The Heart of the Community Fund provides an opportunity for non-profit organizations across the island of Ireland delivering vital services and supports to apply for much-needed funding through an open grant round.
In June 2024
WE DELIVERED CORE COSTS TO KEY SERVICES
In December 2024
WE DELIVERED ESSENTIAL SERVICES FOR CHILDREN
Grants totaling €500,000 were awarded to 20 organizations that provide essential services to children
experiencing poverty, marginalization, and their difficult circumstances. Each organization received
€25,000 to support their work. They can span a range of services, including homelessness and family
supports, education, youth outreach, mental health care, and food provision.
Organizations Supported in 2024 Include:
Barnardos
Barnardos provides a range of services to support children aged 0-18 and their
families to recover from their adverse experiences and break cycles of deprivation and trauma,
helping them achieve their full potential through a child-centred, wrap-around approach. Services
include Family Support to enhance parenting capacity and family well-being, Early Years
programmes to prepare vulnerable children under five for school, and Specialist Services like
bereavement support and domestic violence recovery. Operating through 54 centres nationwide,
Barnardos employs a trauma-informed, evidence-based model to address the needs of the most
vulnerable.
The Capuchin Day Centre
The Capuchin Day Centre for Homeless People provides over 1,000 hot meals
each day and more than 1,450 food parcels each week to people who are in need or who are
homeless. It also provides a medical service, an informal advice and information service, and
showering facilities for anyone who needs them
Citywise Education
Citywise Education tackles educational inequality by supporting young people
aged 14–21 from underserved communities in progressing from primary to third-level education.
Offering small-group tuition, mentorship with corporate partners, workshops, and supervised
study, its Fast Track Academy (FTA) helps 90% of participants advance to higher education in
areas where less than 5% hold degrees. With a proven impact in West Tallaght, Citywise aims to
replicate FTA, fostering greater educational attainment across disadvantaged areas in Dublin and
setting the stage for national expansion to lift more young people out of poverty.
COPE Galway
COPE Galway’s Family Service supports homeless families in Galway through
emergency accommodation and developmental supports for children, addressing challenges like
poor nutrition, health issues, and developmental delays. Many families live in unsuitable
conditions for over a year, facing added burdens during winter, such as inadequate clothing and
the financial strain of Christmas.“To see parents having to choose between buying a winter coat for
their child or having enough money for food is beyond heart breaking. The provision of vital supports
through the Heart of the Community Fund will ease distress and bring comfort to the 253 children in
COPE Galway’s homeless families service. Thank you to The Ireland Funds.”
– Sharon Fitzpatrick, Head of Development, COPE Galway
Early Learning Initiative
ELI is a research-based intervention service for children aged 4-7, aimed
at enhancing parental confidence and competence in supporting their child’s development. It
provides tailored support to families through home visits, check-in calls, and family educational
events, including a summer program to prevent learning loss. Operating in Dublin’s Inner City, one
of the most disadvantaged areas in Ireland, the program supports families affected by poverty,
homelessness, addiction, and social isolation, helping them overcome barriers to education and
well-being
Food Cloud
FoodCloud is a Dublin-based non-profit social enterprize tackling food waste and food
poverty by connecting businesses with surplus food to charities in need. Using technology and a
food banking model, FoodCloud has redistributed over 300 million meals since 2013, supporting
more than 700 charities in Ireland, including those focused on vulnerable children, families, and
communities facing homelessness or poverty
Home-Start North Down
Home-Start North Down supports families with children aged 0-5 in
Bangor and North Down who face challenges such as ill health, isolation, poverty, domestic
violence, substance misuse, or disabilities. The children referred often experience developmental
delays, behavioural difficulties, speech issues, low confidence, poor social skills, or lack basic
needs like food and warmth. The organisation matches services to families, providing tailored
support to improve their situations.
Kinship Care Northern Ireland
Kinship Care Northern Ireland supports children and young people
raised by relatives or friends due to parental illness, addiction, or incapacity. It provides advocacy,
emotional support, and practical assistance to carers, helping them navigate legal, financial, and
social challenges. Kinship Care Northern Ireland works to ensure that children in these situations
receive the care and stability they need while supporting the carers who provide it.
LauraLynn
LauraLynn is Ireland’s only children’s hospice, providing hospice care for children with lifelimiting conditions and supporting their families. It offers palliative care, respite services, and
emotional support for children up to 18 years old. LauraLynn also provides bereavement support
and a range of services to help families manage the challenges of caring for a child with complex
medical needs, both at their hospice and in the community. Their mission is to ensure that every
child with a life-limiting condition can live a fulfilling life with dignity and comfort
MACS Supporting Children & Young People
“This Heart of the Community Fund grant from The Ireland Funds will greatly impact our work,
allowing us to provide crisis support for young people in need. It will fund essential items like food,
utilities, and baby supplies, making a big difference for families, such as one particular young
parent who will now be able to access necessities such a cot, nappies, and formula. The grant will
also help with rent deposits, preventing youth homelessness, and provide emergency
accommodation for those in crisis. We can’t thank The Ireland Funds enough for supporting us in
our mission to end youth homelessness.”
– Kate Martin, CEO of MACS Supporting Children & Young People
Sanctuary Runners
Creating opportunities for refugees and asylum-seekers to meet their local
neighbors in a safe, friendly and fun environment. To date, 2,000 people across 22 counties have
connected and strengthened their communities
Spraoi agus Spórt Family Centre
Provides fun and affordable opportunities, experiences and
activities for the community, that are inclusive of disability and/or autism. It works to address
disadvantage and enhance opportunities in the region
ShoutOut
Promotes the inclusion of LGBTQ+ people through education, primarily through
workshops and educational programmes in schools and communities.
Midland Science
Works to create greater interest in STEM education and skills among students,
teachers and members of the public in the Midlands [Laois, Offaly, Longford and Westmeath]. It
reaches over 16,000 people directly per annum.
Glencree Centre for Peace & Reconciliation
Works with individuals, groups and communities to
transform conflict, promote reconciliation, encourage healthy relationships and build sustainable
peace.
