Funding

A ‘Festival of Fundraising’ opens in Dublin, on September 20th. It is aimed at members of groups that are involved in Dublin City Public Participation Network (PPN).

While the closing date for receipt of applications to the Town and Village Renewal Scheme has passed for this year, plan now for the next round of funding. Community-based websites qualify, as Cootehill has proven.

The LEADER Programme provides funding to support community-led rural development. Here we feature one of the thousands of successful projects, to give a flavour of the kind of ideas that win over the funding adjudicators.

- Announcement today by Ministers Humphreys and McConalogue - Overall LEADER allocation to increase by €50m following EU support - Funding will support rural communities and private enterprises in Covid-19 recovery - Funding welcomed by ILDN

The deadline has been extended until Friday, March 19th, for Tidy Towns committees to apply for grants of up to €1,000 in “top-up funding” to help them prepare for this year’s competition. While the SuperValu Tidy Towns competition was cancelled in 2020, the national organisers promised it would go ahead this year.

Joe O’Brien, Minister of State at the Department of Rural and Community Development, on November 12, announced funding of €51m from the Dormant Accounts Fund “to address disadvantage across the country”. The funding has increased. Four years ago, the spend was €28.5m.

CAPTION: A year ago - last July 19 - the Government’s first National Social Enterprise Policy was launched and, in November, the first National Social Enterprise Conference (run by the Department of Rural and Community Development) took place in Croke Park. Pictured among the attendees are two of the founders of a new body launched today called ‘Social Enterprise Republic of Ireland’ (Seri) - Larry O’Neill, CEO of South Dublin County Partnership and Senan Cooke, author of ‘The Enterprising Community’. They are pictured here with Bernie Walshe from Sunflower Recycling. (PHOTO BY: Changing Ireland).

In 1997, “Community” became a named function of a government department for the first time. It has remained in usage ever since. So how come Minister Heather Humphreys is responsible for two departments, one including Community? Allen Meagher reports: