Waterford groups invited to apply for community grants as part of RTÉ Toy Show Appeal

Charities across Waterford have been invited to apply for the RTÉ Toy Show Appeal's community grants. 

Over €5 million was raised by the Toy Show Appeal in 2024 and now Community Foundation Ireland will be working to ensure that the money raised will go towards supporting as many children as possible in Waterford and across the country. 

Since it first began five years ago, the Toy Show Appeal has raised over €26 million for children's charities across Ireland, with 486 grants being given and an estimated 1.1 million children and families helped by the funding.

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Community Foundation Ireland, as partner of the appeal, is now inviting charities working with children in Waterford to apply between now and Friday, 14 March to avail of the grants. 

Applications are invited under three strands which reflect some of the most important areas of need for children in Ireland today.

The first of these strands include Addressing Essential Needs which ensures that children and young people have access to the essential items they need as well as high quality social and educational supports to help them thrive.

Secondly, Improving Wellbeing is targeted at improving mental health by building resilience skills and coping mechanisms for the future.

Finally, Creativity and Play promotes fun, builds friendships and allows children to reach their creative potential.

There will be two rounds of applications to ensure that as many children as possible can benefit from the grants and to cover all different kinds of organisations. 

A community grants round will provide grants between €10,000 and €20,000. Then the impact grants round will provide grants of €20,000 to €50,000.

Commenting on the opening of applications, RTÉ Director-General, Kevin Bakhurst said: "As we announce the opening of applications for funding, we remain so thankful to the many people across Ireland, and abroad who gave so generously to the RTÉ Toy Show Appeal in December.

Having met with a number of organisations and charities over the past year who have benefitted from RTÉ Toy Show Appeal funds, I have been moved by so many positive stories about how valuable and often transformative these funds can be for children and their families across the island."

For more information on how to apply, you can visit communityfoundation.ie.