Five Kildare groups and organisations announced as winners in the National Lottery Good Causes Awards 2022

Artist Aisling Byrne, Athy Youth Project (In Sync), RDA Ireland, the Newtown Community Group and the Irish Peatland Conservation Council are the five Kildare groups and organisations announced today as county winners in the National Lottery Good Causes Awards 2022. 

The total prize fund for the Good Causes Awards is €130,000 and each of the 35 finalists will win €1,000 when they are announced in June.

At the awards ceremony in October, each of the seven category winners will receive €10,000 and the overall Good Cause of the Year will take home an additional €25,000. 

The awards were created to honour and showcase the inspiring work being carried out by thousands of projects, clubs and individuals in their local communities across Ireland thanks to National Lottery Good Causes funding. Nearly 30 cent of every euro spent on National Lottery games goes back to Good Causes all over the country. 

 Announcing the County winners today, National Lottery CEO, Andrew Algeo, said: “The stories and insights that we read in this year’s entries truly exemplified the positive impact that the groups, sports clubs and organisations who receive National Lottery funding, are having in towns and villages all over Ireland. Celebrating the inspirational work being carried out by these extraordinary beneficiaries and recognising the effect that they have on their communities is exactly what the Good Causes Awards are all about.” 

 The National Lottery CEO went on to describe how significantly more individuals, charities, groups, projects and organisations all over Ireland could benefit from Good Causes funding if a ban on lottery betting were to be introduced. 

“Our ambition is to do more for communities all over Ireland and we hope that soon, this will become a reality. If the practice of betting on lottery games were to be finally banned in Ireland, as it is in most EU countries, our research shows that National Lottery sales would increase by at least €228 million which would result in approximately €63 million in additional funding for the Good Causes fund which would have a huge impact on communities all over Ireland. Last year, Benefacts established that 34% of all charitable giving in Ireland in 2021 was attributable via the National Lottery. We believe that even more charitable and community groups would directly benefit if a ban on lottery betting was put in place.” 

The Kildare winners are: 

Aisling Byrne (Run of the Mill Theatre) – Arts & Culture 

Run of The Mill is an award-winning inclusive theatre based in Co. Kildare which supports people with intellectual disabilities in accessing theatre and film as makers, artists, participants and audiences. Thanks to Good Causes funding from the Arts Council, Aisling Byrne wrote and produced a short film, performed by members of the Run of the Mill ensemble. This film will be shown in both national and international film festivals, continuing to increase the visibility of people with intellectual disabilities, telling their stories and in doing so encouraging and inspiring other people with intellectual disabilities to get involved in the arts 

Athy Youth Project (In Sync) – Health & Wellbeing 

Athy Youth Project is part of Insync Youth and Family that provides a range of development and learning opportunities and services throughout Co. Kildare. In essence they support young people to build their capacity in order to reach their full potential through working on informal educational programmes. National lottery Good Causes funding through the Dept. Of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth has been the main funding provider for the past ten years, that helps them to develop young people through the programmes and activities they provide.  As a result, young people become more confident, their mental health improves, they build resilience, determination and give back to their community. 

RDA Ireland – Sport 

Riding for the Disabled Association Ireland (RDA Ireland) was established in Kildare in 1969 and provides the opportunity for individuals, with physical or intellectual disabilities, to horse ride or carriage drive which in turn provides therapy, fitness, development of skills, socialisation, achievement and most importantly fun. 

Newtown Community Group – Community 

The Newtown Community Group is a proactive rural group in Co. Kildare who provide a range of activities and services to their community that includes Tidy Towns spring cleaning, defibrillator training to theatre and tractor runs. Most recently, the community group undertook an innovative project to completely renovate a derelict area of their town hall which has now been transformed into an incredibly beautiful garden and community area for all to enjoy. 

Irish Peatland Conservation Council (IPCC) – Heritage 

IPCC (Irish Peatland Conservation Council) is a charity whose mission is to conserve a representative portion of Irish peatlands for people to enjoy, today and in the future. The Save the Bogs Campaign is their longest running initiative and includes work in peatland research, site conservation, species monitoring, policy and advocacy and education and awareness. 

Entrepreneur, Fashion Designer and Businesswoman, Sonya Lennon, who is Chair of this year’s judging panel, spoke about the tough job that the panel faced in narrowing down the entries: “This is my first year involved in the Good Causes Awards and it’s really opened my eyes to the crucial work that so many extraordinary groups and individuals carry out within their communities each and every day. It was no easy feat to select our 118 county winners out of the hundreds of entries that we received as every application had an inspiring story. A big congratulations to all who have made it to the next round – we are one step closer to the big night now!” 

The awards, which culminates in a Gala Awards Dinner in Kildare on Saturday 1st October, has seven main categories: Sport, Health & Wellbeing, Heritage, Arts & Culture, Community, Youth and Irish Language.  

The full list of County Winners can be found at www.lottery.ie/good-causes- awards/county-winners 

The 118 County Finalists will now compete for a place in the National Finals judging phase next month, after which the 35 National Finalists will be announced.