The Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht (“the Department”) funds the Local Enhancement Programme (LEP) which provides funding to support community groups across Ireland. 

 

The Local Enhancement Programme 2026 will support groups, particularly in disadvantaged areas, with funding to carry out necessary repairs and improvements to their facilities, and to purchase equipment for example tables and chairs, tools and signage, laptops and printers, lawnmowers, canopies and training equipment etc. Facilities improvement works may also include, but are not limited to; improved access for persons with a disability; enhancing community participation for disadvantaged and marginalised groups, and; improving energy efficiency of community facilities to reduce ongoing costs.  

 

The scheme is designed to ensure local priorities are identified and met, so as to improve and enhance community facilities for all. It is administered by Local Community Development Committees (LCDCs) in each Local Authority area.   

 

Applications should relate to one or more key priority areas identified in their LCDC’s Local Economic and Community Plan (LECP) in order to be eligible for consideration. 

Please note the following change for the 2026 scheme:

  

The Local Enhancement Programme will support groups, particularly in disadvantaged areas, to carry out necessary repairs and improvements to their facilities and purchase equipment. 

The activity or project must benefit the local community and relate to the key priority areas identified in the LECP.  

The information supplied by the applicant group /organisation must be accurate and complete.  

Inaccurate or incomplete information may lead to disqualification and/or the repayment of any grant made. 

All information provided in respect of the application for a grant will be held electronically. The Department reserves the right to publish a list of all grants awarded on its website. 

The Freedom of Information Act applies to all records held by the Department and Local Authorities, including applications received and any additional correspondence related to the application.  

The application must be signed by the Chairperson, Secretary or Treasurer of the organisation making the application. 

It is the responsibility of each organisation to ensure that it has proper procedures and policies in place, including appropriate insurance, where relevant. 

Evidence of expenditure, receipts /invoices must be retained and provided to the LCDC, the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht, the relevant local authority or any agent acting on their behalf if requested. 

Grant monies must be expended and drawn down from the LCDC by 31st December 2026. Photographic evidence may be required to facilitate draw down of grants. 

The Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht’s contribution must be publicly acknowledged in all materials associated with the purpose of the grant, including signage. 

Generally, no third party or intermediary applications will be considered. 

Late applications will not be considered. 

Breaches of the terms and conditions of the grants scheme may result in sanctions including disbarment from future grant applications. 

Please ensure the application form is completed in full. Incomplete applications will not be considered for funding. 

In order to process your application, it may be necessary for Fingal County Council to collect personal data from you. Such information will be processed in line with the Local Authority’s privacy statement which is available to view on Fingal County Council. 

 

1 Programme Overview 

The Local Enhancement Programme (LEP) provides funding to support community groups across Ireland. The LEP is funded by the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht (the Department) and administered by the Local Community Development Committees (LCDCs) in each Local Authority area. The Department provides funding to each Local Authority area and the LCDCs then administer this funding locally to ensure funding is targeted appropriately towards addressing disadvantage in the areas that need it most. 

 

2 Who is eligible to apply? 

Any not-for-profit community or voluntary group can apply. 

Commercial organisations and individuals are not eligible for funding. 

 

3 What projects are eligible for funding? 

The following provides a non-exhaustive list of projects that are eligible for funding under the Programme: 

Maintenance/refurbishment of community centres 

Accessibility improvements  

Community amenities e.g. parks, playgrounds 

Development of youth clubs or facilities 

Development of sports/recreation facilities 

Improvements to town parks and common areas and spaces 

CCTV equipment 

Public realm improvements 

Street-scaping 

Development of play/recreation spaces 

Improving energy efficiency of community facilities to reduce ongoing costs  

Purchase of equipment 

Purchase of ICT equipment e.g. laptops, tablets, printers 

Maintenance of premises, including painting and repairs  

Capital works to increase biodiversity, or to reduce the carbon footprint of a facility 

Cleaning equipment 

 

VAT will only be paid where it is included in the application amount. No further requests for VAT payments or repayments will be accepted. 

 

The scheme is designed to ensure local priorities are identified and met, so as to improve and enhance community facilities for all. 

The following expenditure is not eligible for funding: 

Any project not in keeping with the ethos of the Programme  

Costs incurred prior to the Department announcing the list of successful projects 

Any costs that are current in nature e.g. programming, training 

Employment costs 

Legal fees 

Project management fees 

Purchase of lands or buildings 

Feasibility studies 

Private or commercial operations 

Costs which are being paid for by another funder or department 

 

4 Requirements of the Programme 

The following conditions apply to all projects. Depending on the nature of the project (and the group applying), there may be further requirements that must be met. The LCDC/LA will advise groups/organisations of these requirements when their application is approved for funding. 

 

The applicant group/organisation does not have to be registered for tax purposes. 

Any applicant group/organisation that is registered for tax purposes must be tax compliant. In line with revised tax clearance procedures, which came into effect in January 2016, the Tax Clearance Access Number and Tax Reference number must be submitted for verification purposes.  

  

4.2 Statutory Consents  

Applicants must ensure that all necessary statutory permissions or consents have been obtained before any works commence. This includes, but is not confined to, planning permission.   

4.3 Insurance 

Written evidence of a valid insurance policy may be requested by the LCDC, where relevant, during the applications review process. 

 

4.4 Acknowledgment of funding  

Due to the value of some of these grants, it would not be cost-effective to require signage acknowledging the Department, Local Authority or LCDC. Other suitable acknowledgements will suffice e.g. on a group/organisation’s website or social media platforms. Where signage is developed it must acknowledge the contribution of the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht. 

 

4.5 Match-funding 

This is not a requirement under this programme. 

The Programme is 100% exchequer funded. Applicants are free to leverage other funding/match funding for projects although that is not a requirement of this programme.  

It is the responsibility of the grant applicant to ensure that using this Programme to co-fund a project does not contradict the rules of the other scheme/programme. Please ensure you consult with the administrators or body responsible for any other funding scheme or programme in this regard. 

 

5 Selection Criteria  

The LCDC will evaluate applications to ensure that they are eligible for funding and that they are targeted at addressing disadvantage as identified in its LECP. Projects must be in keeping with the ethos of the programme, which is to provide funding to communities across Ireland to enhance facilities in disadvantaged areas.   

Projects may also be judged having regard to how they: 

support local groups and clubs, which serve their communities; 

increase the number of people that can be supported by the group, including through accessibility improvements, new community integration measures or safety improvements; 

invest to increase or extend the use of the facility, for example, to voluntary and community groups;  

reduce the annual running cost of a facility; 

have a positive impact on the environment, for example, a reduction in energy consumption;  

demonstrate collaboration with the Local Authority or other relevant bodies in the catchment area; 

support the creation of a sense of place within the community including through the enhancement of the built environment; 

address health and safety issues; and/or, 

invest in technology which will be accessed by individuals and communities that are impacted by disadvantage. 

Projects may also be judged having regard to additional criteria deemed appropriate by the LCDC which demonstrate the added value of the project or element of a project in suitably addressing the programme's aims in each Local Authority administrative area. 

 

6 Corporate Governance  

Grantees will be required to comply with the highest standard of transparency and accountability as documented in Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation ‘Circular 13/2014 - Management of and Accountability for Grants from Exchequer Funds2.’ 

The overall principle is that there should be transparency and accountability in the management of public funds, in line with economy, efficiency and effectiveness. The circular outlines, for example, that grant recipients should not dispose of publicly funded assets without receiving prior approval from the LCDC. 

 

The Department is encouraging funded bodies to adopt the Governance Code3: a Code of Practice for Good Governance of Community, Voluntary and Charitable Organisations in Ireland, which will assist in achieving excellence in all areas of their work. The Governance Code requests organisations to agree to operate to key principles in order to run their organisation more effectively in areas such as leadership, transparency and accountability and behaving with integrity.   

 

7 Approval Procedures 

The LCDC will review and assess all applications for funding received under this Programme to ensure consistency with the relevant Local Economic and Community Plan (LECP). 

In deciding the final allocations of funding to projects, the LCDC may take account of a number of factors including geographical balance and the need to fund a variety of different projects and the relative disadvantage of the area where the facility is located (or will serve)4.  

Following the decision, each approved project, subject to the completion of legal formalities and other requirements, will receive an offer in principle of grant-aid from the LCDC. This offer will be subject to compliance with the relevant conditions and subject to the satisfactory acceptance by the applicant of that offer.  

The LCDC must only issue funding upon receipt of invoices, receipts and any other required proof of expenditure from the group/organisation for the approved works/equipment. 

The LCDC reserves the right to reassign the funds offered to another approved project if all requirements are not met within a reasonable period. This is a matter for the LCDC in question, who must inform the Department of their intention to do so. 

The Department and/or the Local Authority reserve the right to carry out an audit of expenditure or conduct inspections from time to time.   

Please Note: 

It is important that the process of evaluation is rigorous to ensure that the best projects, taking all factors into account, receive support. It is Departmental policy to ensure that every application is treated fairly and impartially. 

Offers of funding may be for a lesser amount than that sought by the applicant. Applicants should be aware that the Programme may be oversubscribed. Therefore, in such circumstances, all applications fulfilling the conditions may not be successful or may be for a lesser amount.  

Applicant groups shall self-certify that they do not have the funding to undertake the project without the grant aid, or alternatively that with the grant they will now undertake a larger project which they otherwise would not be able to afford. 

 

8 General 

The information provided in this document is intended to give applicants an understanding of the process by which applications for funding are assessed and approved and does not purport to be a legal interpretation.  

 

Under the Freedom of Information Act 2014, details contained in applications and supporting documents may, on request, be released to third parties. If there is information contained in your application, which is sensitive or confidential in nature, please identify it and provide an explanation as to why it should not be disclosed. If a request to release sensitive information under the legislation is received, you will be consulted before a decision is made whether or not to release the information. However, in the absence of the identification of particular information as sensitive, it could be disclosed without any consultation with you.   

 

The Department, Local Authority, the LCDC, or agents acting on their behalf may carry out unannounced site visits to verify compliance with Programme terms and conditions.  

 

The LCDC reserves the right to request further information from the applicant in order to assess the application.  

 

The information provided on the form will be utilised for the purposes of evaluating and administering the grant process, and to facilitate audits and any site visits. When evaluating the applications received, the LCDC may seek advice and consult with other agencies, and may disclose information on projects under consideration to those experts and agencies.  

 

9 Application Process 

The Application Form is detailed and is designed to ensure that it contains the necessary information to evaluate each proposal accurately and fairly. Please ensure that you complete the Application Form in full and that any documentation which supports your application is submitted with your application.  

There is no limit on the number of applications for different projects from any organisation. However, applicants should be aware that an equity/fairness approach will be taken by the LCDC to ensure an even distribution of funding.  

If the funding application is for one element, or a portion of a project, applicants will be required to provide documentary evidence of the availability of the balance of funding for that particular element of that project. 

The submission of false or misleading information at any stage is treated very seriously. Any organisation that does not comply with the terms and conditions of the Programme may be subject to inspection, have their grant withdrawn, be required to repay all or part of a grant and/or be barred from making applications for a period of time. 

 

Applications must be submitted by 5pm, 27 February 2026. 

 

For any queries please email: LEP@fingal.ie 

​Any not-for-profit community or voluntary group can apply. 

Commercial organisations and individuals are not eligible for funding. 

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