Nationwide Opportunities

New campaign and funding programme for community climate engagement launched

This is a new, first of its kind campaign and fund specifically for climate engagement to support and inspire people to take and talk about the climate actions that can improve their local areas.

The campaign, called Climate Actions Work, will focus on encouraging and supporting climate engagement and communications actions.

The fund is designed as a unique, small-scale, flexible fund that can help community groups spread the word about what they are doing or what they might be planning to do.

Deadline: 4th October 2024

More info: https://grantsandfunding.ie/new-campaign-and-funding-programme-for-community-climate-engagement-launched/

The latest round of the National Heritage Keepers Programme is open for applications. Heritage Keepers are now looking for community groups and senior classes of primary schools to take part in its highly anticipated fourth round. Through a series of online workshops Heritage Keepers empowers groups and schools to delve into their local heritage and then provides funding to allow them to take positive action.

Deadline: 4th October

More info: https://www.heritagekeepers.ie/

Arts and Disability Connect includes Mentoring, Training, New Work, and Research and Reflection awards for individual artists with disabilities.

The Arts and Disability Connect scheme is designed to support artists with disabilities to be ambitious, to develop their practice and to connect with arts organisations and arts professionals in the Republic of Ireland.

One-on-one Applicant Support – Artists and people supporting them to apply for Arts and Disability Connect funding can book in applicant support.

Deadline: 4pm Tuesday 8th October

More info: https://visualartists.ie/advert/open-call-arts-and-disability-connect-round-two-from-arts-and-disability-ireland/

Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Senator Pippa Hackett, has announced a public call by her department for innovative proposals to maximise the return to primary producers from short supply chains.

The maximum amount of grant aid available under the call is €150,000 per project. There are five different themes to the call, namely:

• developing premium markets closer to home;

• encouraging collaboration among stakeholders;

• supporting small food producers;

• encouraging farmers markets and

• the development of community gardens.

Deadline: 11th October 2024

More info: https://grantsandfunding.ie/call-for-proposals-to-optimise-short-food-supply-chains-announced-by-minister-hackett/

Minister for Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphreys TD, announced that 62 new walking trails across the country are approved in principle to join the Walks Scheme in February 2024. The expansion recognises the importance of the scheme in delivering high quality trails.

A key action in Embracing Irelands Outdoors, the National Outdoor Recreation Strategy 2023-2027, is to expand the Walks Scheme to 150 trails by end 2024.

In light of this, a Call for Expressions of Interest to join the Walks Scheme has now opened. Closing date for Expressions of Interest is 11th October 2024. All applications must be made through your Local Development Company.

Deadline for Expressions of Interest is 11th October 2024.

More info: https://www.gov.ie/en/policy-information/942b4b-the-walks-scheme-and-rural-recreation-officers/

Grant applications will be accepted by eligible organizations in communities where Meta has an operational data center.

These grants support projects that address critical community needs by:

• Putting the power of technology to use for community benefit.
• Giving people the power to build strong, sustainable communities.
• Improving local science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEAM) education.

In Europe, registered not for profit organizations and government entities (including state-run schools and municipalities) are eligible for grants.

Schools may apply for multiple grants. All other organizations are limited to one application per cycle. Projects must have demonstrable metrics that can be publicly reported. Grant funds are intended to be used within one year of the grant award date.

Deadline: 18th October 2024

More info: https://datacenters.atmeta.com/community-action-grants/

The Community Foundation Ireland (CFI) Biodiversity Fund is now open for applications.

There are two strands to this year’s grant round:

CFI are inviting community groups to apply for a grant to engage an ecologist and develop a Community Biodiversity Action Plan (CBAP) for their local area.

CFI are inviting any organisation who has a CBAP to apply for funding to implement recommendations contained in it.

Deadline: 4pm Friday 25th October

More info: https://www.communityfoundation.ie/apply-for-funding/

The Community Food Initiative (CFI) is a programme that aims to positively influence the eating habits of families with children across the Island of Ireland. The programme runs over a three year cycle (2022-24) and its purpose is to support the development of knowledge and skills around food and cooking. The programme is funded by safefood, an All-island government body responsible for the promotion of food safety and healthy eating. The programme is managed by SECAD Partnership on behalf of safefood.

safefood is inviting organisations who are not currently involved in the CFI to apply for funding to deliver an online project that meets the criteria of the CFI at Home Programme. The purpose of the CFI at Home Programme is to support families in their own homes to develop their food and cooking skills.

Projects could include all or some of the following elements:

• Learning how to prepare & cook a recipe
• Attending an online cookery session
• Online support groups for sharing ideas and tips
• Online interactive talks delivered by a dietitian or registered nutritionist

Deadline: Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis but as all activities must be finished by 1st November 2024, it is important that applications are submitted as soon as possible.

More info: https://grantsandfunding.ie/community-food-initiative-at-home-funding-2024/

As a publicly funded repository for Ireland’s social and cultural data, the Digital Repository of Ireland (DRI) believes it is important to make long-term preservation of digital materials open to a wide range of organisations, including those operating on a non-funded, voluntary basis.

Deadline: 5pm Friday 8th November 2024

More info: https://dri.ie/community-archive-scheme/

Administered by the Local Authority Waters Programme (LAWPRO), with funding from the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, the Community Water Development Fund provides funding to local communities and groups to support the delivery of projects and initiatives to enhance local water bodies and benefit water quality and biodiversity.

In the 2024 funding call, over €700,000 grant aid was awarded to 155 water quality projects. The fund is open to all community and voluntary groups to help in the protection and management of water quality, both locally and in the wider catchment. Interested community and voluntary groups can download the guidelines and complete the grant application form online at lawaters.ie from 18th September with a deadline of 20th November 2024.

Deadline: 20th November 2024

More info: https://grantsandfunding.ie/community-water-development-fund-2025/

(for festivals taking place July-Dec 2025)

Round 2 of the Festivals Investment Scheme will open for applications on the 22nd of October 2024.

The Arts Council will present a digital funding clinic on 7th November for applicants to the Festival Investment Scheme 2025 Round 2. The clinic will cover the objectives, purpose and priorities of the award and take applicants through the guidelines and application process. This will include a Q & A session where applicants will have the opportunity to ask questions.

Guidelines will be available from 8th October 2024 on the Arts Council’s available funding page. The clinic will take place on Thursday 7th November 2024 11:30am – 1pm via zoom.

Deadline: 21st November 2024

More info: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/artscouncil/1329361

The Nature Hero Award is Ireland’s largest outdoor learning award across the education sector. It is a mark of excellence for a school recognising exceptional work by young people & teachers to help nature.

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​The aim is to create an educational space that nurtures a love of nature, develops a knowledge of our biodiversity & encourages action to help it locally. It covers many topics from nature conservation to school gardening, ecoliteracy to wellbeing. While it is mainly an award of participation, there’s also some great prizes to be won too! It is open to pre, primary & secondary schools within the Republic of Ireland.

Deadline: 4th April 2025

More info: https://www.biodiversityinschools.com/nature-hero-awards.html

The Age & Opportunity Active National Grant Scheme offers financial supports – provided by Sport Ireland – to local clubs, groups and organisations, nationwide who promote increased participation in recreational sport or physical activity for older people.

Some of the Sport Initiatives supported are:

Age & Opportunity Active National Grant Scheme

Offers financial supports to local clubs, groups and organisations, nationwide.

FitLine

A telephone mentoring service which encourages callers to start getting more active- we’re only a phone call away!

Physical Activity Leaders

An education and peer leadership initiative which trains older people how to lead sport and activity sessions in their local groups and communities.

CarePALS

Trains those working in care settings to lead suitable physical activities.

People with intellectual disability Physical Activity Leaders

Enabling people with intellectual disability (ID) to become physical activity leaders.

Walking Football initiative

An Age & Opportunity initiative for older men that is great craic and good for general health and wellbeing.

European Week of Sport

Promoting sport and physical activity across Europe.

Go For Life Games

Teams from all over Ireland coming together to take part in a national day of sport in June every year.

More info: https://ageandopportunity.ie/active/age-and-opportunity-active-national-grant-scheme/

The Community Recognition Fund was first introduced last year to recognise the huge efforts made by communities in welcoming and supporting people coming to Ireland.

Through the 2023 allocation, funding of €50 million was approved for some 900 projects in supporting cities, towns and villages nationwide that have welcomed people from Ukraine and other countries.

A further €50 million is being provided again to deliver projects over 2024 and 2025.

Local authorities, in collaboration with communities, will be funded to develop projects that will deliver long term benefits to those living in the areas selected.

Projects that will be funded include:

• Development or refurbishment of community or cultural facilities including play areas, walkways, parks, community/sensory gardens, allotments, and recreational areas;
• Development or refurbishment of local club and sports facilities;
• Enhancement to school/parish facilities which are open to use by all of the community after school hours;
• Purchase of equipment for local clubs, festivals, community events and organisations
• Transport infrastructure such as community vehicles

Deadline:

Application window 2 – 1st August to 30th September 2024

Application window 3 – 1st January 2025 to 31st January 2025

Visit the page below for links to your local council and details on how to apply.

Read more: https://grantsandfunding.ie/2024-community-recognition-fund-launched/

PEACEPLUS is a new cross-border funding Programme designed to support peace and prosperity across Northern Ireland and the border counties of Ireland, building upon the work of the previous PEACE and INTERREG Programmes.

The programme has been divided into the following six themes:

Theme 1 – Building Peaceful and Thriving Communities

Theme 2 – Delivering Socio-Economic Regeneration and Transformation

Theme 3 – Empowering and Investing in Our Young People

Theme 4 – Healthy and Inclusive Communities

Theme 5 – Supporting a Sustainable & Better Connected Future

Theme 6 – Building and Embedding Partnership and Collaboration

Deadline: Various deadlines – click here to view Funding call timetable

More info: https://www.seupb.eu/peaceplus/overview

The Seniors Alert Scheme (SAS) has been established to encourage community support for vulnerable older people in our communities. It provides funding for a personal monitored alarm, connected to a contact centre to enable older persons of 65 or older and of limited means, to continue to live securely in their homes with confidence, independence and peace of mind.

The Scheme is funded by the Department of Rural and Community Development via Pobal with equipment made available through community, voluntary and not-for-profit organisations registered with Pobal under the SAS.

Deadline: Ongoing

More info: https://www.pobal.ie/programmes/seniors-alert-scheme-sas/

To Register as a Seniors Alert Scheme organisation: https://www.pobal.ie/app/uploads/2018/06/How-to-register-as-an-SAS-Organisation.pdf

The Hospital Saturday Fund is a registered charity whose aims are to provide assistance for registered health charities, hospices, medical organisations and individuals with a medical condition or disability.

They can provide grants for medical projects, care, research or support of medical training within the United Kingdom, Channel Islands, Isle of Man, the Republic of Ireland and Malta.

For individuals, they can provide help with the purchase of specialised equipment or forms of treatment.

For medically related charities, hospitals, hospices and medical clinics:

The Hospital Saturday Fund will consider giving grants towards medical capital projects, medical care or research and in support of medical training. The Hospital Saturday Fund will also consider grants for running costs.

For Individuals:

The Hospital Saturday Fund will consider giving partial or full grants to individuals for the following:

Specialised mobility equipment, wheelchairs, mobility scooters, car adaptions, medical appliances and aids, hearing aids, nebulisers, specialised vision aids, specialised computer equipment, therapeutic equipment/treatment, orthopaedic beds, mattresses or pillows, riser /recliners chairs, lift hoist/aids.

Physiotherapy, Hydrotherapy, Acupuncture, Speech Therapy, Osteopathy, Chiropractic treatment, Reflexology, Massage Therapy and Aromatherapy.

Home adaptations, walk in showers, accessibility adaptations to bathrooms, access ramps, non-slip flooring, stair lifts.

Deadline: Various deadlines

More info: https://hospitalsaturdayfund.org/apply-for-a-grant/

Since the arrival of the Deposit Return System (DRS) for plastic bottles and aluminium cans, many organisations have seen it as a great opportunity to raise much needed funds by providing drop off and collection points for returns. Organisations can avail of supports from Re-turn, who deliver the scheme, to facilitate collections.

Who can participate in fundraising through DRS?

Tidy Towns, Schools, Clubs, Charities, Companies, Hospitals, Local Events and Festivals. These initiatives are for charity fundraising purposes only and not for personal benefits.

What support does Re-turn offer Community Initiatives?

The bin is free of charge and is 320ltr. It is lockable and has a rosette opening on the lid designed to facilitate the insertion of bottles/cans and avoid heavy contamination. Bags are provided and are heavy duty and designed for re-use, these are intended for use as a liner inside the bin.

Keys and bags are provided at the point of delivery.

Re-turn also have digital assets to help you to promote online, and posters that are ready for print with the option of adding your logo or name.

Re-turn don’t organise collections, you still need to do that yourself, but they have some useful tips on their website to streamline the process.

Deadline: None

More info: https://re-turn.ie/community/

Employment Programme to help people with disabilities

Work and Access offers seven key supports:

1. Workplace Needs Assessment Grants of up to €2,500 are available to enable people with a disability or health condition to identify the supports they need in their workplace to do their job.

2. Workplace Adaptations Grants of up to €25,000 are available to support employers with funding to adapt their business premises for an employee or future employee with a disability.

3. Work Equipment Grants of up to €12,000 are available towards personalised assistive equipment or technology for people with disabilities working in the business premises or working remotely.

4. Personal Reader funding is available to assist people who are blind or visually impaired with work-related reading.

5. Communication support which funds help with job interviews, job inductions, in-work meetings or performance reviews.

6. In-Work Support funding is available towards a work coach or specialist support to help a person with a disability to do their job or re-train if they move to another position.

7. Disability Equality and Inclusion Training funding is available for employers with a paid workforce to train all their staff on disability and inclusion.

Deadline: Ongoing

More info: https://grantsandfunding.ie/work-and-access-employment-programme-launched/

The community-based CCTV grant aid scheme supports communities and local authorities who wish to install and maintain CCTV security systems in their area to increase public safety and to deter illegal or anti-social behaviour.

The maximum grant available for each CCTV system is €45,000.

Applicants to the scheme can include not-for-profit organisations within the community, as well as relevant statutory or voluntary organisations. For example, applicants may include:

• area partnerships
• community development projects
• family resource centres
• local authorities
• community enterprises

Applications are also welcome from groups such as a not-for-profit consortium of private and community interests which has come together to formulate an application.

Deadline: Ongoing

More info: https://www.gov.ie/en/service/3a6b2-community-based-cctv-grant-aid-scheme/

Ecclesiastical and Benefact Group’s Movement for Good Awards is back. Now in its sixth year, the awards are giving charities across the UK and Ireland the opportunity to receive €1,000.

The Movement for Good Awards will once again see more than €1million donated to good causes and from today, people can quickly and easily nominate a charity online at www.movementforgood.com.

The Movement for Good Awards has donated over £5million to charities in the UK and Ireland since the initiative started in 2019.

Winners will be drawn at random and the more times a charity is nominated the more chance it has of being selected.

There will also be a series of special draws where charities operating within specific sectors can be nominated to receive a grant of €5,000, the timetable of draws can be viewed at www.movementforgood.com and donations will be announced throughout the year.

Deadline – Ongoing with monthly draws

More info: https://movementforgood.com

The grant programme is open all year round and you can apply for funding by completing a funding application form. The grant offer is valid for 12 months to give you plenty of time to identify the community priorities, find an external expert and develop your energy masterplan in consultation with your community.

SEAI will provide a 100% grant to cover the costs of an external expert to help your community develop an Energy Master Plan. The Energy Master Plan funding ranges in value depending on the level and scale of the Sustainable Energy Community. The scale of the SEC is linked to the estimate of the energy spend in your community.

Funding available is from €10,000 to €25,000 depending on size of community.

Deadline: Open all year round

More info: https://www.seai.ie/community-energy/sustainable-energy-communities/join-the-sustainable-ener/

LEADER Programme 2023-2027 grant support is available in rural areas under the following indicative themes:

• Economic Development and Job Creation

• Rural Infrastructure and Social Inclusion

• Sustainable Development of Rural Environment and Climate Change Mitigation

To get a good insight into projects supported in the past, this booklet produced by CAP Network Ireland (formerly National Rural Network) has an excellent compilation of case studies:  LEADER Programme 2014-2020 Case Studies from Ireland. Hopefully you can gain some inspiration from that.

Click here to find your Local Development Company

More info: https://capnetworkireland.eu/leader/

PayPal Giving Fund Ireland helps people support their favourite charities online and raises funds to benefit charities through PayPal and other technology platforms. We receive donations and make grants to our donors’ recommended charities.

Deadline: ongoing

More info: https://www.paypal.com/ie/webapps/mpp/givingfund/home

Does your community group have an idea for creating a workspace for artists? Your Local Authority may be able to assist you realise your ambition.

Applications are now open for Local Authorities under the Pilot Artist Workspaces Scheme to increase the provision of artists’ workspaces across Ireland.

The primary focus of this pilot scheme is to provide funding to Local Authorities to enable them to provide additional capacity and availability of artist workspaces in their regions on a sustainable basis. Under this scheme Local Authorities are therefore invited to propose projects which can accommodate and address the demand for artist workspaces in their regions and produce workspaces that are fit for purpose, design focused and accessible.

Deadline: No closing date, any funds not allocated within nine months from the launch

of the scheme may be re-distributed to Local Authorities who have already applied and

made significant progress with their projects subject to a detailed Business Case.

More info: https://grantsandfunding.ie/minister-martin-announces-e6-million-in-funding-to-deliver-artist-workspaces-nationwide/

Baboró is delighted to offer a small Go See Fund to support artists and creatives to travel within Ireland to see work for children. The fund is designed for those who make or wish to make work for children and are looking for inspiration, new approaches to presentation, etc.

To ensure this small fund can benefit as many individuals as possible, it will support the cost of event tickets and travel within the island of Ireland only, up to a maximum of €100 per application.

Deadline: ongoing

More info: https://www.baboro.ie/artists/grow/go-see-fund

International Funding

The L’Oréal Fund for Women is a charitable fund launched in 2020 to support frontline organizations in their efforts to help women to get out of poverty, prevent domestic, sexual and gender-based violence against women. The Fund focuses on supporting women and girls’ empowerment, particularly through projects in favor of social or professional integration and education. A specific attention is paid to refugee women and women with disabilities.

The Fund is opened internationally and can support activities / projects based locally or in another country.

Deadline: 17th October 2024

More info: https://fundforwomen.loreal.com/ExternalUser/Login?ReturnUrl=%2F

The Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund has been established to provide targeted grants to individual species conservation initiatives, recognize leaders in the field and elevate the importance of species in the broader conservation debate. Its focus is global and eligibility for grants will extend to all plant, animal and fungi species conservation efforts, without discrimination on the basis of region or selected species. However, it is very competitive indeed with only around 12% of applicants receiving a grant.

Grants will be awarded based on their ability to meet criteria pre-determined by the Species Fund, and are for maximum of $25,000 for each project.

Deadline: 31st October 2024

More info: https://www.speciesconservation.org/grants/

Kindness Grows Here believes every child is inherently kind and can make positive changes in their community. We know that kids and teens have amazing ideas for spreading kindness in their schools, neighbourhoods, and larger communities. We value the unique perspective children bring to identifying problems in their schools, neighbourhoods, and communities, and finding creative ways to solve these problems through kindness. For this reason, we dedicate the largest portion of our budget to our “Kid Kindness Grants” program.

Every year from September 1 to November 1 we accept applications directly from kids between the ages of 5-18 who have ideas for spreading kindness. To apply, kids need to complete a simple application that tells us what they want to do, why, whom their project will impact, how much money they need, and exactly how they will spend it.

All applicants must be students between the ages of 5-18. Applicants DO NOT need any experience in grant writing to apply!

Deadline: Friday 1st November 2024.

More info: https://www.kindnessgrowshere.com/kid-kindness-grants

Wild Animal Initiative’s Discovery Grants program provides funding for projects that expand the evidence base of wild animal welfare, with a focus validating methods and applying them to new systems.

Each Discovery Grants call solicits project proposals within broad themes aligned with Wild Animal Initiative’s research priorities. We expect successful projects to be highly cost-effective, with funds primarily supporting uniquely welfare-relevant activities.

Deadline: 1st November 2024

More info: https://www.wildanimalinitiative.org/grants/discovery-grants

The Earth Prize is an annual, global $100,000 environmental sustainability competition for students between the ages of 13 and 19, which rewards the teams whose projects have the most potential to address environmental issues.

The Earth Prize, the world’s largest environmental competition for young people, has seen participation from teams in over 150 countries during its first three annual editions. It aims to inspire and empower the next generation of environmental leaders and innovators, creating a global platform for sharing and scaling their solutions.

Starting with the 2025 edition, there will be seven regional winners, each receiving $12,500 to implement their ideas. The regions are Oceania, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe, North America, and Central & South America. Additionally, The Earth Prize will recognize three mentors and three educators of the year, awarding each $2,500.

Deadline: 30th November 2024

More info: https://www.theearthprize.org/schools

The ProVeg Grants program is accelerating the transformation of our food system by providing support for organisations involved in this vital work. Since 2019, ProVeg International has provided more than 500 grants to organisations and individuals in over 70 countries. They provide both financial support and assistance with capacity-building. ProVeg Grants offers financial support of between $5,000 and $50,000 per year.

Deadline: Quarterly – 1st December 2024

More info: https://proveg.org/advocacy/grants/

The Science Without Borders® Challenge is an international contest that engages students and teachers in ocean conservation through art. This annual competition inspires students to be creative while promoting public awareness of the need to preserve, protect, and restore the world’s oceans and aquatic resources.

Deadline: Monday 3rd March 2025

More info: https://www.livingoceansfoundation.org/education/science-without-borders-challenge/