Cork groups benefit from charitable awards

AS PART of the Movement for Good Awards, specialist insurer Ecclesiastical Insurance, and its parent company Benefact Group, have donated over €500,000 to charitable causes leading change in key sectors across Ireland and the UK.

Kids’ Own Publishing Partnership, Jigsaw National Centre for Youth Mental Health, and A Sense of Cork Midsummer Arts Festival, are amongst the 22 charities that were chosen by a panel of judges to benefit from the larger grants.

The Movement for Good Awards are designed to help charities make a real difference in their communities.

More than 900 charities applied for the funding, and the winning projects were selected against four criteria: impact and effectiveness, sustainability, innovation, and care and compassion.

Cork Midsummer is an annual multidisciplinary festival that showcases a diverse range of art forms from both national and international artists. They will receive a grant of over €15,000 which will allow the organisers bring to life “Home Sweet Home”— a new disability-led play that explores disability issues.

Susan Holland, head of Participation and Engagement Cork Midsummer Festival, said: “This grant will allow Cork Midsummer Festival to continue our partnership with the inspiring Suisha Arts theatre group on their mission to establish a new professional disability-led theatre group here in Cork.

“It will also aid us in developing a new leading model in the creation of theatre by and with artists with intellectual and learning disabilities, as well as the premiere of an exciting new work by the group in 2024.”

Kids’ Own is a children’s arts organisation and publishing house that connects children and their communities with professional artists and publishes books by children for children.

They will receive a grant of over €16,500 which will support the publication of a book that will bring families from Ukraine and Donegal together.

Jigsaw’s mission is to achieve better mental health outcomes for people aged 12–25 by delivering therapeutic services, promoting youth mental health and mobilising community and societal change. Jigsaw’s current model can support 67% of the youth population and with the help of the Movement for Good grant of over €15,000 they hope to reach 100%.