Community and Disability Newsletter – Issue Five, December 2025: available to download here

December 2025: Message from PJ Cleere

Welcome to Issue Five of our Community and Disability Newsletter.  

It’s been a busy and eventful year so far, with many changes and developments in the environment we work in.

We welcome the launch of the National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025–2030. To help you understand what this milestone strategy means for our community, we have published a plain-English brief which breaks down the key commitments and gaps.

In this edition, we also address Budget 2026, which was very much a budget of two halves. The €619 million boost to service supports was welcome, though it’s important to note that over €400 million of this is needed just to maintain existing services.

However, the real impact of this Budget on people with disabilities, and the lack of any new Cost of Disability measures, has been the main concern for many. In simple terms, it takes €1,400 out of the pockets of people with disabilities, while offering no new supports to offset rising living costs.

We also report back from the 4th Annual National Civic Forum in Cork, where DFI’s Laura O’Callaghan joined policymakers and community groups to discuss the vital role of civic engagement and partnership.

Elsewhere in this issue, we share feedback from our in-person workshop for the UN International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, held just two days after the Budget. People with disabilities spoke candidly about their daily experiences and the increasing challenges of keeping their heads above water.

We also bring you highlights from Make Way Day and our celebration of eight years of partnership with Wicklow County Council, which took place recently in Arklow, a wonderful event that reflected what can be achieved through genuine collaboration.

We’ve received several requests for more information about how local government structures and participation frameworks affect our everyday lives. In response, we’ll soon be sharing a short video that explains these structures and how they connect with our work across the community.

We’re excited to share updates on new projects in development and progress across all areas of our community work.

Thank you for your continued support and engagement.

We hope you enjoy this issue. Please contact us with feedback, updates and news to include in future issues and to subscribe to future issues. 

Regards,   

PJ Cleere

Development Manager