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Minister O’Brien publishes the Dormant Accounts Fund Annual Report 2021

Minister of State at the Department of Rural and Community Development, Joe O’Brien, T.D., today (24th June 2022) published the 2021 Dormant Accounts Fund Annual Report.

 

Money in the Dormant Accounts Fund can be used to fund measures that address economic, social, or educational disadvantage and to support people with a disability. The 2021 Annual Report details that expenditure on Dormant Accounts measures over the year amounted to €51.8 million across 11 Government Departments.

 

Publishing the Annual Report today, Minister O’Brien said:

I am delighted to publish the Dormant Accounts Fund Annual Report 2021 which shows that  funding of over €51 million was provided in 2021 to help address disadvantage right across Ireland. The 51 measures included in the report were implemented across Government and have helped to address a diverse range of issues such as providing programmes to support children and youths; prisoners; carers; victims of crime; those suffering domestic violence; homelessness; and marginalised groups such as the Traveller and Roma Community.”

 

The Minister continued:

Dormant Accounts funding makes a real difference to individuals and communities right across the country. It is helping vulnerable individuals, supporting social inclusion, and strengthening our communities. I am particularly happy to see a successful focus in 2021 on assisting the Traveller and Roma communities, for example.”

 

Minister Heather Humphreys T.D. noted:

“I welcome the publication of the 2021 Dormant Accounts Annual Report which outlines how over €51 million in funding supported disadvantage groups last year. Within our Department, €12.5 million was channelled towards the likes of the Senior Alerts Scheme, Social Enterprise and our libraries.

 

“I am delighted too with the progress made in terms of increasing Dormant Account funding across Government over the last few years and I look forward to the continued positive impact it is having in disadvantaged communities throughout Ireland.”

 

ENDS

Notes to Editors -

Total expenditure from Dormant Account Fund in 2021 was €51.8m for 51 measures across 11 Departments. The Annual Report provides information on these measures and also detailed three case studies of measures/projects funding in 2021.

 

Expenditure occurred across a range of Departments, funding measures to support children and youths; prisoners; carers; victims of crime; those suffering domestic violence; homelessness; and marginalised groups such as the Traveller and Roma Community.

 

Background to the Dormant Accounts Fund

The Dormant Accounts Acts 2001-2012, together with the Unclaimed Life Assurance Policies Act 2003, provide a framework for the administration of unclaimed accounts in credit institutions (i.e. banks, building societies and An Post) and unclaimed life assurance policies in insurance undertakings.

The main purpose of the legislation is to reunite account or policy holders with their funds in credit institutions or insurance undertakings and in this regard, these bodies are required to take steps to identify and contact the owners of dormant accounts and unclaimed life assurance policies.

However, in order to utilise the unused funds the legislation also introduced a scheme for the disbursement of funds that are unlikely to be reclaimed from dormant accounts and unclaimed policies for the purposes of measures to assist:

  1. the personal and social development of persons who are economically or socially disadvantaged
  2. the educational development of persons who are educationally disadvantaged or
  3. persons with a disability

 

Summary Table of Dormant Accounts Fund Annual Report 2021

The following table provides a summary of measures and funding provided in 2021 to each relevant Government Department. Full details are within the Annual Report itself:

No.

Government Department

Measure

Disbursed from DAF in 2021 (€)

1

Rural & Community Development

Seniors Alert Scheme

3,000,000

2

Rural & Community Development

Rethink Ireland

5,500,000

3

Rural & Community Development

Social Enterprise

2,299,898

4

Rural & Community Development

Pre-social Cohesion Project

50,000

5

Rural & Community Development

Library Supports

850,000

6

Rural & Community Development

Targeted Social Inclusion

561,736

7

Rural & Community Development

Carbon Monoxide Alarms

20,690

8

Rural & Community Development

Local Economic & Community Planning

199,042

9

Justice

Irish Prison Service, Community Based Health and First Aid in Prisons

259,059

10

Justice

Community Safety pilot projects

110,427

11

Justice

Implementation of targeted crime prevention and harm-reduction measures in Drogheda

140,303

12

Justice

Youth and Community Justice Services

5,996,205

13

Justice

Protecting Young People from the Influence of Adult Crime Networks in Ireland

1,426,000

14

Justice

Awareness raising of Domestic and Sexual Violence

268,139

15

Justice

Social Enterprise KickStart Seed Fund

792,704

16

Social Protection

Supporting Employment for Carers and Young People with Disabilities

5,000,000

17

Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media

Community Sports and Physical Activity Hubs (CSPAH)

2,020,000

18

Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media

National Sport Education and Training Hub

1,540,000

19

Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media

Sports Measures for Disadvantaged Communities to Support the National Physical Activity Plan (NPAP) and the National Sports Policy (NSP)

6,440,000

20

Education

Time to Count

20,000

21

Education

Glasnevin Trust

20,000

22

Education

Growing Youth Participation & Innovation in Irish Communities, a project by Young Social Innovators

180,000

23

Education

Foróige Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) Programme

375,000

24

Education

Migrant Integration Project

115,000

25

Education

City Connects

400,000

26

Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth

Foróige - Big Brother Big Sister Mentoring Programme

908,950

27

Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth

Youth Employability Initiative

219,586

28

Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth

Post-adoption support and therapy

200,000

29

Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth

What Works Initiative

2,365,275

30

Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth

Family Resource Centre Programme

1,000,000

31

Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth

Traveller Employment Initiatives

208,333

32

Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth

Disability Awareness Initiative for Employers

166,763

33

Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth

Scoping/piloting the intro of Book Bag initiative, families with young children

1,600,000

34

Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth

Aftercare Support for Disadvantaged Care Leavers

250,000

35

Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth

Educational Champions for children in care

560,000

36

Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth

Career Guidance and Employment Support in Oberstown

148,000

37

Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth

Aftercare support for unaccompanied minor refugees

800,000

38

Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth

North East Inner City, City Connects Pilot Project (joint w/DoE)

210,702

                                  

39

Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth

Online Safety Programme – Safeguarding and protecting young people online

150,000

40

Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth

Youth Sector Equality and Inclusion Support Initiative

51,000

41

Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth

Gender Equality for Traveller Women

250,000

42

Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth

Review of the Traveller Counselling Service

150,000

43

Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth

Development of an online portal to Traveller culture collections

150,000

44

Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science

Travellers in Higher Education

300,000

45

Health

Intercultural Healthcare In-Reach Project for Refugees in European Reception and Orientation Centres (EROC)

150,000

46

Health

National Intellectual Disability Memory Service

160,797

47

Health

Carers Needs Assessment Tool Pilot Programme

38,862

48

Housing Local Government and Heritage

Transitioning homelessness to long term housing

3,000,000

49

Defence

Upgrading Civil Defence vehicle fleet

668,739

50

Defence

Supports to Defence Forces Veterans Associations  

273,773

51

Environment, Climate and Communications

Go Fishing - Novice Angling Initiative

256,183

 

Total

 

€51,821,166