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Ok! Buckle up for our bumper edition this week! There’s lots going on and we’re pretty excited!

Buy a postcard! Or four!

As a not for profit enterprise that exists for the benefit of the community, we are trying out ways ways to generate some of our own income that we can use for the benefit of the Carrickfergus community. These postcards won’t

We noticed while buying postcards for our collaborative mapping workshops that there are no modern postcards of Carrick so we have designed these four postcards and are hoping to sell them in different outlets across Carrick. We’ll also sell them from our Talking Shop in the Courtyard.

We’re really proud of them and we hope you agree that they are a fresh take on beloved landmarks in our town.

Each postcard is 60p or you can buy all four for £2. If you’d like to buy some postcards now, you can pay using paypal and we’ll get them to you asap. Remember to tell us your address when you pay!

Global Entrepreneurship Week 8-12 November

We are chuffed to be working with Carrickfergus Enterprise to celebrate community and social enterprise during Global Entrepreneurship week. If you’re a local entrepreneur with a purpose or are interested in becoming one, we’d love you to join us.

Email info@ceal.co.uk to book your place at any of the following events:

• Monday 8 November - Celebrating community and social enterprise at Carrickfergus Enterprise from 7-9pm with guest speaker, Colin Jess of Social Enterprise NI. The evening will also be a chance to reconnect and network in person. This event is supported by Mid and East Antrim Borough Council.

• Wednesday 10 November - Purpose-led enterprise - Join Pauline Brady and Damien Cassidy of Kilcreggan Homes in Carrick and Damien Clarke of Portglenone Enterprise Group to hear about their enterprises that are driven by a strong sense of purpose. This is an online event using zoom - 7-9pm.

• Friday 12 November - Where’s the money coming from? Financing your enterprise - Tiziana O’Hara of Cooperative Alternatives will provide an introduction to community shares and I’ll talk a bit about how we have financed our work in Positive Carrickfergus. There will be a bite to eat for lunch and a chance to catch up with other people interested in community and social enterprises. 12-2pm at the Talking Shop.

When should we run beginners art classes in the Talking Shop?

We’ve been talking to Steve Diamond who runs art classes for East Antrim U3A and Whitehead Community Association about running classes in our shop in November.

We’d like your help to work out the best time to run classes.

Mondays or Thursday?

Afternoons or evenings?

Click on the survey link below to choose your preferred day and time if you’d like to take part. Each class will cost £5 and materials will be provided if you don’t have any.

Centenary Lumiere event - 30 October

Join MEA Borough Council for a stunning sound and vision experience on the walls of the historic Carrickfergus Castle, on Saturday 30 October from 6-9pm featuring “100 years in Mid and East Antrim”, “Decades of Music” and “Waking the Dragon”!

Free event, no tickets required. Castle Car Park will operate as usual.

There’s more information on the events section of our website.

Do you have a child with additional needs aged 8-19?

Book your space here

Historic monuments survey

Department for Communities, Historic Environment Division, which owns Carrick Castle, has recently launched a public survey to gather feedback about the management of historic monuments and sites they take care of across Northern Ireland.

The main focus of the survey is to get an understanding of the priorities when conserving monuments and to ask for your help to rank what you see as most important and which historic sites and monuments should be prioritised for preservation and maintenance.

This is your opportunity to ensure Carrick Castle is prioritised.

The survey is now open and closes 17 November 2021. It should take no more than 5 minutes to complete. Take the survey now

Town Centre Property Revamp Scheme reopens

The Town Centre Property Repurposing Pilot Grant Scheme, first launched by Mid and East Antrim Borough Council in collaboration with the Department for Communities in April 2021 has reopened for a second call due to demand.

The funding assists capital development and repurposing works on vacant commercial properties within the town centres. In order to apply, total costs must be in excess of £10,000, with applicants contributing at least 50% match funding towards the project. Whilst there is no maximum total project cost, the scheme will provide funding up to a maximum of £30,000 per project.

The closing date is Friday, 10th December 2021 at 4pm and more info is available from Connor O'Dornan, Strategic Projects Officer at invest@midandeastantrim.gov.uk.

Ok, I think that’s more than enough news for this week. I hope there’s something there for you.

Have a great weekend!