€5m funding boost for local communities

A new programme that will provide funding for initiatives in Clondalkin and Tallaght was announced by government ministers this week.

The programme – SÍOL, ‘seed’ in English, stands for Scéim Infheistíochta ag Obair Le Chéile, and this translates to the ‘Working Together Investment Scheme.’

A total of €5 million has been assigned to the programme for 2026 which will support six disadvantaged areas in South Dublin as well as several around the country.

In Tallaght, Jobstown, Kiltipper, and Killinardan and three other areas in Clondalkin; Moorfield, Cappaghmore, and Rowlagh will benefit from this funding through improved public spaces, greater support for health and wellbeing and community safety.

The SÍOL programme also provides access to education and training for people living in some of the most disadvantaged urban areas of the country.

Funding of €31.5 million has been secured up to 2030 in the National Development Plan to maintain the long-term delivery of the scheme.

The new programme used statistical information from the CSO and Pobal’s deprivation index to ensure the funding is targeted at the most disadvantaged areas within the designated towns and cities.

Announcing the funding Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht, Dara Calleary TD, said

“Since I was appointed as Minister in this Department, it has been one of my key priorities to implement a programme that tackles urban disadvantage. Working on the previous RAPID model, SÍOL, will make real differences in communities that need it most.”

“The name SÍOL means ‘Seed’ and, much like a seed, it is my hope that the SÍOL programme will grow in the coming years to help more and more communities across the country.”

Minister of State in the Department of Transport, Seán Canney TD, expressed the importance of funding initiatives such as these to disadvantaged areas, saying;

“I know first-hand the importance of investing in developing our urban communities.”

“This new programme will deliver much needed investment into the areas that need it most, and I look forward to seeing the impact that it will have over the coming years.”

Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme