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Tag: Social Finance

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Community Finance Ireland’s Donal Traynor is the First Irish CEO appointed to the Board of European Finance Federation

Dónal Traynor, CEO of Community Finance Ireland (CFI), has been appointed as the first Irish board member of the European Federation of Ethical and Alternative Banks (FEBEA), an umbrella group of 33 financial institutions from 15 European countries which develop and promote ethical finance principles.

The appointment was announced following the FEBEA Annual Conference in Athens last month, where Mr. Traynor spoke to delegates about the impact of CFI’s work providing social finance solutions to voluntary-led and grassroots organisations on the island of Ireland.

Donal Traynor Community Finance Ireland first irish CEO appointed to FEBEA Board

Community Finance Ireland, which has been a member of FEBEA since 2016, offers social finance loans to community organisations which drive social impact through sport, faith-based groups, social enterprises and community projects.

CFI was established in Belfast in 1995, and has supported a wide variety of organisations across the island of Ireland to a value of €100million in social finance.

Speaking on his appointment, Mr. Traynor said,

“I’m delighted to join the board of this excellent European network. FEBEA’s mission to work for the development of a fairer, more sustainable and more inclusive society is directly aligned with our mission at Community Finance Ireland. We’re proud to offer tailored supports to organisations that are creating palpable social change in our local communities across Ireland. Just as our peers in FEBEA do in communities right across Europe. For CFI, for our clients, and for the wider Not-For-Profit sector in Ireland, this closer collaboration with our European partners is an important step. We know from working with volunteers on the ground in communities from Bantry to Ballymoney, Donegal to Dublin, we have much to share with our colleagues across Europe and we will have much to learn from them.”

Pedro M. Sasia, President of FEBEA said:

“For FEBEA, the participation of an organisation like Community Finance Ireland, deeply aligned with ethical finance values and the spirit of community, is of great importance. That’s why we’re beyond happy to see Donal Traynor stepping up and actively engaging in the network’s most vital body: the Board of Directors.”

Originally from Cavan, Mr. Traynor was appointed to CEO of Community Finance Ireland in 2020, having led their business in the Republic of Ireland since 2004. He is the youngest CEO in the organisation’s history and the first to come from a non-banking background.

For more information on FEBEA, visit their website here, and to learn more about Community Finance Ireland’, visit our home page’s story click here.

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On 9th October 2023, Sport NI opened a new £1million pound capital investment fund which seeks to reduce the environmental impact of sports clubs throughout Northern Ireland and contribute to a more sustainable sports club network.

Funded by The National Lottery, the Renewable Energy Fund will support sports clubs with infrastructure upgrades such as solar energy systems, air and ground source heating systems, sustainable water recycling solutions, and floodlight upgrades.

The Renewable Energy Fund will be delivered as a pilot programme in 2023/24, as Sport NI gathers information on which environmental interventions have the greatest impact within sports clubs. The fund was developed using feedback from sports clubs through Sport NI’s Environmental Sustainability Survey.

Investment will be spread across Northern Ireland with at least one club from each of the 11 council areas being selected to take part. To be eligible, clubs must have completed Sport NI’s Environmental Sustainability Survey.

Phelim Sharvin, Head of Community Finance for Northern Ireland at Community Finance Ireland said:

“I welcome the announcement of this new initiative from Sport NI which will enable sports clubs across Northern Ireland to invest in infrastructure upgrades in line with renewable energy ambitions. Not only will the initiative have a positive impact on the environment but it will reduce clubs’ long term energy costs, allowing them to invest the savings into other areas of the clubs’ development.”

WHO CAN APPLY?

  • The Renewable Energy Fund Pilot Programme will only accept applications from sports organisations in Northern Ireland who either own or operate their own sports facilities.

WHAT TYPE OF PROJECTS CAN BE FUNDED?

  • Sport NI are interested in taking forward the following types of energy projects within sports clubs:
  • Solar Energy Systems (and ancillary equipment).
  • Air Source Heating Systems (and ancillary equipment).
  • Ground Source Heating Systems (and ancillary equipment).
  • Sustainable Water Recycling Systems.
  • Fixed Floodlight Upgrades (Specifically upgrades to LED Bulbs and Connection to Grid).
  • Sport NI may consider alternative interventions if recommended in your club energy audit, and if the benefits of that intervention have been clearly articulated.

If you are ready to apply to the Sport NI Renewable Energy Fund, click here for more details.

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Following the launch of our Social Value Analysis Research Report earlier in the year, Community Finance Ireland’s Chief Executive Donal Traynor discusses the findings, the impact of the multiplier effect for local communities and the importance of finding a common reporting metric across the Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise Sector in his latest Leadership Insights blog piece.

During Covid, clients across the VCSE sector saw the demands for their services escalate. While much of the typical services we participated in were closed, the need for elderly care, meals on wheels, mental health services and a vast range of what we term the caring community network were operational and needed social finance to keep those services delivering.

Our need to evaluate the social impact of our clients has always been a question for Community Finance Ireland. How do we measure social impact? How do we measure a feeling? Following the sensational resilience of our client base during and post Covid challenges, we wondered again how might we measure the social impact of what was delivered during that historic period?
 
Our feeling was that with the “right partners” we might just be able to establish a benchmark multiplier effect demonstrating the ancillary benefits generated to the circular economy, and therefore have the ability to genuinely tell the story of the deep and lasting impact social finance can deliver for community groups. The “right partners” turned out to be Rose Regeneration and Rural Community Network.
 
The approach involved harvesting a range of data from investees, using the social value engine platform and working with clients who represented local sports clubs, faith groups, social enterprises plus special needs and rescue services, among many others.

Social Return on Investment Report brings lots to smile about (L to R): Conor McGale Rose Regeneration & Donal Traynor CEO Community Finance Ireland

Their collective contributions helped our social enterprise establish a multiplier effect of 3.42 times our initial investment. This is a figure that is reflective of a moment in time, but one that helps us establish a benchmark to understand the real value of social finance in action.
 
A figure that we hope will give our whole team a target on which to continue building upon.

Over the coming weeks, we will spotlight some of the clients who helped deliver this multiplier effect. Clients such as Walkinstown Greenhills Resource Centre CLG, Sensational Kids, Fort Dunree Military Museum, Carnaross GFC, Hillside Evangelical Church and Made in Mourne, saw immediate benefits in being able to keep their services running, but also helped achieve wider improvements in:

A figure that is reflective of a moment in time, but one that helps us establish a benchmark to understand the real value of social finance in action.

And one that we hope will give our whole team a target on which to continue building upon.

Over the next while, we will spotlight some of the clients who helped deliver this multiplier effect.  Clients such as Walkinstown Greenhills Resource Centre CLG, Sensational Kids, Fort Dunree, Carnaross GFC , Hillside Evangelical Church & Made in Mourne, saw immediate benefits in being able to keep their services running, but also helped achieve wider improvements in:

Local impact can be felt pretty quickly, but the wider benefits to supporting the Sustainable Development Goals, which every community across the world are working towards, are an important part of the local narrative.

Our membership with FEBEA (European Federation of Ethical and Alternatives Banks and Financiers) sees us engage in constructive conversations with wider communities across Spain, Belgium, Greece and further afield in understanding the multiplier effect across all types of social finance initiatives.

The importance of finding a common metric in reporting progress or impact continues to challenge all of us in this community. As we publish this, our first Social Value Report, my hope is to realise the streamlining of a common approach so that we can all collectively understand progress.

Two of our clients who took part in the research project. On the left Sensational Kids and on the right Fort Dunree Military Museum.

Whilst such a common approach may be some time away, here at Community Finance Ireland our team are now committed to investing resources into an annual Social Value Analysis, which will continue to spotlight the real value of social finance.

We are really looking forward to engaging with more clients next year and see what further benefits or improvements Community Finance Ireland can support with its service and offering.

You can read more about the importance of Social Value Analysis and the detail behind our first report here. In the meantime we continue to support and raise awareness of the value of the sector and the changemakers who work within it.
 
Regards

Donal Traynor Sports
Donal Traynor CEO Community Finance Ireland

Donal Traynor Chief Executive,

Community Finance Ireland

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– NI Small Business Loan Fund makes £2.3 million available to Co Tyrone businesses –

Cookstown-based go-kart and e-scooter retailer, Gorilla Karts, is one of 84 companies in Co Tyrone to be supported by the Northern Ireland Small Business Loan Fund since 2013, bringing the total allocated to businesses in the county to over £2 million.

The Fund is managed by Ulster Community Finance Ltd (UCF) on behalf of Invest Northern Ireland and delivered in partnership with Enterprise Northern Ireland. UCF is a subsidiary of the social enterprise organisation Community Finance Ireland (previously known as UCIT Ltd). Small businesses, sole traders and partnerships keen to develop their business can avail of loans up to £100,000, while start-up businesses can obtain initial loans of up to £15,000.

Gorilla Karts was founded in 2006 by Andrew Hamilton. From his premises just outside Cookstown, he sells a range of manual and electronic scooters, go-karts, hoverboards and accessories.  In 2022, Gorilla Karts secured £75,000 funding from NISBLF to meet growing customer demand for products and the company’s repair service. 

L-R Andrew Hamilton, founder of go-kart and e-scooter retailer, Gorilla Karts, Nigel McKernan, Invest NI’s Director of Corporate Finance and Dónal Traynor, Ulster Community Finance Ltd Chief Executive on site at Gorilla Karts in Cookstown, Co Tyrone.

Ulster Community Finance Ltd Chief Executive, Dónal Traynor said:

“Andrew is a one man power house whose love of sporting products clearly makes this small business the success it is today. The ongoing demand for the suite of global products as well as their in-house repair service means it’s a one stop shop for those seeking to engage in sporting activities locally.

Other sectors which have benefitted from the Fund to date include manufacturing and renewable energy. The fund is open to organisations throughout Co Tyrone who are interested in learning how financial support of up to £100,000 could further their business ambitions.”

L-R Andrew Hamilton, founder of go-kart and e-scooter retailer, Gorilla Karts, Dónal Traynor, Ulster Community Finance Ltd Chief Executive and Nigel McKernan, Invest NI’s Director of Corporate Finance on site at Gorilla Karts in Cookstown, Co Tyrone.

Andrew Hamilton said:

“Growing public interest in e-scooters and hoverboards over the past two years, has resulted in a huge increase in sales. The funding Gorilla Karts received from the Northern Ireland Business Loan Fund has allowed us to purchase additional stock in time for the Christmas rush and to recruit technical repair staff. As well as our local customer base, we also sell online at eBay and Amazon so the funding and valuable advice provided by Ulster Community Finance meant we could maintain our stock levels to meet customer demand.”

The NI Small Business Loan Fund is part of Invest NI’s Access to Finance suite of loan and equity funds. Nigel McKernan, Invest NI’s Director of Corporate Finance, said:

“It is really encouraging to see so many businesses in Co Tyrone benefitting from the NI Small Business Loan Fund, with lending to businesses in the region now surpassing £2m. Gorilla Karts is a business “on the pulse” in terms of consumer demand and takes advantage of the global marketplace via its impressive website. It’s a great example of how the Fund can support a business to react to an increase in demand for its products.”

To find out more about the Northern Ireland Small Business Loan Fund and how it could help with the next stage of your business’s plan, visit their website.

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Community and volunteer-led organisations who choose social finance solutions could see a social return of investment of over 3.42 times the initial investment. That’s according to Community Finance Ireland (CFI), the most progressive social finance provider across the island.

Based on a social value analysis undertaken by Rose Regeneration and the Rural Community Network, CFI has established that for every €1/£1 spent in delivering projects on the island, local communities have seen a return of 3.42 times that investment, through wider social benefits such as improved community health and increased employment opportunities and skill levels.

Dónal Traynor, CEO of CFI, says the cumulative impact of such projects is boundless:

“We strive to create a lasting social impact in every community on the island of Ireland. As the first all island Social Value Report our team and clients can really see the multiplier effect played out in communities across the island every day. If a community development group were to invest in remote working spaces, for example, the ripple effect sees stronger social connections in that community, more money spent in local businesses, and a greater sense of belonging for individuals who might have previously worked in isolation at home or spent hours on a commute. You cannot underestimate the social impact of these changes, and the social value analysis carried out by Rose Regeneration and the Rural Community Network, via the Social Value Engine platform, demonstrates the return of investment which communities can expect.”

Community Finance Ireland Social Value Analysis Report
All smiles as the first all island social value analysis report finds a 3.42 times multiplier effect for the initial investment. (L to R): Conor McGale Evaluation and Impact Manager at Rose Regeneration & Donal Traynor CEO Community Finance Ireland discuss the stunning results achieved with clients during Covid restrictions.

Mr. Traynor added that social finance offers communities even greater social impact:

“Not only do we offer more tailored supports and knowledgeable advice for volunteer-led organisations, but communities also know they’re part of an all-island social impact network – in repaying their loan, a sports club in Ballymoney is supporting a social enterprise in Bantry. Any profit goes straight back to supporting other similar projects, it’s a circular social economy that is making real change happen in communities across the island.”

Conor McGale, Evaluation and Impact Manager at Rose Regeneration said:

“We were delighted to be approached by Community Finance Ireland to carry out this analysis, which clearly demonstrates its social impact in supporting organisations across the island of Ireland. This report focuses on the assistance that CFI provided to a wide range of groups, whose financing and fundraising options were seriously curtailed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Through the conversations that we had, it was clear that CFI played an essential role in ensuring many VCSE organisations were able to keep growing and developing, whilst continuing to provide essential services to their local communities.”

For more information you can view the report in full here.

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– Community Finance Ireland delivers €1.4 million of support in Louth since 2016 –

“This is a much-needed space that young people in Carlingford have asked for and which they can make their own while also feeling feel safe and supported.” That is according to the team at Carlingford Community Development Ltd (CCDL) who recently opened a new Youth Hub and Café in the Foy Centre, which was supported by a bridging loan from Community Finance Ireland (CFI). 

Established in 2002, the CCDL manages the Foy Community Centre, a multi-purpose community space, at Dundalk Street, Carlingford. Through consultations with young people in the local community, CCDL took action to address a rise in anti-social behaviour in the local community, by converting an existing vacant café within the Foy Centre into a dedicated Youth Hub.

Erin Finegan joined the CCDL in 2020 as a Youth Volunteer, working to improve community initiatives for young people in the area.  She said:

“The Carlingford Community Development team has been at the heart of Carlingford’s community sector for twenty years and we’re delighted to create a dedicated space for young people here in the Foy Centre. We’ve run some really successful initiatives with young people in the area over the past year and the feedback they shared was that they needed a space of their own to meet and socialise and feel connected. We knew we could make that possible for them with the right financial support.

On foot of Louth Leader Grant Aid we approached Community Finance Ireland and they could not have been more straight-forward and the team were so easy to work with. Once the paperwork was submitted, we could access the funds within 2-3 weeks which meant we could get started with work on the café straight away.”

Community Finance Ireland Carlingford Community Centre
Photographed at The Carlingford Community Development Centre, Co. Louth are (L to R): Colm Prendergast Client Executive (CFI), David Savage Chairperson and Mrs Erin Finegan Youth Volunteer.

Community Finance Ireland provides social finance loans to community and volunteer-led organisations that drive social impact through sport, community projects, faith-based groups, and social enterprises. Operating a model similar to traditional credit unions, all loan repayments go toward supporting other communities across Ireland. To support CCDL’s refurbishments, Community Finance Ireland provided a bridging loan of €20,400.

Colm Prendergast, CFI Client Relationship Executive for North Leinster said:

“It has been a pleasure to work with the CCDL team and we’re delighted to see how the newly established Youth Café has transformed the local community’s relationship with its young people. The café has already hosted several different initiatives including a Women’s Aid outreach programme and English lessons for Ukrainian refugees. In the evening time, the café is a safe space for local young people to meet and socialise while being supervised and supported.“

Supporting Communities in Louth

Between 2016 and 2022, Community Finance Ireland delivered €16.2 million in social finance supports to volunteer and community-led organisations in Leinster, including €1.39 million in support of projects in Louth.

Based on a Social Value analysis undertaken by the Rural Community Network in Northern Ireland, CFI has established that has established that its funding solution delivers a return on investment that creates a multiplier effect of 3.42 times the initial investment through wider social benefits such as improved community health and increased employment opportunities and skill levels.

A total of €33.5m million has been allocated to organisation and sports clubs organisations across Ireland between 2016 and 2022.

If you want to unlock a grant award or have a community idea that needs finance get in touch with a team member near you.

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– Community Finance Ireland delivers €7 million of support in Munster region since 2016-

A new community garden and café will open its doors at Killaloe Ballina Community and Family Resource Centre following major renovations. The renovations have been completed in time for the centre to celebrate its 20th anniversary in early July, thanks to support from Community Finance Ireland (CFI).

Well established in the local community since its foundation in 2003, the Family Resource Centre moved into the former Garda Barracks on The Green in 2017.

With the support of Community Finance Ireland, refurbishments were undertaken to make the building fully accessible; to upgrade toilet facilities; repurpose outbuildings; and to landscape the rear of the building into a community garden. The outbuildings now accommodate a training kitchen and café which will be open to the public in Autumn 2023.

Providing training and education, information services and tailored supports for young people, elderly people, parents, refugees and those with disabilities, the Family Resource Centre also offers rooms for hire to local community organistions, including the newly established training kitchen.

Kees Duson, Manager of Killaloe Ballina Family Resource Centre, said:

“When we first opened our doors in 2003, we were based in a small residential apartment, which we outgrew very quickly. We spent the next decade located in a commercial premises on Main Street in Killaloe, which, while it gave us fantastic footfall and helped many people in the community to discover our services and supports, the steep hill meant it was difficult for older people in our community and for those with mobility issues to access.

When we agreed a long-term lease with the Office of Public Works for this building, we knew we’d found a home for the community that was full of potential. This is a very old building and it had been empty for four or five years before we took it over so it needed a lot of work to address wear and tear and damp and bring it up to standard on accessibility and energy ratings. There weren’t many options for community groups seeking funding around that time so we were delighted to discover Community Finance Ireland’s tailored supports for volunteer and community-led organisations. It was exactly what we were looking for.”

Killaloe Ballina FRC Community Finance Ireland Community Loans
Pictured at Killaloe Ballina Family Resource Centre’s new premises in Co. Clare: Gillian Costelloe, Chairperson; Bróna Moriarty; Nora Keogh, Client Relationship Manager for Munster at Community Finance Ireland; Linda Stainsby; Marie Moroney and Kees Duson, Killaloe Ballina FRC Manager.

Nora Keogh, CFI Client Relationship Manager for the Munster Region, said:

“We’re delighted to have played our part in supporting the Killaloe Ballina Community and Family Resource Centre through these works and to have helped make this renovation possible. The team approached us with a dream of what could be made possible with this fantastic building which would provide an accessible and welcoming space for so many individuals and groups in the community, delivering a broad range of activities, courses and events including art and crafts, computer classes and cookery programmes for all ages and abilities, youth services including a youth cafe, to name a few- and now with the expanded rooms, the new training kitchen, community cafe and garden space, all of that has been made possible. I have no doubt that for their next 20 years, this team of change-makers will be dreaming even bigger for the local community.”

Community Finance Ireland provided Killaloe Ballina Community and Family Resource Centre with a long-term loan of €218,000 to undertake the repairs and renovations required on the buildings. Further funding was provided by the Town and Village Renewal Scheme from the Department of Rural and Community Development via Clare County Council, and LEADER funding from both North Tipperary Development Company & Clare Local Development Company.

Between 2016 and 2021, Community Finance Ireland delivered €7 million in social finance supports to volunteer and community-led organisations in Munster, including €1.7 million in support of projects in Clare, and €1 million in support of projects in Tipperary.

If your community group is  looking for finance, get in touch today or follow us on Twitter.  

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– Community Finance Ireland delivers €3.8million in support of local sports clubs –

The oldest skiff-rowing club in Dublin will be launching their traditional skiffs from a modern new pontoon at the mouth of the River Liffey thanks to support from Community Finance Ireland (CFI).

Founded in 1936, St Patrick’s Rowing Club in Ringsend has taken the All-Ireland Senior Skiff Race title 16 times in the last 20 years and has secured gold in international competitions in London and Italy. The club now boasts a membership of 100 people, aged from 9 to 90.

Treasurer at St. Patrick’s Rowing Club, David Cox said that the new infrastructure will enable the club to streamline their activities – getting their heavy training boats on the water with less manpower – and crucially make their boats fully accessible for wheelchair users. He said:

“Skiff racing originates from hobbling – a competitive business which saw working boats race to approaching ships to pilot them into port and win the contract of unloading and loading their cargo.. When this practice was outlawed in 1936, clubs began to appear all along the Dublin coastline and beyond, with our own club here in Ringsend being the first. So much of our community is steeped in this rich history but we also want to give our members the best, most advanced infrastructure that we can and importantly, to make it accessible to everyone in the community. This new pontoon means we can get everyone out on the water to enjoy this fantastic sport.”

Traditional skiff boats are 25 feet long, housing four rowers and a cox.

Pictured at St Patrick’s Rowing Club’s Ringsend base in Dublin City are the club’s youth members

Visiting the new pontoon, Barry Symes, Head of Community Finance Ireland ROI, said:

“Watching the team here at St Patrick’s Rowing Club working together – it really is all hands on deck to move these skiffs down the water but with this new pontoon you can see how much easier that task is for them. It’s taking the strain off the existing members, getting them out on the water quicker, where they want to be and crucially, it’s opening up the sport to a even more people by making the boats more accessible.

“After recent open days, St Patrick’s have welcomed over 60 new members in the last few weeks. The team here – David, Phil, Irene and Richie – have all been involved since childhood and they’re passing their love of the sport on to the next generation. There’s a rich history here in Ringsend and there’s no doubt of the club’s future either.”

Community Finance Ireland provide tailored social finance supports to grassroots and community organisations across Ireland. In 2022, the team delivered over €3.8million in social finance loans to sports clubs such as St Patrick’s Rowing Club which accessed a bridging loan of €40,000 to undertake the planned developments.

This bridging enabled St Patrick’s to unlock two approved grants, from the Sports Capital Grant and from Dublin Waste to Energy Community Gain Projects Grant Scheme.

If you and your sports club need advice on funding options available to you, get in touch today or follow us on Twitter for the latest Community Finance Ireland news.

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We are thrilled to announce that Community Finance Ireland (CFI) has attained the prestigious ISO 9001 Quality Management System accreditation on an all-island basis.

This significant accomplishment reflects our unwavering commitment to excellence in serving our clients and advancing positive social impact.

The ISO 9001 standard is built upon a set of quality management principles, including a strong customer focus, active involvement of top management, a process-oriented approach, and continuous improvement. By adhering to these principles, we have established a solid foundation for organizational excellence.

Benefits to CFI and Our Clients
This achievement brings several advantages to both Community Finance Ireland and our valued clients:

Increased Efficiencies: With all our processes aligned and comprehended by every member of our organization, we can enhance the efficiency of our internal controls, streamlining our operations and ensuring optimal performance.

Enhanced Reputation: The ISO 9001 accreditation further strengthens our reputation as a credible and genuine charity and social enterprise. It underscores our dedication to advocating for positive social impact and demonstrates our commitment to delivering high-quality services.

Clear Objectives and Commitment: By assessing the overall context of our organization and understanding the expectations of those affected by our work, we can clearly define our objectives. This enables us to showcase our unwavering commitment to excellence and the pursuit of our mission.

Customer Focus: We reaffirm our dedication to putting our customers first, consistently meeting their needs, and enhancing their satisfaction. This recognition ensures that our clients’ experience with Community Finance Ireland remains at the heart of everything we do.

Compliance and Governance: Attaining the ISO 9001 accreditation guarantees that we meet the necessary statutory and regulatory requirements, strengthening our compliance and governance practices.

We extend our gratitude to our dedicated team, whose hard work and commitment have made this achievement possible. We are excited about the opportunities this accreditation brings and the continued positive impact we can make together.

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– Community Finance Ireland delivers almost €1 million of financial support in Cork since 2016 –

Na Piarsaigh GAA, a thriving football and hurling club with almost 800 playing members, is looking to the future with further expansion plans, after support from Community Finance Ireland (CFI) enabled the club to restructure existing bank debt.

First founded by a group of local schoolboys, Na Piarsaigh GAA Club has been at the centre of the Fairhill community in Co. Cork since 1943. As the club prepares to celebrate its 80th anniversary, the board are outlining plans for further expansion to meet the demands of a growing membership.

During the recession, the club experienced financial difficulties, which former Club Chairman Denis O’Neill says led to an anxious time for the board:

“The recession hit us badly, we fell back on payments and were very worried. When we dealt with the bank, they were dealing with us like we were a business. It was at that time that James O’Connor, Selector and Club Accountant at Na Piarsaigh, brought Community Finance Ireland to the attention of the Board.”

Na Pairsaigh GAA Sports Capital Grant Community Finance Ireland
At Na Piarsaigh GAA club Grounds Fairhill Cork City are L to R:) Seán Óg Ó hAilpín (local player & legend); Nora Keogh, CFI Client Relationship Manager Munster and Daire Connery (current club legend). As the club restructures its finances with CFI support and advice all looks well for the future legacy of this fantastic volunteer led GAA Club.

Community Finance Ireland provides social finance loans to community and volunteer-led organisations that drive social impact through sport, community projects, faith-based groups, and social enterprises. Operating a model similar to traditional credit unions, all loan repayments go toward supporting other communities across Ireland. CFI provided Na Piarsaigh Hurling and Football Club with a long-term loan of €500,000 to restructure their existing bank loans.

Club Chairman Na Piarsaigh GAA Denis O’Neill said:

“I particularly like that Community Finance Ireland are a non-profit organisation. CFI understand that we are volunteers who just want to provide quality sports services for our local community. They understand where we are coming from and the challenges we faced as a voluntary board.”

Nora Keogh, CFI Client Relationship Manager for the Munster Region, said:

“Na Piarsaigh are an important hub for the local community with members playing at under six right up to senior level. Beyond the players and their families, the club also offers accessible facilities to the wider community through hire of the hall, and their indoor arena, the first of its kind to be built in Ireland which is a great source of pride for the club. We’re delighted to have helped the club refinance and find a pathway to become debt free. The legacies of the recession still have a hold on many clubs across Ireland and we’re proud to help them pave a way forward so that like Na Piarsaigh, they can plan for the future, rather than feel bogged down by the past.”

O’Neill says the club hopes to develop new facilities for the local community and upgrade the public walkway. They hope to secure adjacent land to accommodate an additional training pitch.

Between 2016 and 2022, Community Finance Ireland delivered €7.8m in social finance supports to volunteer and community-led organisations in Munster, including €0.8m in support of projects in Cork.

A total of £16.9m (€18.5m) has been allocated to 162 sports clubs and organisations across Ireland between 2016 and 2022.

If your club is  looking for finance, get in touch today or follow us on Twitter.