Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy. We have the community recognition fund. It is a fund responding to help communities that have taken in a lot of immigrants. They have facilitated them and worked well with them. I was delighted phase 2 of the Newbridge Family Resource Centre extension of the community building got €440,000 in 2023. Kildare has been allocated €830,000, which brings the total funding under the fund to more than €1.6 million. That is an important fund. It is a rolling fund, so it is important applications are got in.

Under the local enhancement programme, the Kildare LCDC received an allocation of €208,000, of which €34,749 was ring-fenced for women's groups. Some 54 projects were approved for funding under the main local enhancement programme with 14 women's groups also approved. These are small grants. They are not a lot, but they are small grants that make a difference. I see McAuley Place in Naas got €1,879 for painting. It might not seem a lot, but it is a lot to those people when they get their grants. I have been out to many communities and been able to meet them first-hand and these small amounts help them. The community service programme currently supports six organisations in County Kildare. There are four managers and 16.5 full-time equivalents. They are being supported with contract values for 2024 of €537,762. Again, these are all important supports to communities. The Deputy is right they need the money not after the problem has developed further, but when the problem has arisen. I accept his point.

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