Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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1085. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development noting that his Department is listed as a co-lead for Action 4.1 of the 2019-2024 Department of Rural and Community Development five-year strategy (details supplied), to provide updates on this action; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17624/25]

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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1096. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development for an update on Action 4.1 of the 2019-2024 Department's five-year strategy (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17623/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 1085 and 1096 together.

The Government's five-year strategy to support the community and voluntary sector, Sustainable, Inclusive and Empowered Communities, was published in 2019. This is a whole of government strategy led by my Department, which is implemented collaboratively with the sector through the Cross Sector Group (CSG) on Local and Community Development.

This Strategy plays an important role in seeking to strengthen the community development, local development and community and voluntary sectors generally. It reaffirms the Government’s commitment to supporting the sector, whilst also recognising the reality of finite resources and the need to ensure that available resources are focused on providing effective services.

The strategy includes a commitment to develop a sustainable funding model to support the community and voluntary sector. Specific actions included in this strategy are the consideration of multi-annual funding approaches by Government departments and Agencies, appropriate cost recovery models to cover the costs of compliance, support for autonomous community and local development organisations and sustainable funding models to support community and social enterprises.

The community and voluntary sector is quite diverse and receives financial support from a wide range of government departments and agencies, including my department. Specifically, In the five years since the strategy was adopted, notable outcomes under the action referred to by the Deputy in supporting the sector by my Department include;

- the rollout of the Covid-19 Stability Fund in 2020 and 2021 which provided grant assistance to 869 C&V organisations, charities and social enterprises totalling €49.6m.

- a C&V Energy Support Scheme (CVESS) introduced in 2022 worth €1.4m, which assisted 876 organisations in order to meet higher energy costs. This scheme complemented other energy cost support measures introduced by the government in 2022.

- Last year, Pobal rolled out a Business and Financial Sustainability Training Programme for the Community Services Programme (CSP), with the overall aim to provide organisations with the skills and knowledge to help them devise business plans that will help them to remain financially viable in the short to medium term.

- Trading for Impact, the National Social Enterprise Policy 2024-2027 was launched by my Department in July 2024 and is designed to cultivate and sustain a strong and impactful social enterprise sector in Ireland. Also, a new €2m Dormant Accounts funded ‘Growing Social Enterprise' fund to provide capital supports that assist enterprises to achieve their social and economic objectives was established.

While all schemes funded by my department are subject to the annual budgetary estimates process managed by the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform, programmes such as the Scheme to Support National Organisation (SSNO) currently provide multi-annual funding towards core costs of national, community and voluntary organisations delivering services and supports. The current iteration of the SSNO, which will conclude at the end of 2025, has provided approximately €24 million to 82 national, community and voluntary organisations over the three and half years of the scheme.

The new Social Inclusion & Community Activation Programme (SICAP) began on 1 January 2024 and will run until the end of 2028. My department committed over €47.4m in core funding in 2024 for SICAP & has committed over €48.9m for 2025.

My Department's Community Services Programme (CSP) currently supports over 430 community-based organisations, with a budget of €55.4m in 2025, to provide local services through a social enterprise model. The CSP Programme provides an annual co-funding contribution towards each full-time equivalent (FTE) position being supported and, where warranted, towards the cost of employing a manager. Funding is delivered through multi-annual funding contracts with the supported organisations.

Separately, my Department oversees the LEADER Programme which also operates on a multi-annual basis and allows for local action groups (LAGs), which incorporates not for profit organisations, to claim a maximum of 25% of their expenditure towards their running and operational costs. A total of €180m is available for the programming period from 2023-2027.

My department will continue to work with relevant stakeholders, including community and voluntary sector representative organisations, charities, local authorities and local development companies, to support community organisations across the country as they deal with ongoing and emerging challenges.