After a successful pilot season last year Fingal County Council have announced the return of the popular Fingal food markets. Branded Explore Fingal Markets, they take place in three venues over the summer: Swords Castle, the Casino Model Railway Museum in Malahide and new for 2026, two dates at Millennium Park, Blanchardstown.
Explore Fingal Markets begin in May and continue throughout the summer with free entry to all markets. All take place on Saturdays, and the wide range of stallholders has a focus on local produce with strong representation from both Fingal Food Circle and Fingal Farmers. Stallholders interested in trading at any of the markets are invited to email foodmarkets@explorefingal.ie.
More details will be available on the Explore Fingal website and socials.
Fingal County Council is also supporting independent markets around Fingal. Developing food markets is part of implementing the Food and Drink Policy and Tourism Strategy.
Explore Fingal Market Dates – Summer 2026
Malahide: Casino Model Railway Museum
Every Saturday from 2nd May to 29th August (10am-4pm)
Swords: Swords Castle
May-September, third Saturday of the month (10am-3pm)
16th May, 20th June, 18th July, 15th August, 19th September
Blanchardstown: Millennium Park
Saturday 13th June, Saturday 4th July (12noon-6pm)
PLUS a market at Blanch Fest - Saturday 22nd and Sunday 23rd August)
Ardgillan Castle, Balbriggan, Fingal has launched a new immersive tour designed especially for families. Lasting 30-40 minutes it’s an engaging and entertaining way to explore the elegant world of the Taylor family who lived in Argillan for generations.
The self-guided audio tour is delivered through the voice of the 19th century matriarch Lady Marianne St. Leger Taylor. A significant community figure and socialite, Marianne kept daily diaries revealing daily life behind the Castle doors, which form the basis of the tour. Lady Marianne’s first-hand accounts of family life include household routines, social gatherings, and the joys and challenges of raising her seven children. These authentic diary reflections bring the house to life, allowing visitors to experience her thoughts, observations, and memories as they walk through the rooms where she once lived.
Well designed, informative panels in each room supplement the audio information with fascinating insights. The tour begins in the entrance hallway and includes dining and drawing rooms, the billiards room, the butler’s pantry and the basement kitchens. Secret hidden doors add to the interest and intrigue.
Throughout the immersive tour the past comes to life through sensory connections including evocative “smellometers” dotted through the rooms. Automatically triggered “soundscapes” introduce an acoustic element defining each location like the murmur of diners and clinking of glasses in the dining room while in the kitchen the busy clatter of pots and pans dominates.
In the Discovery Nook children dive into character, dressing up in historic costumes while solving puzzles and playing games. The tour includes a fun activity trail booklet including a quest to find hidden chicks in the castle – a nod to the Taylor families pet name for their offspring.
The audio tour is available in five languages - English, Irish, German, Spanish, French and Polish. These are accessed via a QR code. Headphones are not provided but visitors are welcome to bring their own. The QR code also leads to a helpful transcript as an option.
Open 7 days a week from 10am to 4pm. Ample free parking is available. Café and craft shop open daily.
Cost €10 per adult, €7 per child (u18), €30 for 2 adults and 2 children, €8 seniors (65+)
Local Enterprise Office Fingal has announced that this year’s Junior, Intermediate and Senior Category Winners will represent the county at the National Student Enterprise Finals in Mullingar this May. The announcement follows a vibrant and competitive County Final held on 19th March at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Blanchardstown, where over 1,300 students from 21 schools showcased exceptional entrepreneurial talent through innovative products, strong branding and confident pitches, reflecting months of teamwork, creativity and resilience.
In the Junior Category, the students representing Fingal at the National Final are Sam Patton and Andrew Low from Sutton Park School, with their project Powerblocker.
In the Intermediate Category, Juliane Amelia O’Neill from Loreto Balbriggan, will showcase her enterprise, Tiny Terrariums, which focuses on Horticulture.
In the Senior Category, Daniel Strautnice, Jack Atkinson, and Jedd Umeh from Coolmine Community School secured their place with Micro Forge 3D, an innovative business centred on 3D Printing.
The winning teams will now compete against student businesses from across Ireland, presenting their ventures to a panel of judges and vying for national recognition.
A range of special awards were also presented, recognising excellence across key enterprise areas. These included the Best Display Award, Sustainability Award, Social Media Award and Innovation Award, each honouring students who excelled in creativity, communication, design and forward‑thinking business development.
The Entrepreneurial Educator of the Year Award was presented to Teacher Liz Byrne, Hartstown Community School, acknowledging outstanding commitment to enterprise education. The Enterprising School Spirit Award was awarded to Luttrellstown Community College, recognising the strong culture of creativity, teamwork and ambition fostered within the school community.
Speaking at the event, Mayor of Fingal, Cllr Tom O’Leary, praised the contribution and professionalism of all participating students: “The creativity and drive on display here today are outstanding. You have taken ideas from concept to reality, worked collaboratively, overcome challenges and stood confidently behind your businesses. The skills you have developed will serve you well long into the future.”
Last month Fingal County Council launched a new destination tourism brand: Explore Fingal. As part of the rollout of Explore Fingal a Roadshow visited seven venues around the county, meeting with community tourism groups to discuss the new brand. Between Monday 2nd and Thursday 5th March the Roadshow visited: Balbriggan, Skerries, Lusk, Howth, Malahide, Rush and Blanchardstown.
Explore Fingal has its own websites and social media platforms. It is a key milestone in the implementation of the Fingal Tourism Strategy 2024-2029 and includes a full programme of marketing and development initiatives that will support Fingal’s tourism growth.
All tourism businesses and organisations in Fingal are encouraged to go onto the website (www.explorefingal.ie) and connect through the Trade link at the bottom.
For over 30 years, artist and broadcaster Tina Mation has been inspiring children to discover the joy of drawing and creativity. Many families across North Dublin and Meath know Tina not only from her long-running television art programmes, but also from the art classes and summer camps she has been running for generations of young artists.
Tina held her very first children’s art classes in Swords more than three decades ago. What began as a small local class quickly grew as children discovered how easy and fun it was to draw using Tina’s unique step-by-step teaching method. Tina believes that every child can draw and create, in most cases, they just need to be shown not only how to draw, but more importantly, that they can draw. Over the years, she has taught thousands of children in person and as the presenter of the longest-running television art series in the world by the same presenter, she has shown millions of children and adults just how easy it is to bring drawings to life.
Working directly with children in local communities remains one of the most rewarding parts of her career, alongside her work on RTÉ television and the publication of over 60 drawing and animation books.
Each summer Tina runs her much-loved Big Box Summer Art Camps, packed with drawing, painting, constructing miniature theatres, making games, designing T-shirts and many other creative projects. This July, the camps will take place in Lusk, Swords and Ashbourne, welcoming young artists for fivedays of hands-on creativity. Each child receives their own Big Box, which transforms during the camp into a collection of complete artworks and activities they can proudly bring home.
After more than 30 years teaching her unique method, Tina continues to inspire a new generation of children to pick up a pencil, use their imagination and discover that, with a little guidance, they can create their own magic. As Tina says “Learn to draw… Create for life!”
For more information visit: tinamation.net
Remember us would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year and express our sincere gratitude to everyone who supported us in 2025.
We had a very successful year and our membership grew.
We continue to look for people to go on CE/TUS schemes and volunteers to help us continue and grow.
We look forward to 2026 and even bigger and better things to happen. Watch this space!!!
Give us a ring on 0860457003 or drop us an email at hello@rememberus.ie if you are interested in supporting us in anyway or if you would like to become a volunteer etc.
Remember us would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year and thank most sincerely everyone who supported us in 2025. It is appreciated by all our members and their families. We look forward to your continued support in 2026.
We are constantly looking for volunteers. Please see poster for day and times we require help. If you have an hour or two to spare, please contact us on 0860457003 or email us at hello@rememberus.ie for more information.
An interview with a Mountain Rescue Volunteer and his search and rescue dog, Boomer.
By Erica Elliott
Thirty years ago, Swords man Joe Egan began volunteering with the Dublin Mountain Rescue Team, training with a dog unit, and working independently on site.
One day they were in Wales, and while they were recertifying the dogs for live victims, nearby cadaver training was going on. Joe recounts this moment speaking of Boomer, his search and rescue dog, “finding the bait before the dogs that were supposed to find it”. This was not something that had crossed his mind, he tells me. In fact he says it “was just by chance we found he was good at the dual work”.
Boomer is the only dog in the country that’s certified to search and rescue live and dead victims, and the training process is extensive as it’s difficult to train them once they go over a year. “The first thing he has to do is speak. You get him to speak on command, then you have to train him with livestock, and he has to be able to both sit and stand, so if I find someone that’s injured I’ll be able to treat them without him”.
He tells me training a dog for dual work can be “confusing for the dog”.
“It’s not something I would set out to do”, he says.
“I have to be careful that if the person that’s missing is still walking around, that he can pick up on the fact that I have to find every person. But to see him when he works, he’s so laid back and chilled. Other dogs run frantically around looking for the scent and that’s the way they’re trained to work. He just walks along really slowly, methodically”, he comments.
“I can read him like a book. So if you’re walking with me, I’m not looking at you. I have to watch him, every move he makes, and when he makes that turn, that’s it, he’s gone”.
When Boomer makes a strike, “he bolts”, he says. He goes to the person or the body, identifies it, and comes all the way back to him. This could be hundreds of metres away depending on the conditions of the weather and terrain.
“He comes back and barks at me. That’s how he speaks”, he adds.
“He lets out a loud speak and that indicates to me that he has found somebody, and I say show me, and he goes back to them and I follow him and he shows me exactly where they are”.
“That’s what you get after two years of training. It’s a continuous tough two years for the handler, meanwhile the whole time the dog thinks it’s just a game”.
As for the training process for him. To train with the Dublin Mountain Rescue Team, “originally you have to be a team member to train with the dogs team”, he says. As well as having navigational skills, first aid skills, and rope and rescue training.
But once they find the people, they have to treat them.
“If they’re injured, we assess them, we get the appropriate first aid up to them , up to and including helicopter evacuation, depending on injuries. Some people are just lost, some people are just lost and injured. With modern technology, the search engine sometimes can be quicker, they can send sire locking. We sent you a notification on your phone, and you respond to it and it pinpoints it. So that’s just a modern take. It saves the dogs, it saves the drones”, he tells me.
“If the batteries are dead or there’s no coverage, it’s not going to work. So if someone is lost on a particular mountain, the quickest way to find them with no technology is the dog”.
After thirty years, he says technology has advanced helping Dublin Mountain Rescue, and that they are soon to acquire a base.
“It’s evolved completely. Yeah, completely evolved with technology. We were flying in the helicopter there two weeks ago”, he responds.
“If there’s someone lost on top of the mountain, rather than me walking up the mountain, they can fly us up to the top, deploy us from the top. and that could include coming out on the rope. If they can’t land a helicopter they have to put us out on the rope and hang us down. So we haven’t done that yet but we’re hoping to train him”.
Boomer is trained to walk off lead, not only while he’s working, but on a day-to-day basis. However there are times where this is not the case.
“He’s on a lead right near the start or the end of a search. Because when you go to a search base, maybe the car park, the entrance into a forest or wherever it is. There could be press around, there’s always someone with a camera. If another dog was aggressive towards him and I’m dressed in rescue gear and he has his search jacket, it looks bad if I haven’t got control of him. And if someone walks away with a German Shepherd, I just lose control of him. He loves German Shepherds. So I keep him on the lead for that reason, and the family might be distressed waiting on their loved ones” he says.
“Because we set up our own dog unit, we had to find an assessor and the assessors we get are in Wales. So we travel to Wales for training and assessments and they come over here as well”.
Joe tells me they’ll soon be returning to Wales at the end of November for cadaver training, at the place where they first made their discovery.
Erica Elliott, from Swords, Co. Dublin is a final year Journalism student studying in DCU
Annabel Russell, the creator behind the popular family resource website TotsSpots.com, was the celebrated winner of the Tech and Digital Award at the prestigious Women in Business Excellence Awards on Tuesday, November 25th. The ceremony, a beacon of female achievement, was held in the stunning setting of the Hotel Kilkenny.
Ms. Russell’s win in the Tech and Digital category, which was proudly sponsored by Arc Engineering, recognises her outstanding contribution to the digital landscape through TotsSpots.com. The platform serves as an essential online guide for parents, providing a central location for activities for children across Ireland.
“I am absolutely thrilled and honoured to receive this award,” said Annabel Russell. “This recognises the hard work that goes into not just building a technical platform, but one that genuinely helps Irish families navigate their day to day lives. Technology has the power to connect communities, and I’m delighted Tots Spots is playing its part. This award really means a great deal to me as I have been a champion of women in tech for my entire career.”
Annabel left a decade long corporate career a year ago to start TotsSpots.com, Ireland’s only dedicated platform for baby, toddler and kids groups. The site has helped over 25,000 parents locate local classes and all groups can sign up for free. The idea came about during maternity leave where Annabel found it difficult to find activities for her baby. Previously, Annabel had been working in tech for Penney’s, Aer Lingus and Kerry Group, where she has been a business analyst, change champion and strategist. She has also been an advocate for championing young women into tech by attending career fairs for secondary and college students, while mentoring them through their careers.
The Night of Celebration was hosted by the Irish Women in Business Network and the awards ceremony was impeccably MC’d by renowned style expert and broadcaster, Marietta Doran. Ms. Doran guided the evening’s proceedings, celebrating the resilience, innovation, and leadership of women across various Irish industries
The event at the Hotel Kilkenny brought together successful female entrepreneurs across industries from every corner of the country for a night of networking and recognition. The inaugural Irish Women in Network Awards Business Excellence Awards champion the role of female entrepreneurs in the national economy and inspire the next generation of female leaders.
Arc Engineering’s sponsorship of the Tech and Digital award underscores their commitment to supporting innovation and growth within the digital sector and recognising the crucial role of women in driving technological advancement in Ireland.
Fingal County Council has been re-certified as an Engineers Ireland CPD Accredited Employer for the maximum duration of three years. The award recognises Fingal’s ongoing commitment to continuous professional development systems and practices for its staff.
The Engineers Ireland CPD Accredited Employer Standard is a strategic framework which enables engineers and engineering employers raise competency levels and deliver tangible business benefits by investing in engineers through continuing professional development.
Welcoming the re-certification Chief Executive of Fingal County Council, AnnMarie Farrelly said: “We are very proud to have been recognised as a CPD Accredited Employer for a further three years, the maximum duration that can be awarded. Fingal County Council is a vibrant and dynamic place to work, and we are committed to ensuring our employees have the tools they need to succeed. I want to extend my heartfelt congratulations to all involved”.
Fingal County Council has over 70 engineers who work in a wide variety of services across the county. This includes staff operating in the areas of housing, transport, active travel, public infrastructure, water, and environment. Examples of major projects being carried out include Culture House, Swords, and the new Ongar to Barnhill Road.
Senior Engineer and chair of the CPD Committee at Fingal County Council, Colin Gallagher said: “The Fingal County Council CPD Committee provides clear and strong leadership promoting an inclusive CPD culture for the benefit and development of all our Engineers. The Committee has worked tirelessly to assist with the continuous skills development of Fingal’s Engineers, providing an excellent active and dynamic resource for innovatively improving the Engineering roles and areas of expertise that are managed and performed so well here in Fingal. The emphasis on Continuing Professional Development of Engineers ensures that the Council is future-proofed to cope with any challenging obstacles that may arise in the future”.
