As Local Enterprise Week approaches, this episode of Local Lens takes you inside Thrive – Meath County Council’s new Centre of Business Excellence and the county’s most ambitious step yet in delivering seamless, strategic support to businesses of all sizes.

Located beside Buvinda House, Thrive brings every major business support team under one roof. From Economic Development and the Local Enterprise Office to Climate Action, Broadband, Tourism Development and the Centre for Food Culture, it is designed to be — in the words of Director of Economic Development Dara McGowan — “not just a one‑stop shop, but a first and only stop shop for business supports in Meath.”

In this episode, host Elaine Keogh explores how Thrive is already strengthening Meath’s enterprise landscape, attracting new investment, and providing practical, responsive support to established businesses.

In This Episode

A tour through Thrive and what it means for enterprise in Meath
How Boyne Valley Flavours elevates Meath’s food producers and culinary heritage
Why peer networks matter — and how collaboration makes businesses stronger

The story behind the MeathMade creative cluster and its growing impact
How Thrive supports everything from FDI to micro‑enterprises through centralised expertise and sector‑specific networks

Featuring

Dara McGowan, Director of Economic Development, Meath County Council
Rebecca Meade, Food Development Officer, Boyne Valley Flavours
Áine Farrelly, Urbo Milk
Caoimhe Delany, Local Enterprise Office Meath
Anita Reynolds, Designer and Chairperson of MeathMade

Voices From the Opening of Thrive

This episode also includes highlights from the official opening of Thrive, featuring remarks from the Minister for Enterprise, Trade & Employment and reactions from Meath‑based businesses benefiting from this new centre.

Why Listen

If you’re a business owner, creative, food producer, investor or simply curious about how Meath is shaping its economic future, this episode offers practical insights, real stories, and a behind‑the‑scenes look at the county’s newest engine for growth.

Thrive is where services meet strategy — and where enterprise in Meath is being future‑proofed.

Being emergency-ready is a priority for Meath County Council. In this episode, listeners are encouraged to sign up to MapAlerter.ie to receive free text alerts from the local authority so they too can prepare for adverse weather, possible power outages and other unusual events.

Joining the discussion on being emergency-ready are the Chief Executive of Meath County Council, Kieran Kehoe, the Chief Fire Officer, Sheila Broderick, and the Civil Defence Officer, Shane Quinn.  We hear about their respective roles, their responsibilities, and how they work together, and they share important advice so listeners can be as prepared as possible for emergencies.

Keith Leonard, National Director for Fire & Emergency Management, outlines the national perspective, including how they work with local authorities during emergencies.

The role of members in the community is also emphasised and a Civil Defence volunteer talks about how he changed career, and met his future wife, as a result of joining the organisation.

THINGS WE SPOKE ABOUT

National emergency preparedness framework defined.
Climate adaptation for local authority response.
Council's speedy, local-knowledge crisis management.
Community response centres support vulnerable people.
Civil Defence's role and volunteer career change.

QUOTES

"The action happens through the local authorities. They lead at a local level." - Keith Leonard 
"We are the principal response agency for severe weather across the country." - Kieran Kehoe 
"If you do have a monitored alarm to make sure that you provide a number that you could be contacted on..." - Sheila Broderick 
"One of the things that that happens in an event, is that we set up what we call a severe weather assessment team initially, but then when we get into that major emergency mode or there's a severe event, we have a crisis management team." - Kieran Kehoe 
"We would advise people to keep some ascent to keep some essentials in the home, really about two to three days supply, just drinking water." - Sheila Broderick

MORE INFORMATION

Local government affects almost every aspect of our daily lives, yet many remain unsure how decisions are actually made. We dive into the delivery of over one thousand services and the vital role of your elected representatives. Discover how local democracy functions behind the scenes in Meath. Listen to the full episode. Search “Local Lens” on your podcast app now.

Visit our website; meath.ie

This podcast was produced by dustpod.io

KEYWORDS

#EmergencyPreparedness #MeathCountyCouncil #CivilDefence #FireSafety #ClimateAdaptation

The Meath electorate vote every five years and how those voters, and the forty councillors they elect, influence the decisions in county Meath are discussed in the first episode of Local Lens in 2026.

The Cathaoirleach, Councillor Wayne Harding, talks about his role and how there is no such thing as a typical day. He explains the way the public has input into committees that make recommendations which are voted on at meetings of the county council and he also discusses how social media plays a role in communicating important messages.

Cllr Sarah Reilly talks for the first time about being targeted on social media last year. It led to her address and phone number being published and while it is now in the past, she felt unsafe and is grateful her children are too young to have seen the hate expressed towards her.

Our final guest, who gives a national perspective and an engaging overview about social media, politics and just how precious our local elections are, is Virgin Media News Political Correspondent Gavan Reilly And yes, his creative and educational use of Smarties to explain proportional representation also gets a decent mention!

THINGS WE SPOKE ABOUT

• Delivering over one thousand local services 
• Roles and mandates of elected councillors 
• Cross party collaboration in local districts 
• Impact of social media on representatives 
• Proportional representation explained using Smarties

QUOTES

"The council delivers over 1000 services, impacting various aspects of community life, from road plans to festival support." - Elaine Keogh

"There is no typical day in the life of a county councillor; the responsibilities are incredibly varied." - Wayne Harding

"The impact of online harassment on a family can make you question your safety in public roles." - Sarah Riley

"Proportional representation ensures that every vote has the potential to influence the final outcome." - Gavin Riley

"Local elections drive the consensus and stability required for effective national governance." - Gavin Riley

KEYWORDS
#LocalDemocracy #MeathCountyCouncil #PublicService #IrelandElections #CommunityLeadership

MORE INFORMATION

Local government affects almost every aspect of our daily lives, yet many remain unsure how decisions are actually made. We dive into the delivery of over one thousand services and the vital role of your elected representatives. Discover how local democracy functions behind the scenes in Meath. Listen to the full episode. Search “Local Lens” on your podcast app now.

Please get in touch if you have any feedback, questions and suggestions regarding the podcast by emailing [email protected]

Visit our website: meath.ie
This podcast was produced by dustpod.io

In a wide ranging conversation with Kieran Kehoe, the Chief Executive of Meath County Council, we hear about his vision to improve the quality of life for people who have made, or want to make, their home in county Meath.

How this can be achieved, who is involved in making it happen and why he believes so strongly that Meath is the best county in Ireland, all feature in an episode that brings the current series of Local Lens to a close.

We also hear from people enjoying the Samhain Festival in Kells and why, if the CE’s vision is implemented, the festivals in Meath will continue to feature on the global stage.

He also talks about his leadership style and why he values the work of all the council staff who, like him, chose to work in the public sector.

Did you know Meath has 9 decarbonisation zones? Or that for the first time in over thirty years Bettystown has Blue Flag status confirming it has the same amenities and standards as Blue Flag beaches found in other parts of the world including California?

In this episode we talk with Climate Action Officer Mary Darcy, Environment Education Officer Bernadine Cary, and Community Warden Alan Nolan.

We hear about a variety of climate action initiatives supported by the council to combat environmental challenges in our community including Navan Men’s Sheds and we also talk about the continuing issue of littering and explore its implications.

Join us for a busy but thought provoking episode that aims to inspire positive change and foster a sense of responsibility among residents in Meath.

Meath could have one of the most sustainable stretches of road in the country! On this episode we find out where it is and why it is part of the council’s response to becoming more sustainable in all areas of transport.

Senior Engineer Caroline Corrigan talks about the roads – and there are a lot of them - the impact of climate change, responding to those changes and how to do all of this in a sustainable way.

Cormac Ross, Senior Executive Engineer with Active Travel provides insight into their initiatives which aim to promote healthier, more sustainable modes of transportation.

We also hear about two families who have been able to embrace the joy of the greenways as Local Lens visited Park Beo, Wilkinstown.

Helping to provide homes is one of the most important areas of service of any county council.

This is a complex and complicated service area where there is a person or family behind every statistic.

In this episode Director of Services Fiona Fallon and Housing Settlement Officer Gemma Ryan from talk about their work, the successes and the challenges.

We also hear from two people who got their forever homes through different council backed schemes.

Why a podcast and why now? Communications Manager Ailish Shaw talks about Local Lens, what listeners can expect and how residents of Meath can get in touch.

The first guest is Dara McGowan, Director of Enterprise and Economic Development, who discusses the multifaceted topic of economic development in Meath.

From soft supports for start-ups to support mechanisms for FDI and the exciting new Centre of Business Excellence which will be a rich hub of supports for all businesses and entrepreneurs, he outlines the programmes and resources the council provides.

Two business owners also discuss their experiences of accessing economic development supports.

Meath is the Royal county and this episode looks at some of its cultural richness and how the council engages with the community in this area.

Librarian Aoife Carberry talks about the immense reach the library network in Meath in the online and in person worlds. She reveals some of the exciting elements of the new library in East Meath Civic Centre and we hear from one family on their love of books and the importance of their local library.

More exciting plans for the future of culture in Meath are discussed by County Archivist Patricia Fallon. The new county archive will form part of Navan’s Cultural Quarter.

Senior Engineer John McGrath, explains exactly what it will include and how it will transform the town. This ambitious initiative aims to create a dynamic space that, as well as being home to a much larger county archive, will be a vibrant community hub, encouraging cultural engagement and fostering connections among residents through art, history, and collaboration.

County Meath - The Royal County.

Home to over 220,000 people and where Meath County Council deliver more than 1,000 services and this is Local lens, a Podcast where you can find out more about those services and the people who provide them.

Local Lens by Meath County Council - Releasing February 25th on all Platforms.