Community services groups receive a combined €165,000

THREE local community services and organisations in Rathfarnham, Clondalkin and Lucan received a combined €165,000 worth of funding through the Community Safety Fund.

Whitechurch Addiction Support Programme, or WASP, based on Loreto Avenue in Rathfarnham, received €90k from the fund worth over €1.6m, which is made up of funds seized by the Criminal Assets Bureau and An Garda Síochána.

WASP provides addiction supports to members of the local community in Rathfarnham and Tallaght, with support and counselling sessions, as well as peer support groups, family support and more.

The funds from the annual grant are set to be used over the next two years and will go towards a men’s support service.

WASP Manager Cathy Murray expanded: “We know there’s not an awful lot of groups for men only – this is a male-led ‘brothers of strength’, so it will be reaching out into the communities for males, to support them and see what can be done with them.”

The Clondalkin Equine Club was also a benefactor of the fund, with an allocation of €50k set aside for the local equestrian group on Fonthill Road.

The local club had also received €6,179.69 through the Local Priorities Fund recently for resurfacing works.

The Lucan-based Federation of Indian Communities in Ireland were put down for €25k through the Community Safety Fund.

FICI, with a registered address at Griffeen Glen, is a non-profit grassroots umbrella organisation that represents the growing Indian diaspora in Ireland and works to help deliver events such as the India Day festival.

Dublin South West TD John Lahart welcomed the investment into community organisations, clubs and services in the local area, and commended the fund.

Deputy Lahart said: “This is a really positive initiative. Money that has been seized from criminal activity is being put back into our community and used to support projects that make a genuine difference to people locally…

…This funding will support organisations doing important work on the ground, whether that is helping victims of domestic violence, tackling drug related intimidation, supporting addiction recovery or working to make communities safer.

“It is a very practical way of ensuring that money linked to crime is used instead to support the people and communities affected by it.

“I want to congratulate the local projects that have secured funding and thank them for the work they do day in and day out to make our community better.”