Kilkenny change-makers can now apply for Good Causes Awards 2025

Kilkenny change-making champions have been invited to apply for this year's National Lottery Good Causes Awards. 

Individuals, community projects and organisations in Kilkenny who received Good Causes funding between the years 2020 and 2024 are eligible to apply.

The awards will honour the inspiring work and achievements of projects, clubs and individuals all over Ireland who, with the help of National Lottery Good Causes funding, have had an extraordinary impact on their local communities. 

The awards ceremony will take place on Saturday, October 18 in Killashee House Hotel in Naas, Kildare.

Beneficiaries will be judged on how their funds were used to make the most impact on their local community, members or service users. There are seven award categories:  

• Sport: Any funding received through the Sports Capital Programme or through Sport Ireland. 
• Health and Wellbeing: Any funding received through the HSE National Lottery Grant Scheme.
• Arts & Culture: Any funding received through the Arts Council of Ireland.
• Heritage: Any funding received through the Heritage Council of Ireland.
• Community: Any funding received from the National Lottery part-funded schemes administered by Department of Rural & Community Development, namely the Senior Alert Schemes or the Scheme to Support National Organisations (SSNO).
• Youth: Any funding received from the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, specifically the UBU Your Place, Your Space grants, Targeted Youth Funding Schemes or funding for Youth Information Centres. 
• Irish Language: Any funding received to support the Irish Language, provided by the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media.

Each category winner will receive €10,000 while the overall Good Cause of the Year will receive an additional €25,000.

A special category, ‘Hero of the Year’, will also be announced at the Awards final, in recognition of outstanding work done by an individual within an organisation. The winner will receive a prize of €5,000. 

Speaking at the launch, National Lottery CEO, Cian Murphy said, "This is the seventh year of the National Lottery Good Causes Awards, and again, we are reminded of the extraordinary positive impact that the people who drive Ireland’s Good Causes have in shaping a brighter and more inclusive future for all.

"Everyone who is associated with the National Lottery can feel proud that the funding from ticket sales supports the success stories that are the Good Causes.

"Since 1987, more than €6.5 billion has been raised for Good Causes. In 2023 alone, €227.9 million was raised for Good Causes in communities all across Ireland."

Minister Jack Chambers, a strong advocate of the Awards, commended the work being carried out by Good Causes in communities all over the country. "It is a great pleasure to support and participate in the launch of the National Lottery Good Causes Awards," he said. 

"As Minister and as a public representative, I see first-hand the enormous value this initiative has generated across our towns and cities, on our sports fields, in our community halls, in the arts, and in supporting people in our communities for the past four decades.

"Irish people as a whole are incredibly generous and the support these programmes receive from the general public further underlines this.

"It has been an honour to engage with some of the awardees and to learn about their life changing work they are doing in communities every single day.

"I wish the best of luck to all entering the 2025 Good Causes Awards and look forward to hearing about the good work being carried out by the 2025 applicants with National Lottery funding.” 

Applications for the awards are now open and beneficiaries can enter and check eligibility at https://www.lottery.ie/goodcausesawards