Naoise Ó Cearúil (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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496. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht for a breakdown of funding allocated to community centres under the Community Recognition Fund in 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [60702/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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Since becoming Minister, I have prioritised investment in community infrastructure to support our communities. The Community Centre Investment Fund was introduced to provide high quality, accessible, community spaces that are available to all groups in all communities in both rural and urban areas. Some €110 million has been allocated since 2022 for the enhancement and refurbishment of existing community centres and the construction of new centres.

On 11 March 2025, I announced funding of over €26 million for the refurbishment of 369 community centres country wide under category 2 of the 2024 Community Centre Investment Fund. Details of each of these allocations are available on my department's website.

As part of Budget 2026, I was delighted to announce increased funding for the programmes that are delivering on this priority. This includes an increase in the annual budget for the Community Centre Investment Fund (CCIF) by €3 million to €20 million.

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.