Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 3 February 2021
980. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development when the community services programme Pobal grants will reopen for applications; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5299/21]
View answerMy Department's Community Services Programme, or CSP, supports over 420 community organisations to provide local services through a social enterprise model.
The CSP provides an annual co-funding contribution of €19,033 towards the cost of each full time equivalent position supported, and, where warranted, provides €32,000 in co-funding towards the cost of employing a manager. Qualifying organisations must be social enterprises capable of generating income from their activities in order to meet the full salary costs of the supported posts, for example, from income received from the public use of facilities and services.
In 2020, Indecon International Economic Consultants carried out an independent review of the Community Services Programme on behalf of my Department. This report was published in September 2020 and is available on my Department's website. My Department and Pobal have now commenced work on the restructuring of the Programme in line with the Indecon report recommendations. Pending the transition to the newly restructured programme, the open Expression of Interest process is closed.
It is expected that the Programme will open targeted calls to address identified gaps in service delivery again in mid to late 2021.
