The Community Sector

OVERVIEW

This is a snapshot of Ireland’s community and voluntary sector — showing its size, volunteer input, value to the country, Pobal’s intermediary role and the importance of public trust.

Size of the Sector

32,841

Community, voluntary & charitable organisations

86,481

Volunteer directors

165,000

Directly employed in the sector

€14.2bn

Income managed per year

SOURCE: THE WHEEL

The Wheel's sector summary

The Wheel summarises a wealth of information about the Community and Voluntary sector. The summary covers charities, community and voluntary organisations, and social enterprises.

The sector comprises “32,841 community, voluntary and charitable organisations, involves over 86,481 volunteer directors and trustees, directly employs 165,000 people, and manages income of €14.2bn per year”.

Read full summary

SOURCE: CHARITIES REGULATOR (2018)

Total economic value over €24bn

A Charities Regulator report in 2018 estimated the total direct, indirect, and induced value of the work of Ireland’s charities exceeded €24bn per annum.

It estimated that the number of people employed in the sector was around 280,000 and given that figure is dated it is now probably closer to 300,000 people — almost 1 in every 9 workers in Ireland.

View source

Programmes Administered by Pobal

€1.316 BILLION DISTRIBUTED IN 2024

41 programmes across 7 government departments

Another indicator of the sector’s size is the number of government, EU and other programmes that Pobal is tasked with administering — 41 at the last count.

Pobal administers these programmes on behalf of seven government departments and in 2024 it distributed close to €1.316 billion

See all 41 programmes

Trust and Confidence

SOURCE: CHARITIES REGULATOR ANNUAL REPORT 2024

Public confidence remains strong

According to its 2024 annual report, 493 concerns were raised that year with the Charities Regulator about registered Irish charities, down from 574 in 2023. Given the size of the sector this is low.

However, public support is important to the sector and such misdemeanours or crimes undermine public confidence. Seven in ten (71%) respondents to a Charities Regulator survey in 2024 believed that having trust and confidence in a charity is very important when deciding to donate. Most respondents (78%) believed that charities are important to Irish society.

While we speak here of registered charities, there are many other effective community groups that operate independently of government, relying on local public trust and support.