ofcom Connected Nations Report

The DUP has welcomed the Ofcom Connected Nations report for 2023, which MLA Deborah Erskine claims" demonstrates the benefits of investment secured by the DUP in our broadband infrastructure".

The report shows that whilst full-fibre broadband is available to more than half of homes across the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland leads the way with 91% able to get a full-fibre connection. This is an increase on 2022 where it was available to 85% of homes in Northern Ireland.

The Fermanagh & South Tyrone MLA said: "In 2017 the DUP secured £150million of public investment to improve our broadband connectivity. Sinn Fein questioned the need for public money to be invested into high-speed broadband for rural dwellers, but thousands of homes and businesses, particularly in rural areas are seeing the practical benefits it has brought.

"Fermanagh & South Tyrone is one of Northern Ireland’s most rural constituencies which lagged behind urban areas for many years. This area has now seen the highest level of investment in broadband across Northern Ireland.

"High speed broadband is is a necessity when putting forward an offer to investors considering where to establish or expand their business. Northern Ireland leads not just the United Kingdom but is also well ahead of the Republic of Ireland in terms of our broadband connectivity. This is down to foresight, action and delivery by the DUP."