3 days ago
Dozens of Cork children to benefit from ‘crucial' RTÉ Toy Show Appeal grant for care centre
The Crann Centre, a facility in Ovens which cares for people with neuro-physical disabilities, will receive €140,000 over two years through the Toy Show Appeal's partners, Community Foundation Ireland.
The grant will fund the centre's Social Capital Programme, which includes fully inclusive summer camps, youth clubs, ecology workshops, conservation, visual arts and music activities and family barbecues.
The programme also consists of the youth theatre group 'Breaking Barriers', which staged two performances of Aladdin in Cork City Hall last Friday night.
The Social Capital Programme is led by Tara O'Donovan, who said it is important to develop initiatives which offer unique experiences to children and help them to grow their confidence and abilities.
'We are extremely grateful to the Toy Show Appeal for including the Crann Centre this year. This funding will go a long way towards achieving our goals,' Ms O'Donovan said.
Crann centre spokesperson Louis O'Sullivan said the grant will be vital.
'It is critical because we grew by over 30pc, which takes us to over 100 families now, and in order for us to continue to grow and deliver high quality services, we need funding,' he explained.
Additional funding would allow the Crann Centre to accept more families into its programmes, which would be 'phenomenal'.
'At Crann, we do a lot of research, and we listen to our families to make sure they are receiving the types of services they actually need and want,' Mr O'Sullivan said.
'The money allows us to do that correctly, which is really good.'
The Crann Centre provides care and programmes for a growing number of children and adults living with conditions such as cerebral palsy, spinal cord injuries, multiple sclerosis, spina bifida and osteogenesis imperfecta.
In total, the centre currently provides support for 700 families of those with challenging conditions from across Munster. For more information on the Crann Centre visit:
