Earlier this week Northern Ireland’s Communities Minister Gordon Lyons launched the new £4m Community Infrastructure Fund.
The Northern Ireland Community Infrastructure Fund is a small capital grant scheme for voluntary and community organisations. The Fund is a £4.32 million grant scheme to support voluntary and community sector organisations to improve the internal or external fabric of their existing community buildings. The fund is being delivered by the Department for Communities in partnership with Co-operation Ireland.
The aim of this fund is to enable community organisations to better meet the needs of their community and/or improve the quality and range of activities delivered in community buildings. The Fund will provide grant support for voluntary and community organisations of up to £40,000 towards upgrades for community facilities right across Northern Ireland and includes:
✅ Repairs to existing community buildings (refurbishment or structural repairs)
✅ Small scale refurbishment or renovation works (kitchen and toilets etc.)
✅ Capital works for accessibility improvements (upgrades such as ramps or lifts)
✅ Energy efficiency measures (boiler replacement, window upgrades, solar panels etc.).
The scheme will open for Expressions of Interest on 1 October 2025 and close on 29 October 2025 for projects to be delivered between 1 April 2026 and 31 March 2027. The full application must be submitted by 9 January 2026
You can read full Guidance Notes for the fund here and a series of information sessions will be hosted across Northern Ireland in 1-10 October to provide further information. To register for one of these sessions or for more information on the fund, visit the Department’s website here.