Minister Foley allocates over €413,000 to strengthen prevention and early intervention services for children and young people

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The Minister for Children, Disability and Equality, Norma Foley, has announced €413,188 in Dormant Accounts funding for 12 community and voluntary organisations across Ireland.

The funding, allocated under the 2026 What Works in Communities Fund, will support organisations to strengthen prevention and early intervention services for children, young people and families.

The projects include an early intervention service to supporting children & young people dealing with trauma caused by domestic abuse, a support programme for parents of deaf children and young people and a preschool home liaison project to encourage children at risk of disadvantage.

There will also be a pilot play therapy programme for children experiencing emotional, behavioural or developmental challenges and a training programme for young adults with Down Syndrome making the transition to adult life.

The projects will promote participation, equality and inclusion across a breadth of areas including child poverty, mental health, children in care, children with disabilities, early learning and child development.

The 12 successful projects were selected from 101 eligible applications, following an independent assessment process.

Announcing the allocations, Minister Foley said:

“This funding is a vital investment in Ireland’s children and young people. Through the What Works initiative, Dormant Accounts funding is being channelled into prevention and early intervention services that will provide high-quality, evidence-based supports that make a lasting difference for children, young people and families across the country”

The 12 successful projects are as follows:

  • Bray Women’s Refuge – Courage to Connect
  • Carrigtwohill FRC – Little Steps Play Therapy Programme
  • Childhood Matters – Evaluation of Placement Support Project
  • Down Syndrome Centre – Rehabilitative Training (RT) Transition Pathway for Young Adults with Down Syndrome
  • Irish Deaf Society – Parents of Deaf Children: Early Intervention and Support Programme
  • Jigsaw – Connected Communities: Implementing and evaluating a community mental health promotion framework
  • Obair Newmarket on Fergus CLG – Ready to Grow: Piloting an Evidence-Informed Early Language and Wellbeing Model
  • Shannow FRC – Early Intervention Therapy Expansion Project (children aged 4-18)
  • The Crann Support Group – Building Strong Foundations
  • The Shona Project – MARK Boys’ Programme Scale-Up
  • West Clare FRC – Reaching Out West
  • YMCA Dublin – Evaluation of YMCA Dublin’s Integrated Services Model

Full project descriptions are set out in the Notes section below.