The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon, TD, has invited applications from registered Animal Welfare Charities in Ireland who wish to apply for funding under the Animal Welfare Grants Programme 2025.
Under the Programme, grants are provided by the Department to support the operational activities of registered Animal Welfare Charities, to support them in the delivery of their animal care and animal welfare services.
Last year, the Department provided funding of almost €6 million to 101 animal welfare charities throughout the country. The figure awarded exceeded the previous Programme for Government’s commitment to double the €2.4 million of funding available to animal welfare charities from the 2020 budget.
The amounts given to charities ranged from €4,000 to €931,750 with the average payment being €59,342. This funding recognises the importance of the role such charities play in caring for vulnerable animals, in education and awareness raising to improve animal welfare; this is particularly relevant for encouraging responsible pet ownership.
Commenting today, launching the call for applications Minister Martin Heydon, said:
“Animal welfare is a priority for me and this Government, and in recognition of my Department’s commitment to animal welfare and of the dedication and hard work of staff and volunteers from animal welfare organisations, I am delighted to announce the opening of the grant application process for this year’s Animal Welfare Grants Programme.”
The application process will follow a two-stage process:
• Form A which sees applicants invited to submit an initial application setting out how they meet the eligibility criteria for the grants.
• Applicants that are deemed eligible in this initial stage will be invited to submit Form B, which gathers information from applicants on the nature of their animal welfare activities and what they intend to do with the grant, should their application be successful.
The Minister concluded by acknowledging the hard work of animal welfare organisations:
“Ireland has a strong, active voluntary sector dedicated to animal welfare, and I would like to take the opportunity to acknowledge their efforts, commitment and dedication to preventing animal welfare issues and protecting and caring for surrendered, abandoned and at-risk animals.”
Applications for grant funding are accepted on an annual basis. Please note not all applicants will be successful. Each applicant must submit AWGF Form A and Supporting Documents no later than 4th April 2025. Applicants who meet the qualifying criteria in AWGF Form A, will be issued with AWGF Form B.
Further details, including the grant application form and the deadline for applications, are available at: gov.ie – Animal Welfare or via email from: welfaregrants@agriculture.gov.ie