Longford's Midland Language Centre in National Enterprise Award Finals

Longford’s Midland Language Centre in National Enterprise Awards Final
Local company to represent Longford on 1 June in Mansion House 

Press Release
29 May 2023

Midland Language Centre will this week represent Longford at the National Enterprise Awards taking place in Dublin on Thursday 1 June.

The company will represent Longford’s Local Enterprise Office at the prestigious awards that are being held in the Round Room at the Mansion House.

Midland Language Centre provides homestay programmes for international students coming to Ireland to learn English. It has grown significantly, since being established by Clodagh Brady in 1976, with over 2,000 international students a year matched with host families and placed onto language programmes in over 120 schools across Ireland. 

The centre has been managed by Angela Brady, Managing Director since 2004. Speaking in advance of the national finals, she said, “For MLC to be a finalist is very exciting for our team and we are extremely proud to be representing Longford at the national awards.”

The National Enterprise Awards finalists compete for a prize fund of €50,000 and along with an overall National Enterprise of the Year winner, there are categories for Best Start-Up, Best Export Business, an Innovation Award, a One-to-Watch Award, and a Sustainability Award. There is also an Outstanding Achievement award for a business that started with their Local Enterprise Office and has gone on to achieve international growth with the assistance of Enterprise Ireland.

This year the finalists cover a range of sectors and industries from augmented reality tours and sensory friendly clothes designers to energy saving software platforms and agtech solutions for farmers. The finalists also offer a range of consumer products from chocolate and whiskey to artisan bakery products and a zero-waste food company.

This is the 23rd year of the National Enterprise Awards initiative, which was won last year by Aqualicence, a company supported by Local Enterprise Office Wicklow. Headed up by the former Ireland’s Best Young Entrepreneur (IBYE) Finalist Kate Dempsey, Aqualicence has positioned itself at the forefront of planning and project delivery in the offshore renewable energy sector.

Cathaoirleach of Longford County Council Cllr Turlough McGovern congratulated Angela Brady for reaching the national finals. “I’m delighted to wish all at Midland Language Centre the very best of luck in the final this week – congratulations for representing Longford on a national stage – you are a wonderful example of the high calibre companies operating in this county.”

Chief Executive of Longford County Council Paddy Mahon said, “Year after year, on behalf of Longford County Council, the Longford Local Enterprise Office team nurture and support innovative companies to excel in their fields. Midland Language Centre is another great ambassador, demonstrating the benefits of investing in a business in Longford.”

Michael Nevin, Head of Enterprise at Longford Local Enterprise Office added “The National Enterprise Awards serve to highlight the very best businesses that the Local Enterprise Offices are working with across the country. The diversity of sectors and innovation shown again this year is outstanding and the winners will no doubt produce businesses destined for international success. These finalists have shown outstanding resilience to get to where they are today and we are looking forward to celebrating with them at the awards”.

Local Enterprise Office, Longford has had previous success at the awards with Cirtex Ltd from Shroid, County Longford winning the overall Sustainability award at last years’ awards.

Previous winners of the National Enterprise Awards include the likes of Irish Yoghurts (1998), Obelisk (2000), Simtech Aviation (2008), Digiweb (2004) and Design Pro (2013), Terra NutriTech (2018), Pestle & Mortar (2019) and Bevcraft in 2021.

The National Enterprise Awards are one of a number of initiatives that the Local Enterprise Offices run, to foster entrepreneurship across the country. Others include Local Enterprise Week, the Student Enterprise Programme, National Women’s Enterprise Day, and Local Enterprise Showcase. The Local Enterprise Offices in local authorities are funded by the Government of Ireland through Enterprise Ireland.

Established in 2014, the Local Enterprise Offices are the essential resource for any entrepreneur looking to start a business or any small business that is looking for support or advice to help them grow. Since their inception eight years ago, the Local Enterprise Offices have helped create over 25,000 jobs across the country. The LEOs work with thousands of client companies across Ireland in a diverse range of sectors offering mentoring, training, expert advice, and financial supports to small businesses.

For further information, check out LocalEnterprise.ie/Longford or follow Local Enterprise Office, Longford on social media.