Children & Young People

Strategic Local Partners

Sligo County Council’s Arts Service Department provides direct funding to two key organisations responsible
for delivering programmes locally for children and young people

Music Generation Sligo:

Music Generation Sligo provides inspiring, affordable, performance music education programmes for children and young people under-18 in their locality, providing subsidised instrumental and vocal tuition with professional musicians and opportunities to play in bands and ensembles

musicgenerationsligo.com

County Sligo Youth Theatre:

Founded in 1998, CSYT aims to engage with young people as active participants, by using theatre approaches to develop their technical and artistic skills and to facilitate their social and personal development. CSYT provides an annual programme of workshops to more than 90 young people and develops youth theatre throughout County Sligo by participating in a number of community events.

sligoyouththeatre.ie

Key Local Organisations

Sligo County Council’s Arts Grants awards supports a number of arts and cultural venues and organisations whose year-round programmes and initiatives specifically aimed at children and young people. These include:

The Model, Home of the Niland Collection

The Model is a dynamic and innovative centre for the contemporary arts and a museum at the centre of the Sligo community. Committed to the belief that art has the power to change lives, their unique curatorial ethos actively utilises their collection as a tool to weave the traditional with the contemporary, to create cohesive and illuminating artistic presentations that resonate both locally & inter/nationally. Integral to all aspects of the Model’s programme is an extensive offering of educational opportunities for children and adults delivered year-round.

www.themodel.ie/
learn-and-explore/children-and-young-people/

The Hawk’s Well Theatre

The Hawk’s Well Theatre in Sligo town is a cultural lighthouse, dedicated to providing educational pathways to professional practice, peace-building, and showcasing a diverse programme through which it develops and stimulates public interest and engagement in the arts and cultural affairs. From performances to workshops and creative learning programmes, throughout the year it provides numerous opportunities for children and young people to actively engage with a range of art forms.

www.hawkswell.com
/whats-on/take-part/workshops-for-young-people

Kids’ Own

Sligo’s Kids’ Own is Ireland’s only dedicated publisher of books by children. Through a range of local, national and international projects, they connect children with professional artists and publish the work that they create. An ethos of social justice underpins their work, with lots of their projects involving children and families from diverse cultures, such as Traveller culture, migrant, intercultural and multilingual populations, and children who are homeless, socially excluded, or part of a minority group.

kidsown.ie

The Coleman Irish Music Centre:

Located in Gurteen, County Sligo, this is one of Ireland’s best-equipped centres for traditional Irish music. Dedicated to the legendary fiddle player Michael Coleman, the centre was founded to preserve, promote and foster Irish traditional music, culture, heritage and the Irish language which also supporting local socio-economic development. Its music school also provides tuition in a range of instruments for both children and adults.

www.colemanirishmusic.com

Local Cultural Events

Sligo’s annual cultural calendar of events is sprinkled with opportunities for our younger citizens.
Highlights include:

Cruinniú na nÓg – A Day of Youthful Creativity (June)

Ireland is the first, and only, country in the world to have a national day of free creativity for children and young people under 18. Cruinniú na nÓg is a flagship initiative of the Creative Ireland Programme’s Creative Youth plan to enable the creative potential of children and young people. In partnership with the Local Authorities the celebration takes place in June every year.

cruinniu.creativeireland.gov.ie

Culture Night Sligo (September)

Delivered by the Arts Service Department with the support of The Arts Council, Culture Night Sligo always includes events for children, young people and their families to engage with. See Culture Night section on this site

culturenight.ie

Cairde Arts Festival (July)

The annual Cairde festival programme is always full of exciting, engaging events for kids big and small & their grown-ups The festival programme boasts a particularly strong programme of circus, outdoor performance and street spectacle from local, national and international artists, free of charge and which animates public spaces in both Sligo town and county.

www.cairdefestival.com

Sligo Jazz Project (July)

Sligo Jazz Project’s Youth Academy engages 50+ young musicians aged 10-18 annually, offering a safe and inspiring environment for artistic growth. The organisation also provides bursaries and free events to ensure broad participation.

Sligo International Summer School and Jazz Festival

www.sligojazz.ie

Sligo County Fleadh & Traditional Festivals (Various)

Sligo County Fleadh festival is an annual celebration of the traditional arts focusing on culture, music, song, dance and Irish language events inclusive of all ages. It is the most significant Comhaltas event in County Sligo each year and is held over the bank holiday weekend in June and offers children & young people the opportunity to participate in workshops & competitions

sligocountyfleadh.ie

Other Traditional Festivals/Events

Feis Shligigh (Sligo town)
Fiddler of Dooney Festival (Sligo town)
Ballintogher Festival (Fred Finn)
James Morrison Festival (Riverstown)
South Sligo Summer School