477. Deputy Maeve O'Connell asked the Minister for Education and Youth her Department’s work to strengthen the local youth club grant scheme. [12769/26]

The Local Youth Club Grant Scheme (LYCGS) is an annual funding programme provided by the department and administered by ETBs. It offers financial support to volunteer-led youth clubs and groups to help cover the costs of delivering activities for young people, primarily those aged 10 to 21. The scheme provides funding to clubs based on voluntary participation and excludes sports-focused organisations. The LYCGS also supports Irish-language youth clubs, ensuring that young people who wish to engage through the medium of Irish can do so within their local communities. Furthermore, the scheme incorporates the National Quality Standards for Volunteer-led Youth Groups, ensuring that funded clubs provide safe, inclusive, and developmental opportunities for young people.

The LYCGS is the Youth Affairs Unit’s second-largest universal scheme, providing funding to approximately 1,200 voluntary youth clubs nationwide, enabling over 60,000 young people to participate in clubs within their communities, supporting over 15,000 volunteer leaders.

The department continues to strengthen the LYCGS as a key universal support for volunteer-led youth work. Funding for the scheme has grown steadily from €2.1 million in 2020 to €2.764 million in 2026 – and increase of 31% - allowing more clubs to participate in the scheme and, in many cases, enabling increased grant levels per club. In line with this expansion, since 2025 ETBs have been permitted to allocate up to 10% of their LYCGS funding to provide training and capacity-building supports for club leaders and volunteers. This may include training in areas such as first aid, child safeguarding, inclusion and diversity, health and safety, and other skills essential to the safe and effective operation of youth clubs. These supports are particularly valuable for independent, stand-alone clubs that do not receive training or developmental assistance from a national youth organisation.

Complementing this, the department has also introduced the Youth Services Grant Scheme’s Volunteer Activation Fund - an initiative designed to enhance the recruitment, retention, and support of volunteers who are vital to the delivery of universal youth services. A total of €650,000 was made available in 2024/2025, and seven YSGS-funded national youth organisations were successful in securing support. Their programmes focused on initiatives such as recruiting new volunteers, supporting and retaining existing volunteers, developing training materials, and expanding the number of volunteer-led clubs operating across the country. The Youth Affairs Unit is currently evaluating the impact of this first round of funding to inform future policy development in this area.

The department remains firmly committed to strengthening the LYCGS so that volunteer-led youth clubs can continue to thrive in communities across the country. These clubs—found in towns, villages, and urban neighbourhoods nationwide—play an essential role in offering safe, welcoming spaces where young people can connect, build confidence, and participate in community life. Continued investment in the scheme ensures that these opportunities remain accessible to all young people, regardless of background, and that the volunteer leaders supporting them are equipped with the skills and resources they need.