Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 26 March 2026
519. Deputy Paul McAuliffe asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht further to Parliamentary Question No. 2168 of 4 November 2025, when he expects Community Services Programme to open for funding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23219/26]
View answerMy Department's Community Services Programme (CSP) supports 445 services nationally via 426 community organisations to provide local social, economic and environmental services through a social enterprise model. A further nine organisations, which were waitlisted from the 2023 Open Call, are approved to join the CSP Programme in 2026 bringing the total number of funded organisations to 435 in 2026. An allocation of €59.4m was made in Budget 2026 to support the CSP Programme for 2025, an increase of €4m from 2025. It currently provides funding towards 1,717 full-time equivalents and 350 manager positions. Under the Programme for Government, a commitment was made to open the Community Services Programme for new applications. The design of the Open Call for applications to the CSP Programme is almost complete and the details, including eligible community services and organisations, will be announced very soon.
