Written Answers Nos. 757-761
757. Deputy Séamus McGrath asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht to outline any possible funding sources to assist an organisation nationally to purchase equipment to digitise patient details and records (details supplied). [53168/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy department implements a wide range of schemes and supports which are available to community organisations and other groups across the country. While, there is not a scheme directly related to the issue raised by the Deputy, there may be an avenue of support available under the LEADER programme.
The LEADER programme is part of Ireland’s CAP Strategic Plan 2023 – 2027 which is co-funded by the EU and the Exchequer. The programme is administered by Local Action Groups (LAGs) who select and approve meaningful projects for the local area. The department itself has no role in project selection for LEADER funding.
Firstly, I should note that LEADER does not fund projects on a national basis. Instead, LEADER funded projects are typically based in one LEADER area, and the decision to approve a project, or otherwise, is a matter for the LAG which administers the programme in that area. However, the LEADER programme does facilitate cooperation projects, where a number of LAGs can come together to fund a project that covers their respective geographic areas.
It should be noted that in order for a project to be eligible for LEADER funding, it must be compatible with the actions outlined in the approved Local Development Strategy for the relevant LEADER area, and it must comply with the EU Regulations and Operating Rules in place for the programme. I would also add that LEADER does not fund projects in the five main cities, that is, Cork, Dublin, Galway, Limerick or Waterford, or activities in Northern Ireland.
Further information regarding the LEADER programme, including contact details for LAGs which can be approached in the first instance with such queries, is available on: www.gov.ie/LEADER
758. Deputy Paul Donnelly asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht his plan to replace the Dormant Accounts Fund allocation for social enterprise, which has decreased by 13% since 2023, with a more stable and sustainable source of departmental funding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53252/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraIn July 2017, Government assigned policy responsibility for social enterprise to the newly established Department of Rural and Community Development, and first National Social Enterprise Policy was published by my Department in 2019. Following on from that first policy, Trading for Impact was launched by then Minister Heather Humphreys in July 2024. Trading for Impact has been designed, in partnership with the sector, to cultivate and sustain a strong and impactful social enterprise sector in Ireland that enriches the social, environmental, and economic wellbeing of our communities.
Since the launch of the first National Social Enterprise Policy in 2019, the Social Enterprise Unit of my Department has spent over €16m on supporting social enterprise policy in Ireland.
• €14.9m in Dormant Accounts Funding has been used to provide capital supports schemes, capacity building schemes, training and mentoring programmes, and awareness raising funding to support growing and sustaining social enterprises.
• €1.3m has been used to provide current expenditure supporting the implementation of policy, including spending on an annual national conference, networking events, research, awareness raising and capacity building.
This allocation includes the DAF Growing Social Enterprise Scheme worth €4m which I announced, together with Minister Calleary, earlier this year. This scheme provides funding of between €1,500 and €97,000 to 125 social enterprises to enable them to expand or deliver goods and services to their communities by supporting projects such as building works, repairs and refurbishments or the purchase of new machinery, vehicles or equipment. This funding represents the allocated DAF funding for Social Enterprises for 2024 and 2025.
My Department has also supported a Dormant Accounts funded ‘Hybrid Social Lending Scheme’ of €890,000 over a number of years that provides a blend of a re-payable loan, a grant and capacity building training to social enterprises in partnership with Community Finance Ireland and Rethink Ireland.
Social Enterprises also receive supports from a number of other sources across my Department including the Community Services Programme (CSP), LEADER and also SICAP.
My Department will also be providing support to social enterprises through the use of European Social Fund Plus funding, the core focus of which, initially, is to support the development of a Social Innovation Hub. The Hub will help develop the social innovation ecosystem in Ireland and provide capacity building supports to social innovation projects, which may also be social enterprises. Through the Hub, supports will also be provided in the form of grants and non-financial supports to innovative projects at different stages of the social innovation development curve, including pilots and scaling projects. The scaling up grant application process is being managed by Pobal on behalf of my Department. It’s planned that the pilot grants phase will be launched in early 2026.
The ongoing impact of the national policies since 2019 can also be seen in the provision of supports by a number of Departments and organisations outside of my Department which assist social enterprises. I would advise any such enterprise seeking support to contact their nearest Local Development Company (LDC) for advice. LDCs can provide details of funding available across many Government Departments, and provide details of training, mentoring and networking opportunities that may be available. There are also a wide range of business supports available to social enterprises who qualify under the relevant criteria through the Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs) and the National Enterprise Hub. Other organisations such as Rethink Ireland and Social Entrepreneurs Ireland may also be able to provide advice, funding and training.
I hope the Deputy will agree that the information above represents a diversity of funding opportunities and supports for social enterprises, to enable them to grow and develop.
759. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht to outline any funding streams appropriate for a residents’ group to apply for funding roof repairs and large-scale building upgrades for a community centre (details supplied). [53294/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraI acknowledge the importance of community centres such as the one referenced by the Deputy. My department's Community Centre Investment Fund provides funding for repairs, upgrades and enhancements of such community centres.
The Community Centre Investment Fund has provided approximately €110 million since 2022 for the enhancement and refurbishment of existing community centres and the construction of new centres.
I am committed to delivering further iterations of the scheme in the coming years in line with the commitment in the Programme for Government for this to become a permanent rolling fund. A decision in relation to the timing of further iterations and the measures to be included will be made in the context of the management of ongoing commitments under the fund and the annual budgetary process.
I would encourage organisations to check my Department’s website for information on funding opportunities and announcements.
760. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht the deprivation rates in each of the electoral areas in the State for each of the past three years and at present in 2025, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53431/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraPobal’s HP Deprivation Index is Ireland’s primary social gradient tool, used by many Government Departments, including my own, and state agencies for the identification of disadvantage, in order to target resources towards communities most in need.
The Index is a robust and reliable tool, using data from Ireland’s census to identify relative levels of affluence or disadvantage across geographic areas throughout the country.
The current iteration of the Index uses data from Census 2022, analysing ten measures of an area’s levels of disadvantage. These include educational attainment, employment status and the numbers living in individual households. The Index breaks down deprivation scores across Ireland's Electoral Divisions, and is publicly available at www.Pobal.ie. As the index is a measure of deprivation in the context of the 2022 census, it is not a tool for annual measurement of deprivation levels
761. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht the position regarding any product or service acquired or purchased by his Department from Australia in the past three years. [53612/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraOver the past three years, my Department has utilised the services of two Australian companies for subscriptions relating to online graphic design and stock assets.
The details for the period 2022 to date are set out in the table below.
|
Service Provider/Purpose |
2022 |
2023 |
2024 |
2025 to date |
|
Canva (subscription for online graphic design platform) |
€249.89 |
€249.89 |
€139.90 |
€0 |
|
Envato (subscription for design stock assets) |
€214.02 |
€214.02 |
€214.02 |
€214.02 |
