Laois spearheaded project for Midlands wins big award

A project in which Laois played a big part has seen the Midlands has come out on top at this year’s .ie Digital Town Awards with multiple wins across various categories including being crowned ‘Overall Winner’.

Both the Overall Winner Award, and the ‘Digital Education’ Award went to the ‘Midlands Digitisation’ project entry. This is a collaborative effort led by the Broadband/Digital Officers from Laois, Longford, Offaly and Westmeath, showcasing digital education initiatives in STEM subjects through programmes such as VEX Robotics, Microsoft Dream Space, The STEM Passport for Inclusion, First Lego League, Minecraft, Podcasting and Digital Media Skills.

It is claimed that all of these projects aim to advance digital literacy across the region and reaching thousands of Midlands students annually. As part of recognition for the winning projects, the combined projects will receive a total of €9,000 in prize money to continue support and development for each of these essential programmes and initiatives and Midlands Polish Community TV will also receive €4,000 in prize money to go towards their project.

Antoinette Brennan, Christine Collins, Gerry McCormack and Ray Bell are the Broadband/Digital Officers in the Midlands region.

"Being announced as the Overall Winner at the .ie Digital Town Awards 2024 is a tremendous honour for the Midlands Region," the said in a joint statement.

"Our success with the 'Midlands Digitisation' project, which was a collaborative effort led by the Broadband/Digital Officers from Laois, Longford, Offaly and Westmeath, underscores our commitment to making the Midlands a leading destination for investment, work, education, and tourism. The STEM projects which are running in schools and communities throughout the region are reaching thousands of young people each year and are equipping our young people with skills for the future.

"It’s also so positive to see the Midlands Polish Community TV win the ‘Digital Newcomer’ Award, the team in Athlone are doing a fantastic job supporting the polish community in the region and it’s great to see them receive this recognition today.

“These awards reflect the hard work and innovative spirit of our community, and we are excited to continue advancing digital literacy and promoting the region," they said.

The development of Midlands Ireland website was managed by Laois County Council staff working on behalf of the 4 Midlands counties

There were also a number of other entries from the Midlands who were finalists at this year’s Digital Towns Awards including:

• Midlands Ireland – Digital Business and Digital Changemaker Finalist
• Destination Athlone – Digital Tourism Finalist
• Abbeyleix Virtual Community Noticeboard – Digital Community Finalist
• Mountrath Digital Twin sustainable communities plan – Digital Community Finalist
• Milltown Rathconrath Enhancing our rural community hub's digital potential – Digital Community Finalist & Digital Changemaker Finalist
• The .ie Digital Town Awards highlight and promote projects from across the country for their use of digital technologies and innovation to transform or enhance towns and communities for the betterment of local people, communities, and wider society.

Following a competitive selection process by the judging panel, the wide-ranging list of finalists and award-winning projects include themes such as ethical and sustainable tourism, digital at the heart of the community, digital infrastructure, and using digital to tackle marginalisation and accessibility issues.