Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 4 March 2026
356. Deputy Mattie McGrath asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht to address concerns regarding the Tidy Towns competition and the apparent structural bias affecting rural communities and smaller settlements (details supplied). [17304/26]
View answerThe SuperValu TidyTowns annual competition is a nationwide initiative that encourages communities to enhance the appearance and sustainability of their local areas. It is a unique volunteer-led programme that makes a hugely positive contribution in communities across Ireland. My department encourages applications from communities across the country and, in 2025, 929 individual entries were received from participating towns. This is the highest number of entries ever received in the competition’s 68-year history. Entry to the Tidy Towns is based on the size of a town’s population based on CSO Census 2022 data as per Table 1 below. Entries are grouped under 4 categories being Ireland’s Tidiest Village, Small Town, Large Town and Large Urban Centre. By virtue of Ireland’s demographics, and the fact that there are many more smaller villages than large towns and large urban centres, the number of applications within the Village category is naturally significantly higher than for other categories in the competition.Table 1 - Tidy Towns competition categories
|
Population Category |
Population |
Competition category |
|
A B |
Under 200 201 - 1,000 |
Village |
|
C D |
1,001 - 2,500 2,501 - 5000 |
Small Town |
|
E F |
5,001 - 10,000 10,001 - 15,000 |
Large Town |
|
G H |
15,001 - 25,000 25,001 and over |
Large Urban Centre |
Within the competition, in order to provide fair recognition to applications, there is a very significant number and type of awards available. This includes the individual national award winners in each category, as well as an overall national winner chosen from the four category winners. In 2025, Carrick-on-Shannon was the overall national winner having initially emerged as winner of the ‘small-town’ category with a population of almost 4,800.
There are also awards for groups with the biggest improvement on the previous year’s score, as well as awards for first, second and third placed entrants in each county. The introduction of the gold, silver and bronze medals in 2000, with a monetary prize attached, was a measure to recognise and reward groups within a certain mark of the overall winning score, which is finalised by the adjudicators. There are also regional award winners, and separate ‘special awards’ in areas such as climate action, sustainable development and active travel. Full details of the 2025 award winners can be found on the tidy towns website at [www.tidytowns.ie] Each of these awards act as incentives for groups, from all areas, large and small, to continue to enter the competition.
The Department administers the Tidy Towns competition in conjunction with the long-time sponsors, SuperValu. Applications are judged by a skilled panel of independent adjudicators. The national panel of c. 40 adjudicators display a wide range of experiences and backgrounds in areas such as ecology, planning, horticulture, landscape architecture, community development, sustainability. The adjudication is undertaken anonymously which counteracts any potential or undue influence on the process. Scoring is based on the material provided by Tidy Towns Groups in their respective entry form and what is viewed on the day of adjudication.
The Department ensures transparency in the manner in which the adjudication processes is undertaken and publishes the competition marking structure each year. Each entry is judged independently and scored according to the marking structure set out in Table 2 below.
Table 2 - 2025 Tidy Towns competition marking structure
|
Competition Categories |
Marking Structure |
|
Community – Your Planning & Involvement |
80 |
|
Streetscape & Public Places |
80 |
|
Green Spaces & Landscaping |
80 |
|
Nature & Biodiversity in your Locality |
55 |
|
Sustainability – Doing more with less |
55 |
|
Tidiness & Litter Control |
90 |
|
Residential Streets & Housing Areas |
55 |
|
Approach Roads, Streets & Lanes |
55 |
|
TOTAL |
550 |
The parameters of the competition are reviewed on an annual basis. This includes an annual review of the scoring system with the panel of adjudicators. This is in an effort to ensure all entries continue to adjudicated in a fair and transparent manner. Any changes agreed are communicated to groups and the Department will continue to seek to administer the competition in an open, fair and transparent manner. The feedback to the competition continues to be very positive, as can be seen by the increasing volume of entries each year and positive public and community feedback.
While Tidy Towns is a competition with a long and rich history, the central emphasis has always been on participating and making progress - the very act of taking part brings benefits to the community, and the focus on long term progression continues to be central to the initiative. My department continues to engage with participant groups and the expert adjudicators to ensure that a fair and transparent system is in place which reflects the huge effort and time that is invested at local level all across the country.
