349. Deputy Ciarán Ahern asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht if he considers the existing suite of State supports for social enterprises including the Community Services Programme, SICAP and local enterprise office supports adequate to address persistent market failure across the sector, given that only 48.5% of social enterprise income is currently derived from trading activity and 56% of organisations report insufficient reserves to withstand a financial shock; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49974/26]

Many social enterprises choose to operate in areas of ‘deficient demand’, to deliver a good or service for a community where there is insufficient demand due to economic or social disadvantage or low population density, and this delivery is the social impact that marks them out as a social enterprise.

The 2023 Social Enterprise Baseline Data Collection Exercise found that 39.6% of social enterprises have a modest annual income below €100,000. Influenced by these findings, as well as the OECDs 2023 review on 'Boosting Social Entrepreneurship and Social Enterprise Development in Ireland', Trading for Impact, the National Social Enterprise Policy 2024-2027, was developed in partnership with the sector. Its key objectives are to help cultivate and sustain strong and impactful social enterprises that enrich the social, environmental, and economic well-being of people living in our communities.

A Stakeholder Engagement Group (SEG) has been set up to co-ordinate input into the delivery of Trading for Impact on a cross sectoral basis. In order to consider and advise on targeted developments to grow the sector, the following working groups have been established following approval from the SEG:

• Social Finance Working Group - to consider issues and identify potential solutions / options in relation to social finance gaps facing social enterprises, to help financial sustainability,

• Social Procurement Working Group - to support increased social and green procurement in Ireland, collect information, develop supports, consider issues and identify potential solutions and options in relation to social and green procurement, in line with the Policy, to help grow traded income,

• Building Awareness Working Group – to increase knowledge and awareness of social enterprises, their impact, and build demand for their goods and services.

In April of this year, I launched a Dormant Accounts Fund (DAF) Sustaining Social Enterprise Scheme which supports established social enterprises to grow their traded income and become more financially self-sufficient over 23 months, in line with SEG feedback. Applications are currently at assessment stage. This funding will support projects such as the recruitment of key staff to drive income growth and sustainability and the development of a shared service resource enabling existing staff to focus on increased income generation.

Action 12 of Trading for Impact commits to deliver loan and grant funding schemes for social enterprises through new and existing programmes within my department including the Community Services Programme (CSP), the Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP) and LEADER.

Through SICAP, social enterprises providing services to one or more of the named SICAP target groups, may avail of grants through SICAP’s programme implementers up to a maximum of €2,500 per annum, with a view to supporting social enterprises to establish and expand, employing those who are most marginalised, and so they can provide local services where other enterprises may not be able to.

My Department's Our Rural Future policy also recognises the role of social enterprises in providing appropriate spaces and services to rural areas, and influences funding across a range of schemes within my Department’s Rural Development Investment Programme, for example LEADER and the Town and Village Renewal Scheme which can support suitable projects.

The CSP programme currently supports 453 services nationally on an ongoing basis via 434 community organisations to provide local social, economic, and environmental services through a social enterprise model with a budget of €59.4m in 2026. A recent call for new organisations to join the CSP programme closed on May 8th last. All applications received are currently going through an appraisal process.

Departments and agencies across government also play a part in supporting the sector including the Department of Social Protection supports, through the Job Initiative, TUS, Community Employment and Rural Social Scheme posts, which play an important part in supporting the sector, in line with the policy. Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs) carry out enterprise development functions on behalf of Enterprise Ireland. The 31 LEOS are the first-stop shops for every business in the country, providing a signposting service for all Government supports available to the SME sector. Social Enterprises are eligible for LEO assistance provided they operate on a commercial basis and meet the eligibility criteria for the scheme for which they wish to apply

An updated Census of Social Enterprise is currently taking place which will, I hope, give additional data to my department and stakeholders to continue to develop meaningful supports that provide positive outcomes for social enterprises, to deepen their financial sustainability which will in turn help them deliver their social impact for as long as it is required.