With a total budget of €15.7 million, the Healthy Ireland Fund Round 4 successfully reached 154 target groups, supporting enhanced health and wellbeing in communities all over Ireland. Adopting an outcome-based approach, the Round 4 projects targeted a broad range of vulnerable and socially disadvantaged communities and individuals. The projects were designed to be more inclusive and accessible for hard-to-reach groups, allowing individuals of all ages and abilities to participate in health and wellbeing activities.

Examples of funded activities included:

• 12 weeks of recovery-focused activities in the natural environment in Roscommon for disadvantaged women and men.
• A Chronic Disease Risk Management programme in disadvantaged areas of Meath to provide free comprehensive health checks to adults aged between 40 and 64 years.
• A six-week programme known as the “Autumn Wellbeing” delivered in Galway City that focused on building resilience, communication skills and emotional awareness for participants.

Working closely with community groups and fostering solid partnerships was essential to promoting shared responsibility toward health and wellbeing outcomes for all individuals and communities.

Key highlights of this round include:

• 30 Local Authorities successfully embedded the outcomes-based approach to local health and wellbeing programmes.
• This enables the Local Authorities to measure the added value of their projects and support a wider evidence base for a variety of health interventions.
• 57 outcomes were selected from the outcome framework across Local Authorities. The selection process involved various stakeholders to reflect the broad local needs and priorities.
• A radial effect of positive contributions was observed with unselected outcomes during the delivery of selected outcomes. This reflects the multifaceted benefits that go beyond the delivery of one outcome.

[See also, Department of Justice, 31 October 2024 - Minister McEntee announces allocation of €3 million to community safety projects across the country]