PEACEPLUS: The Change Maker Funding Programme

Overview

These funds will be distributed in tranches over three years from early 2025 to 2027 and will be delivered on behalf of the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB) by Pobal.

Co-operation Ireland, in partnership with Rural Action and East Border Region, have been contracted to help promote the programme and support groups to apply.

These grants are provided under PEACEPLUS themes 

• 1: Building Peaceful and Thriving Communities
  • To promote positive relations characterised by respect, where cultural diversity is celebrated and people can live, learn, and socialise together, free from prejudice, hate and intolerance.

 and 

• 6: Building and Embedding Partnerships and Collaboration
  • To strengthen trust-building activities among citizens as a founding pillar for cross-border co-operation.

Investment Areas 1.2 (Strand 1) and 6.2 will be collectively promoted as the Change Maker Funding Programme for ease of delivery to the target audience.

Strand 1: Small grants programme is the focus of this call. 

This objective is to promote positive relations characterised by respect, where cultural diversity is celebrated and people can live, learn, and socialise together, free from prejudice, hate and intolerance. Funded projects will enable community groups to work on shared challenges, on a cross-community basis.

Eligibility

Eligible organisations involved in grassroots/locally based activities including: 

• Non-government organisations (NGOs), 
• Local community groups, 
• Associations, including those focused on social inclusion opportunities, ex-offenders, sports, arts, history and cultural bodies, 
• Voluntary Sector Organisations, 
• Local Traveller and Migrant Organisations, 
• Disability support Organisations, 
• Organisations representing any of the groups listed above
• Universities, schools, colleges, higher education, research institutions 

This list is not exhaustive, other bodies may be considered.

The funds are available to community and voluntary groups and other organisations– and are flexible in the activity that they deliver, but all projects must have a strong focus on improving cross community and cross-border relationships.

Applications should clearly identify a Lead Partner Organisation. The Lead Partner is the project partner in the partnership that takes the overall responsibility for the project.

Projects and Thematic focus

• All Projects should have at least two formal partners i.e. two constituted groups.
  • Applicants are permitted to hold more than one Letter of Offer, provided that each individual project is clearly differentiated, and the details and numbers of participants can be recorded and maintained separately for monitoring and evaluation purposes.

The thematic focus of these projects may span a broad range of areas and groups, including, but not exhaustive: 

• Groups and individuals who have not previously participated in Peace Programmes.
• children and young people 
• sport 
• arts and culture 
• history and narratives of the conflict 
• victims and survivors 
• ex-prisoners 
• members (including former members) of the security services 
• health and wellbeing 
• community education/ safety/ regeneration 
• social innovation/enterprise 
• Environment and Climate 
• Disability

Notes:

• Funding can support activities designed to address and transform sectarian attitudes and behaviours.
• Funding can be made in single identity work, where this activity clearly builds confidence and capacity and leads to further sustained contact with individuals and groups from different community, cultural, racial and political backgrounds. Applicants for single identity work should engage with the Support Partners before commencing their application.
• The Programme will place particular emphasis on providing support to those most marginalised within our communities. These include, but this is not an exhaustive list: women; older people; minority communities (including migrants and refugees and those from the Traveller Community); those living with disability; those with issues arising from the legacy of the conflict including ex-prisoners and security service personnel and those from the LGBTQ+ community. 
• All applicants must clearly demonstrate how they will bring local people from diverse backgrounds together from the outset and/or as a sustained outcome of the funded activity.

Programme Area 

The programme area for the PEACEPLUS Programme is: 

• Northern Ireland 
• The border counties of Ireland (Counties Cavan, Donegal, Leitrim, Louth, Monaghan, and Sligo). 

This is the core programme area. The programme, however, has flexible geography beyond its administrative borders called a functional area. This allows organisations and institutions not based in the core programme area to get involved in projects by linking with partners within the core area. The benefits of such collaborations must be significant for the core programme area.

Funding

The Programme will operate 3 funding thresholds with multiple opportunities to apply.

Investment Area 1.2

A total value of €20 million has been allocated to this Investment Area with individual projects from €10,000 to €100,000. 

• Applications between €10,000 and up to €20,000 is now open and is available on a rolling basis (no deadlines). 
• Applications over €20,000 up to €60,000 and up to €100,000 will have three calls be advertised with various Opening and Closing dates throughout the programme timescale.

Grants are available to cover 100% of the eligible costs of the project.

Eligible Expenditure

Direct costs associated with running the people-to-people activities are eligible for funding, including:

• Programmatic equipment necessary for the delivery of the project (capped at 20% of the overall grant whether purchased, hired or leased).
• External expertise and services, including:
  • Facilitators and mediators
  • Travel
  • Venue
  • Catering
  • Training materials
• Staff costs.

See Guidance for further details

Projects under Investment Area 6.2 must:

• Include cross-border cooperation between groups.
• Engage people in cross-border activities around a shared interest/field.

Examples of eligible projects include:

• Small-scale projects to promote citizens’ cooperation around specific shared challenges eg, climate change and people-to-people projects, such as events and activities that develop mutual understanding and cement partnerships/collaboration.
• North-South joint events and activities that develop mutual understanding and cement partnership.
• Linking up sports clubs, cultural organisations and community groups.

Further details will be added when published.