End of Year Grants supporting community organisations providing essential services.
19 December 2024: The Ireland Funds has announced grants totalling €500,000 which will be distributed between twenty organisations across the island of Ireland that provide essential services to children experiencing poverty, marginalisation, and difficult circumstances. Part of its Heart of the Community Fund, the grants highlight the desire of The Ireland Funds to address urgent needs in the community.
The grants are strategically allocated as a quick response at a time of year when the challenges faced by those experiencing hardship are amplified.
Caitriona Fottrell, President & CEO of The Ireland Funds said: “This grant round reflects The Ireland Funds’ commitment to helping those facing extraordinary challenges. Through philanthropy, we bridge resource gaps, partnering with exceptional organisations to address critical needs of people living in difficult situations. We are deeply appreciative of our donors whose generosity makes this response possible.”
Twenty organisations, selected as experts in their field, will each receive €25,000 to support their work. They span a range of services, including homelessness and family supports, education, youth outreach, mental health care, and food provision. The demands on their services are highest at this time of year.
The funded organisations include:
- Barnardos, providing trauma-informed family and child services.
- Capuchin Centre, providing homeless supports in Dublin for over 50 years.
- Citywise Education, bridging the educational gap in underserved communities.
- COPE Galway, alleviating hardship and social isolation for families.
- FoodCloud, tackling food poverty through surplus redistribution.
- Home-Start North Down, supporting families with children facing challenges such as ill-health, domestic violence, substance misuse or disability.
- Kinship Care Northern Ireland, providing advocacy, support, and practical assistance to carers of young children.
- LauraLynn, Ireland’s only children’s hospice, offering vital palliative care.
Each grant will help these organisations provide timely support to meet children’s immediate needs, while also nurturing long-term well-being.
Sharon Fitzpatrick, Head of Development at COPE Galway said: “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 this Christmas and into the New Year. Thank you to The Ireland Funds.”
The Ireland Funds Heart of the Community Fund highlights the power of strategic philanthropy in addressing urgent issues. By investing in these services, The Ireland Funds aims to nurture communities where every child has the opportunity to thrive.
