1 Comment
Newry store The Bookshelf has been named among 23 independent bookshops to receive funding through the Books at One Community Prize Fund for 2026. The initiative, now in its second year, supports independent bookstores in developing creative activities for their local communities.
Each selected store will receive a grant of up to €5,000 to support new and engaging activities benefiting their local area. This year's recipients span 23 stores from 14 counties on the island of Ireland, with the list including both newly opened stores and those that also received funding in 2025, allowing them to build on last year's activity or embark on new creative ventures.
The Bookshelf regularly hosts themed nights and musical events and even though it's not even open a year it has embedded itself into the Newry community.
The fund was created in 2025 for Books at One via The One Foundation as a new avenue of support for independent stores and the communities around them, with the aim of strengthening the role of independent bookshops as creative venues for community engagement and connection. Last summer, 21 independent bookshops received grants to deliver projects reimagining their stores as cultural and social spaces in their towns and cities, ranging from storytelling events and creative workshops to youth programmes.
Eoghan Stack, Chairperson of The One Foundation, said the fund had proven a huge success since launching in 2025. He said: "When the Books at One Community Prize Fund launched in 2025, we hoped it would give booksellers an opportunity to try new avenues to creatively engage with their local community and it's proven to be a huge success. This year, the fund will support 23 independent shops across 14 counties, helping independent bookshops integrate a love of reading into a real community way of life. The power of a good indie bookshop is not just about what's on the shelves alone but about those who work there and those who visit on the regular, making it an important fixture of communities. We're delighted to see both the initiative and the ideas within the applications grow and look forward to seeing how these are brought to life by the communities that shape them."
Alongside The Bookshelf in Co Armagh, this year's recipients include Antiquity Bookshop in Cork, Antonia's Bookstore in Meath, Bantry Bookshop in Cork, Books Upstairs in Dublin, Bookworm Bookshop in Tipperary, Castle Books in Mayo, Charlie Byrne's Bookshop in Galway, Halfway up the Stairs in Wicklow, Leaf and Bower in Cork, Little Acorns in Derry, Pangur Bán Bookshop in Mayo, Prim's Bookshop in Cork, Quay Books in Limerick, Red Books in Wexford, Roe River Books in Louth, Tales for Tadpoles in Wicklow, The Ennis Bookshop in Clare, The Maynooth Bookshop in Kildare, The Nenagh Bookshop in Tipperary, Turning Pages Bookshop in Galway, Woodbine Books in Kildare and Worm Books in Cork.
For further information visit www.booksatone.ie or follow @books_at_one on Instagram.
