Northern Ireland Recipients of the 2023 Coca-Cola Thank You Fund Revealed!

11 non-profit organisations from Northern Ireland are today celebrating the news that they will each receive a grant share from this year’s Coca-Cola Thank You Fund.

Operating in partnership with the Irish Youth Foundation and supporting partners YouthAction Northern Ireland, the Fund invests in community groups that are orientated towards young people, with this year’s theme centred around empowering young people through learning, inclusion, and sustainable development.

This year The Coca-Cola Company and its partner Coca-Cola HBC Ireland and Northern Ireland joined forces to double the amount of funding on offer in 2023, making €200,000 in grants available. The significant increase in funding means that the Coca-Cola Thank You Fund can support even more local organisations across the island of Ireland that work tirelessly to champion and empower young people to take an active role in shaping, creating, and maintaining sustainable communities.

In total, 4 recipient organisations from Northern Ireland were selected to receive a grant of up to €10,000 to develop and implement their youth programme. These organisations include North West Islamic Association (Derry-Londonderry), LLTCA (Down), Patrician Youth Centre (Down), and Fighting Words Northern Ireland (Antrim).

An additional 7 organisations from Northern Ireland will receive at least €5,000 in funding to support their local project and improve their community. These groups include Manor Street/Cliftonville Community Group (Belfast), Destined Ltd (Derry-Londonderry), The Magnet Youth Adult Centre (Down), The Rainbow Child and Family Centre (Derry-Londonderry), St. Patrick’s Youth Club Keady (Armagh), Active Communities Network (Antrim), and Crisis Café (Newry).

Congratulating the recipients of this year’s Thank You Fund, Tom Burke, Corporate Affairs and Sustainability Director, Coca-Cola HBC Ireland and Northern Ireland said:“Through this year’s Coca-Cola Thank You Fund, together with our partners at The Coca-Cola Company, we are focused on empowering young people through learning, inclusion, and sustainable development. We’re delighted to be able to recognise the work of eleven organisations across Northern Ireland which are helping young people realise their potential and contribute positively to their communities.

“With a legacy in Northern Ireland going back over 80 years, we believe in empowering the next generation of young people, and we look forward to seeing the great work that will be done by the eleven projects selected for this year’s Fund.”

Speaking about the judging process, Sheila Morris, Membership Development and Growth Senior Leader of YouthAction Northern Ireland, said: “This year, we were delighted to once again work on the Coca-Cola Thank You Fund alongside the Irish Youth Foundation and a panel of industry experts, to identify community-based programmes and projects that engaged young people in models of innovative and inclusive practices.

“Working with Coca-Cola HBC Ireland and Northern Ireland and The Coca-Cola Company has allowed us to invest in and support eleven valuable local projects for young people across Northern Ireland. The standard of applications across the three pillars of learning, inclusion, and sustainable development has been incredibly high. Although it was a challenging process, it was a really enlightening and rewarding experience to hear from the substantial number of community groups available to support vulnerable young people.”

For more information about the Coca-Cola Thank You Fund check out coca-cola.ie/thankyou.

Northern Ireland Groups Awarded up to €10,000 in Coca-Cola Thank You Fund Grants:

Fighting Words NI - Derry-Londonderry

Fighting Words aims to give young people across Northern Ireland the opportunity to discover and harness the power of their imaginations and creativity through writing in all forms – scripts, songs, poetry, fiction, journalism, memoir. They run a year-round programme of free creative writing workshops for schools, after-school, and holiday activities.

North West Islamic Association - Derry-Londonderry

North West Islamic Society (NWIS) works to strengthen their local community and present the right image of Islam to those around them. NWIS engage Muslims and other communities and backgrounds to explore, share, and celebrate each other’s cultures and traditions, commonalities, and faith.

Laurencetown Lenaderg & Tullylish Community Association (LLTCA) - Derry-Londonderry

Laurencetown Lenaderg & Tullylish Community Association (LLTCA) own and manage a small, active, and welcoming Community Centre to resource, facilitate, and provide an affordable meeting space for over 20 different weekly groups.

Patrician Youth Centre - Down

Patrician Youth Centre is a full-time voluntary organisation located in Downpatrick, an area of designated social need. The Centre is mandated to provide services and programmes which promote the personal, social, educational, and recreational development of young people without distinction.

Northern Ireland Groups Awarded at least €5,000 in Coca-Cola Thank You Fund Grants:

Manor Street/Cliftonville Community Group - Antrim

Manor Street/Cliftonville Community Centre (MSCCC) is a purpose-built facility, situated in the heart of the Cliftonville area. Recognising the need for a community-based facility, MSCCC provides social, educational, and recreational services for all sections of the Cliftonville community.

Active Communities Network - Antrim

Active Communities Network aims to tackle inequality through inspiring change and creating opportunities by empowering young people to reclaim their community through social action projects and overcoming participation barriers.

St Patrick's Youth Club Keady - Armagh

St Patrick's Youth Club provides a variety of youth work programmes for the young people from the wider Keady and district community including targeted nights for the junior club, young men, young women, and drop-in provision within the youth club.

Destined Ltd - Derry-Londonderry

Destined is a support charity for people with learning disabilities based across Derry-Londonderry. They offer services to help reduce levels of isolation and exclusion, and support the community to become proactive in the process of inclusion and integration.

The Rainbow Child and Family Centre - Derry-Londonderry

The aim of the Rainbow Child & Family Centre is to create positive memories for all through an array of activities, services, training, and programmes for everyone of all ages to help, support, educate, and bond the community and the wider city.

Magnet Young Adult Centre - Down

Magnet Young Adult Centre caters for young people aged 15+ from Newry and the surrounding areas, providing a variety of personal development programmes as well as a drop in facility. The Centre is unique in that it is managed entirely by young people.

Crisis Café - Down

The aim of the Crisis Cafe is to provide a non-clinical 'youth-led' safe space where young people can access a range of services to improve their mental health and life chances. The Crisis Cafe offers a variety of drop-in and non referral-based services where young people can access a variety of support depending on their individual circumstances.