Minister McEntee announces allocation of €3 million to community safety projects across the country
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The Minister for Justice Helen McEntee has today (Thursday) announced the allocation of just over €3 million worth of funding to 33 projects through the Community Safety Fund.
The aim of the fund is to allow the proceeds of crime, seized by the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) and An Garda Síochána, to be directed into local community safety projects. Grants ranging from €27,000 to €183,000 have been awarded to organisations and community groups that have made proposals to improve community safety.
Minister McEntee said:
"At the heart of our approach to community safety is the principle that every community has the right to thrive and flourish. This funding will help the people who best understand the safety needs of their community to develop proposals to make a real positive difference. The successful projects have demonstrated their understanding of the safety needs in their community and put forward strong proposals which I believe will lead to improved safety in their areas.
"An Garda Síochána and the Criminal Assets Bureau have had continued success in disrupting the activities of criminals by seizing their ill-gotten gains. Putting this money back into the community is a real way to show that the efforts of law enforcement can directly contribute to making people feel safer.
"I have ensured that under Budget 2025, the Community Safety Fund will be increasing to €4 million."
Some themes of this year’s successful applicants include projects aimed at addressing anti-social behaviour, domestic violence, drug-related intimidation, safety on public transport, social exclusion, youth programmes, prison post-release support and more. Many of the projects will focus on the use of education, sport, recreation, and social interaction to proactively address safety concerns in communities.
Funding has also been provided this year for Community Safety Wardens projects on a pilot basis in both Limerick and Cork, along with continued funding for Community Safety Wardens in Dublin’s Wolfe Tone Park. Community Safety Wardens help promote pro social behaviour in the community and link in with support services, businesses and members of the public to better understand specific concerns in the area.
Minister McEntee will today visit the Ballyfermot Youth Service, who will be receiving funding of €150,000 through the Community Safety Fund for their project ‘Outdoor Education in the City’. The project will use the funding to employ two outdoor education instructors to work with disaffected young people in the Ballyfermot and Cherry Orchard areas alongside a comprehensive range of programmes for young people. They will utilise three unique facilities: the Skatepark and BMX HUB in Le Fanu Park, the Adventure Centre in Park West Industrial Estate, and a Residential Centre in Wicklow, which they propose to use for respite and training young people in various skills.
Minister McEntee continued:
"Protecting our citizens is much wider than policing and involves a whole of government approach to support communities to have a say in matters relating to their own safety. As part of Budget 2025 I secured €9.5 million to establish Local Community Safety Partnerships nationwide; establish a National Office for Community Safety; and the Community Safety Fund.
"The Community Safety Fund is an important element in achieving our overall objective to build stronger, safer communities. I want this fund to grow further in the future so that we share the learnings from these projects with other communities across the country."
A full list of successful grants is included in “Notes” below. All grants under the Community Safety Fund are subject to the terms and conditions as set out in the Funding Call.
Notes
The Community Safety Fund (previously the Community Safety Innovation Fund) was announced in April 2021 by Minister for Justice Helen McEntee and then Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Michael McGrath.
The Fund was initiated in 2022 and provided funding of €2 million across 22 projects with grants ranging from €20,000 to €150,000.
The open call for the 2024 Community Safety Fund ran from Tuesday 4 June 2024 until Friday 26 July 2024.
The funding call was publicised on the department's website and social media channels, as well as print and broadcast media through a press release.
The Community Safety Fund (CSF) 2024 funding call invited applications from community safety initiatives, as well as groups co-funded with local authorities, NGOs, and community organisations working on issues relevant to community safety.
Applications could be submitted by individual organisations, or by consortiums involving two or more organisations where the lead partner was a community organisation, not-for-profit, social enterprise, or similar, with a remit relevant to community safety.
The projects receiving funding under the 2024 CSF (33 in total) are listed below.
#
Applicant
Project
Location
1
Cork Business Association
Community Safety Wardens, Pilot Scheme, Cork City - aims to enhance community safety in Cork City by deploying trained Community Safety Wardens who will work closely with residents, businesses, and gardai to help prevent crime, improve public safety, and foster community cohesion.
Cork
2
CEART Consortium led by Amicita
Community/Empowerment - Collaborating with local services, the project will address the needs of vulnerable young adults by offering bespoke programmes to achieve better social, wellbeing and interconnective outcomes.
Cork
3
Dublin City Council
Dublin Safe Bus Project - aims to enhance night-time community safety
Dublin
4
Dublin North Inner City Community Safety Partnership (this application is being made by a consortium, comprising of DCC, Dublin Town, LCSP and Ana Liffey Drug Project, LCSP are the lead partner)
Wolfe Tone Square Local Community Safety Warden Scheme. Wolfe Tone Square Local Community Safety Warden (LCSW) scheme promotes community/business/State agency/community & voluntary sector engagement on safety and reimagining of a positive perception of safety for all users of the space
Dublin
5
Ballyfermot Youth Service
Outdoor Education In The City – to work with disaffected youth in the Ballyfermot and Cherry Orchard areas, utilizing three unique facilities: the Skatepark and BMX HUB in Le Fanu Park, and the Adventure Centre in Park West Industrial Estate, and a Residential Centre in Wicklow, which they propose to use for respite and training young people in various skills.
Dublin
6
Merchants Quay Ireland
Peer Engagement Project - aims to address criminal and antisocial behaviour related to drug use through a peer led approach
Dublin
7
Sphere 17
Detached Bus – Out N About: to enable detached youth workers to engage with more hard-to-reach young people on the street
Dublin
8
Dublin City Council on behalf of Darndale Implementation Oversight Group
Darndale Implementation Oversight Group (DIOG) - to collaborate with a media company to develop and execute a communications strategy that keeps the community informed about progress and developments
Dublin
9
FamiliBase
That's a WRAP - an outreach programme for ‘harder to reach’ young people and their families
Dublin
10
North Inner City Drug Alcohol
Evaluation of Sports Engagement Programme’– to provide various sports programs aimed at diverting youth from street crime and substance misuse
Dublin
11
National Women’s Council of Ireland
The Women’s Community Safety Café - to develop, create and conduct The Women’s Community Safety Café
Dublin
12
Citywise Education
Citywise Leaders in Action Project - Vulnerable young people (13-18) from disadvantaged communities will take part in weekly training workshops in their own communities
Dublin
13
Ballymun Local Drugs and Alcohol Task Force
Making My Own Choices Project, Ballymun - a team of community-based drug workers will conduct a four-week education program each term in all 11 primary schools in Ballymun for two years
Dublin
14
Northside Partnership
Connecting Youth - to design and implement Connecting Youth – a targeted 10-week programme for young people at risk in D17 and D5
Dublin
15
Le Chéile
Galway Restorative Mentoring Project - to establish a new youth justice service in Galway city and county, for young people on probation and for their parents/carers
Galway
16
Limerick City and County Council
The Limerick Community Safety Warden Scheme
Limerick
17
The Hunt Museum
“Safe Haven, Cultivation”, Capacity Building in The Hunt Museum Community Garden - aims to address anti-social behaviour in the museum's community garden by enhancing security and expanding community engagement.
Limerick
18
West Limerick Resources, Rathkeale Together Project
The Hideout' Drop In Centre - Provide a pop-up drop-in centre for young people between 12 and 18, during 4-9pm 7 nights a week
Limerick
19
Applicant
The Hideout' Drop In Centre - Provide a pop-up drop-in centre for young people between 12 and 18, during 4-9pm 7 nights a week
Limerick, Clare and Tipperary
20
Foróige Longford Safe Futures
Safe Futures - aims to enhance community safety through the development of a youth focused programme that empowers young people
Longford
21
Longford Local Community Safety Partnership
Project Safer Horizons: Changing Perceptions and Empowering Communities in Longford - targets personal and community safety concerns in Longford through five projects, focusing on older adults, minority groups, and residents of disadvantaged areas
Longford
22
Longford Local Community Safety Partnership
Sport for Change: Building Safer Communities in Longford - emphasises sports, outdoor activities, and skill development to tackle anti-social behaviour and support disadvantaged communities
Longford
23
Longford Women’s Link
Longford Interagency Response to the Risk of Domestic Violence Homicide in Rural Ireland - focusing on developing communication strategies and interagency Standard Operating Procedures to mitigate domestic violence risks in rural Ireland
Longford
24
Connect Family Resource Centre
Connecting Communities - focus primarily on parents and families to include programmes, initiatives and activities to build resilience, confidence and feelings of safety in the community, promote positive mental wellbeing, build social capital by improving social connections
Louth
25
The Red Door Project
Prison Links Worker - to support individuals with a substance use issue both entering and exiting prison
Louth and Meath
26
Foróige New Choices
New Choices - is an out of school Alternative Learning Programme. The target group is 10 to 16 year olds who are out of school due to disruptive, antisocial or violent behaviour or are not attending school by choice
Meath
27
Crann Support Group CLG – Meath Community Drug And Alcohol Response
Prison Links Worker - offering support before, during, and after incarceration to facilitate reintegration and prevent relapse and reoffending
Meath and Westmeath
28
Sligo Business Improvement District
Purple Pulse- Sligo Town Pilot - Purple Pulse is an app designed for businesses and community champions to log and track anti-social incidents (Supported by local Gardaí)
Sligo
29
Waterford Local Community Safety Partnership
Waterford SafeHubs Pilot - Pilot project will demonstrate that personal safety can be enhanced using the newly developed SafeHubs App on mobile phones
Waterford
30
Waterford Local Community Safety Partnership
Getting Kilcohan back on Track - involves an eight-week educational program in Kilcohan, targeting anti-social behaviour related to e-scooters, e-bikes, and scramblers, focusing on road safety and responsible usage
Waterford
31
Enniscorthy Community Alliance
Enniscorthy Plants, Places and People - seeks to expand and extend the Enniscorthy Plants and Places Project by adding two new community safety components: a "clean street, safe streets" initiative and capacity building for local project management
Wexford
32
Gorey Youth Needs Group
The Discovery Project - to continue the Discovery project by providing additional training to some of the professionals who worked on the project
Wexford
33
The Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children
Non-violent Resistance - is a 9-week, supportive program for parents experiencing child-to-parent violence that involves group work and face-to-face support