Disappointment is widespread in Downpatrick that Culture Night has not been given funding for 2025
Downpatrick Community Collective are incensed after being turned down for funding by Council for Culture Night after ten years of support
Dan McEvoy, Chairman of the Downpatrick Community Collective, has expressed his significant disappointment at the culture night in Downpatrick not receiving any council funding this year.
Dan said: “Tonight Friday 19th September was meant to be our 11th culture night in Downpatrick which had been going from strength to strength.
“Now tonight, the centre of Downpatrick is like a ghost town when it should be packed with people enjoyed the entertainments and music. This was always a high point in the calendar in Downpatrick just like the St Patrick’s Parade.
He added: “It is a tragic reflection that this annual town centre community-friendly event is no longer rated as suitable for funding through a scheme that was designed to empower communities to plan, manage and deliver events in our county town.
“It just goes on… Downpatrick 2025 isn’t being hosted this year.
“The Downpatrick Community Collective were declined funding following our annual funding application and submission to the Newry Mourne and Down District Council’s financial assistance program and in particular their “Arts and Culture” section. The explanation provided from council was as follows:
“Thank you for your application to Call 1 Financial Assistance. Your application passed Stage 2 Scoring, however, there is insufficient budget available to support all successful applicants. Therefore, your application has been placed on the Scored and Ranked list. Projects on the Scored and Ranked list will be offered funding in rank order should funding become available within this financial year (2025/26)“
“This is deeply frustrating for the good residents of the County Town of Downpatrick, and the Downpatrick Community Collective members are annoyed that this event is now deemed unsuitable for funding! The council have been unable to source any other funding.”
Dan McEvoy added: “This is another kick in the teeth for the local arts and culture scene in Downpatrick. We are delighted for other groups who have met the required standards to receive funding for their projects, however, the Coillective believes the ommission of funding to Culture Night 2025 is another detrimental blow for Downpatrick.
CHECK OUT PHOTOS OF CULTURE NIGHT HERE
“We did write to our local political representatives asking for their assistance. Sadly they were unable to assist.
“This year’s event would have been the eleventh culture night, which is part of an All-Ireland annual celebration of culture at local level.”
In past years, the culture night usually fell on a Friday evening at the end of September.
Someone once said, if you take away a societies’ culture you take away its soul!
Macartan Digney Expresses His Anger At Culture Night Being Pulled
Maractan Digney, vice chair of the Downpatrick Community Collective also has expressed his extreme disappointment at the decision by council.
He said: “Downpatrick tonight should have been showcasing our rich culture and heritage across the island of Ireland.Instead I am not deeply concerned for the future of our town which is rich in culture, history and is a hub for tourism in the wider South Down area. Our town is now facing a deliberate erosion of culture.
“For centuries, Downpatrick has been more than just a town… it has been the beating heart of County Down. Yet ever since the creation of the so-called “super council” in 2011, this historic town has faced repeated downgrades, underfunding and has been neglected by those who claim to represent it.”
Marartan added: There is much going wrong in our district.
• Historic Significance is Being Ignored
“In 2012, the council threatened the closure of the St. Patrick Centre through funding cuts, an institution at the very core of Downpatrick’s global heritage, and a cornerstone for tourism across the whole district. That decision sent a clear message: history and identity are expendable.”
• Cultural Identity is Under Attack
“In 2022, the Friends of Down County Museum raised the alarm about severe cutbacks, which could have crippled this award-winning cultural hub.
“If not for the tireless advocacy of volunteers, the doors might have closed. Now, in 2025, we see the same pattern. Local group, of which I am vice chair, Downpatrick Community Collective, were declined for Culture Night funding!
“After receiving the negative funding decision, the Collective reached out to all Downpatrick councillors earlier in the summer seeking support to have the decision reversed – nothing – our elected representatives were powerless to assist.”
• Local History Library Under Threat
‘Even the more recent challenge to move the local history library by Libraries NI into the main library met with a resounding opposition.”
• Administrative Centre Dismantled
“Downpatrick’s status as an administrative centre is being completely stripped away. The proposed building of the Council HQ in Newry away from the Downshire Estate to a proposed new build facility is a betrayal of Downpatrick’s historic role and a financial mistake of generational proportions.
“If this proceeds, this decision will:
* Erase a centuries-old civic legacy
* Centralise power further away from rural communities
* Sink the council deeper into unsustainable debt
* Force ratepayers — working families — to foot the bill through increased household rates
* All this during a cost-of-living crisis. Where is the logic? Where is the justice?”
Where are our councillors in all of this asks Macartan Digney ?
“What shocks and saddens me the most is that Downpatrick’s own elected representatives, particularly those from Sinn Féin and the SDLP, continue to vote in favour of these downgrades to Downpatrick,” said Maractan.
“They were elected on promises of community empowerment, social justice, and local investment – yet their actions tell another story.
“I call on these councillors — and all members of Newry Mourne and Down District Council, to:
• Publicly oppose the construction of a new HQ in Newry
• Commit to retaining administrative functions in Downpatrick
• Protect and invest in our local cultural institutions
• Respond to and support community initiatives, including Culture Night 2025
“Downpatrick deserves more than just being sidelined.
“It deserves leadership that respects its past, serves its present, and invests in its future and stops the silent downgrade of the Ancient City of Down.”
Down News has asked Newry Mourne and Down Distict Council as a right of reply for an explanation and their response will be posted up as soon as that is available.
Update: Council Explains Why Down Community Collective Received No Funding For Culture Night 2025
A spokeserson for Newry Mourne and Down said in response to the Down News query: “For 2025-2026, Down Community Collective (DCC) submitted an application to Newry Mourne and Down District Council for financial assistance towards the cost of supporting the event.
“Newry Mourne and Down District Council operates an open and competitive financial assistance scheme annually.
“While DCC’s application passed Stage 2 scoring, there was insufficient budget to fund all successful applicants.
“As a result, the application has been placed on the Scored and Ranked list. Projects on this list may be offered funding in rank order if additional resources become available during the 2025/26 financial year.
“The scheme’s guidance notes, published alongside the application, provide details of all assessment criteria.”
