Local Lens is brought to you by Meath County Council. Delivering over 1,000 services to more than 220,000 people, it is one of the busiest local authorities in the country.
On Local Lens we meet the people involved in delivering those services, find out what drives them and ask what plans there are for the future.
There are also contributions from residents of Meath who have accessed services.
Presented by Elaine Keogh, the executive producer/editor is Ailish Shaw.
Contact: locallens@meathcoco.ie
Community Safety in Action: Working Together to Address Domestic Abuse in Meath
Meath LCSP co-ordinator Gemma Ryan, Willow CEO Frances Haworth, and Zero Tolerance Project Leader Claudia Hegarty discuss community collaboration to combat domestic abuse in Meath.
8 Sept 2026TRANSCRIPT
Stepping Forward: Participation, Representation and Local Democracy
Meath County Council’s Brian Fitzgerald and Yemi Adenuga discuss local democracy with researcher Claire McGing, exploring participation and representation challenges for women.
7 Jul 2026TRANSCRIPT
The EU Presidency and what it means for County Meath
Minister for Foreign Affairs Helen McEntee discusses Ireland's EU Presidency priorities with host [Host Name], joined by Italian Ambassador Nicola Faganello and Meath County Council's Elaine Daly.
2 Jun 2026TRANSCRIPT
Celebrating the Boyne Valley
Emma Gill, Majella Farrell, and Deirdre Murtagh discuss Meath's tourism and economic growth, highlighting heritage and visitor experiences in this interview.
5 May 2026TRANSCRIPT
The Youth Who Help Share Meath: Voices of the Future
Host Elaine Keogh interviews Art O’Leary, Sheila Sheridan, and Sharon McElroy about engaging Gen Z in voting and shaping Meath's democratic future.
7 Apr 2026TRANSCRIPT
Living Your Best and Longest Life. Age Friendly Ireland and the role of Meath County Council.
Catherine McGuigan, Chief Officer of Age Friendly Ireland, and Meath County Council leaders Valerie McHugh and Brian Hora discuss initiatives enabling longer, healthier lives for older residents in an interview.
3 Mar 2026TRANSCRIPT
Inside Thrive: Enterprise, Food & MeathMade – Attracting New Investment and Supporting Local Business in the Royal County
Host Elaine Keogh interviews Dara McGowan and other experts about how Meath County Council's new Thrive center strengthens local enterprise and attracts investment.
3 Feb 2026TRANSCRIPT
Emergency Ready: Meath Response
Kieran Kehoe, Sheila Broderick, Shane Quinn, and Keith Leonard discuss Meath County Council's emergency response strategies, emphasizing community preparedness through resources like MapAlerter.ie and highlighting the roles of various agencies in crisis management; this is an interview.
6 Jan 2026TRANSCRIPT
Did You Vote Yet? In Conversation with the Cathaoirleach.
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 locallens@meathcoco.ie
Visit our website: meath.ie
This podcast was produced by dustpod.io
25 Mar 2025
Vision for the Future: CE Kieran Kehoe on Leadership and Growth in Meath
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.
18 Mar 2025
Community Conversations: Inspiring Climate Action and Responsibility
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.
11 Mar 2025
Pathways to Sustainable Transport
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.
4 Mar 2025
Finding Home: Housing Support Insights
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.
25 Feb 2025
Exploring Meath’s Cultural Treasures
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.
25 Feb 2025
Meath - The Place and Space to Thrive
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.
13 Feb 2025
Series Trailer
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.
Inside a recent episode
Community Safety in Action: Working Together to Address Domestic Abuse in Meath
Published 6 Oct 2026 · Transcript excerpt
[…] But this approach is looking that everybody has a role to address community safety concerns. So if I was to say to you, what are its objectives? Because there's a lot of organisations involved there. So do you have key objectives? Yeah, we do. So it's to prioritise issues identified by local communities as safety concerns. It's to ensure strong community engagement and representation in decision making. It's to develop a local community safety plan based on the local needs and priorities. Improve collaboration between agencies and service providers. and increase confidence in local services and institutions and ensure accountability for the delivery of agreed actions and outcomes. […]
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