Minister Jim O’Callaghan announces allocation of over €4 million from proceeds of crime to 42 community projects across the country

• Proceeds of crime redistributed back into local communities
• 42 projects funded to combat domestic, sexual and gender-based violence, drug intimidation, and to support youth and restorative justice projects

The Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration Jim O’Callaghan has today announced the allocation of €4.4 million through the Community Safety Fund to 42 community safety projects nationwide.

The Community Safety Fund redirects proceeds of crime seized by the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) and An Garda Siochana back into communities.

This year’s allocation is a 33% increase on the €3 million awarded in 2024.

The Fund will support 42 community safety projects across the country. This is almost double the number of projects funded by the first Community Safety Fund in 2022.

Minister O’Callaghan said:

Successful projects this year focus on a broad range of thematic areas that include domestic, sexual and gender-based violence (DSGBV); countering drug related intimidation; addiction recovery and substance misuse; and violence reduction.

Youth support, community reintegration of offenders; trauma informed and restorative approaches as well as initiatives supporting minority or marginalised groups have also been funded.

Minister O’Callaghan visited the YMCA Dublin on Aungier Street, who will receive €142,500 for their ‘Community Wellbeing and Safety Initiative’. This project will support safer, more connected communities through a combined research and outreach approach.

The project will engage vulnerable youth from the Dublin 2, 8 and 13 areas focusing on relationship-building, outreach, and responses to safety identified by local residents.

Minister O’Callaghan added:

A National Office for Community Safety has been established which has responsibility for administering the Community Safety Fund. This Office is also providing support, training and guidance to Local Community Safety Partnerships, which are being rolled out nationwide at present.

Gráinne Berrill, Director of the National Office for Community Safety said,

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The Community Safety Fund (CSF) 2025 funding call invited applications from community safety initiatives, including those cofounded 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. Individuals or private sector businesses were not eligible to apply.

Grants ranging from €20,000 to €150,000 have been awarded to successful projects.

A list of the successful projects is available below

The CSF:

• Allows proceeds of crime to be directed into community projects to support and enhance community safety;
• Ensures that the most appropriate proposals to improve community safety will receive the funding they require;
• Encourages the development of proposals to improve community safety from those people who best understand local community safety needs;
• Allows best practice on community safety and youth justice to be shared with other partnerships and communities nationally as new proposals are developed;
• Reflects and highlights the success of An Garda Síochána and the Criminal Assets Bureau in seizing the proceeds from criminal activity.

Local Community Safety Partnerships are being established under the Policing, Security and Community Safety Act 2024 to provide a more inclusive, community-led and multi-agency approach to local safety, moving beyond community safety being solely the responsibility of An Garda Síochána.

Local Community Safety Partnerships will identify issues relating to community safety in their area and will have an important future role to play in aligning the Community Safety Fund to community needs.

The deadline for submission of applications for the CSF 2025 fund was 16 May 2025.

Following the assessment process, 42 applications are being funded, totalling €4.464 million.

CSF 2025 Allocations