4123. Deputy Réada Cronin asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht to detail funding allocations for community centres, youth facilities and sports infrastructure in North Kildare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [60104/26]

My department's schemes have funded numerous projects relating to community centres, youth facilities and sports infrastructure in North Kildare. These projects were delivered through schemes under the Rural Development Investment Programme and the Community Development Programme, including the Town and Village Renewal Scheme, CLÁR, the Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Scheme, the Community Centre Investment Fund, the Community Recognition Fund and the LEADER programme.

The details requested by the Deputy are outlined by scheme below.

The Community Centre Investment Fund (CCIF) was introduced to provide high quality community facilities that are available to all groups in both urban and rural communities. Through the CCIF, some €112 million has been allocated for the enhancement and refurbishment of existing community centres and the construction of new centres where such a need has been identified.

Since 2022, 42 projects have been approved under CCIF in County Kildare with associated funding of over €2.3 million, including over €1.3 million for 25 projects in North Kildare. Details of projects in North Kildare are in the below table.

The latest round of funding under CCIF 2026 was launched on?26th of?March for enhancement and refurbishment of existing community centres. The fund will be delivered across 2 categories with maximum funding levels of €25,000 and €100,000, respectively. ?The closing date has now passed, and the appraisal process has commenced. I look forward to announcing the successful projects later in the year.

The Community Recognition Fund (CRF) was introduced in 2023 to recognise the huge efforts made by communities in welcoming and supporting people coming to Ireland. Under the fund a total of €100 million has been provided to local authorities to support cities, towns and villages nationwide. The fund supported a wide range of projects including community centres, youth facilities and sports infrastructure.

Under the Community Recognition Fund, Kildare County Council were allocated over €1.6 million for 18 projects including over €545,000 allocated to support projects in North Kildare. Details of these projects are in the below table.

Whilst community centres, youth facilities and sport infrastructure were eligible under this fund, it is now closed to applications, and the emphasis is now to ensure that all projects are delivered throughout 2026 so that communities can benefit from this investment

The Outdoor Recreational Infrastructure Fund (ORIS) promotes natural outdoor amenities in rural Ireland. It supports activities like walking, cycling, orienteering, fishing, wild swimming, and kayaking, but excludes indoor facilities, pitches, or motorized sports.

Since 2021, Kildare County Council has been allocated €1.05 million from ORIS for 19 projects. The projects funded include the upgrading of trail infrastructure, accessibility improvements, signage and safety measures which have improved access to sports infrastructure.

The CLÁR programme provides funding under a number of different measures for small-scale infrastructural projects in designated rural areas. Last year I approved over €14 million for 238 projects under the programme, with funding being provided for community facilities and amenities (including community centres, youth facilities and sports infrastructure), community vehicles and specific support for island communities.

The 2025 Programme for Government makes a commitment to carry out a comprehensive review of the eligible CLÁR areas in which heretofore Kildare was not included. The analysis for this review has now been completed, and an additional 110 electoral divisions (EDs) have now been included as newly eligible areas. Kildare was included for the first time with the addition of the ED of Ballitore.

I was pleased to launch of the 2026 CLÁR programme on 10th March this year with a record budget of €12 million. Closing dates for all measures have now passed and I look forward to announcing the successful projects later in the year.

The Town and Village Renewal Scheme (TVRS) was introduced in 2016 and is designed to rejuvenate rural towns and villages throughout Ireland. TVRS is administered through local authorities, who work closely with local communities and businesses to develop proposals that will bring long-lasting, positive impacts to rural towns and villages. This scheme places particular emphasis on projects which support sustainable employment creation, town centre resilience and regeneration, enhancing our streetscapes, and bringing derelict and vacant buildings and sites back into use as multi-purpose community spaces. Since the launch of the scheme over €217 million has been allocated to almost 2,000 projects nationally.

Since 2021, TVRS funding of over €1 million has been allocated to 5 project which supports the development of community centres, youth facilities and sports infrastructure in North Kildare. A breakdown of these projects is included in the table below.

The LEADER Programme, which is implemented through LEADER Local Action Groups (LAGs), has a long history of supporting community facilities, youth facilities and sports infrastructure. Under the current 2023-2027 LEADER Programme, the Kildare LAG was allocated €5.4 million in funding, of which c. €4 million is available to support local projects. Examples of projects funded by LEADER in North Kildare are provided in the table below. Should a community group wish to avail of funding they should contact County Kildare Leader Partnership to discuss prospective applications. Full details of the LEADER programme and the contact details of the LAGs are available on my department’s website.

Details of funding allocations across all of these schemes are available on my department's website.

Attached tables