Watch this video to hear feedback from previous bursary recipients.

Thank you to Robert Mathews (Wicklow Educate Together Secondary School), Noreena McDonnell (Lakeview Special School, Galway), Robbie McArdle (Extern North Bay, Dublin), and Joan Hanrahan (Rice College, Ennis) for taking part in this video!

One of Gaisce’s core values is Inclusion and Equality; every person having the opportunity to grow their potential through equality of access, participation, and outcome. With support from the Department of Education and Youth, funds raised from our Be The Arrow campaign, and other philanthropic supporters, Gaisce SUAS seeks to alleviate barriers that some young people may face in embarking on and achieving their Gaisce Award.

Gaisce SUAS aims to increase participation and access to the Gaisce Award programme for young people experiencing marginalisation or who are living in difficult circumstances.

Supporting a core Gaisce objective; to reach more young people, especially those on the periphery of society, Gaisce SUAS Bursary had a fund of €87,000 in 2025 which was awarded across two bursary strands:

  1. Uplift, funded by the Department of Education and Youth and Be The Arrow fundraising
  2. Youth Justice, funded by a philanthropic supporter

Through these two strands, Gaisce SUAS intends to:

  • Reduce barriers to participation in the Gaisce Award for those experiencing disadvantage.
  • Ensure that more young people than ever can achieve Gaisce Awards, reflecting the diversity of our society.
  • Ensure young people aged 14-25 across our society can see themselves in the Award.

This fund is open to eligible applications from:

  • New Gaisce Award Partners – organisations/projects where Gaisce has never been run to date due to barriers.
  • Active Gaisce Award Partners – organisations who currently offer Gaisce
  • Inactive Gaisce Award Partners – organisations/projects where Gaisce may have previously been offered but has not for some time.

The following funding criteria applies to this grant:

  • Funding sought must directly support the participant/s who experience marginalisation and/or disadvantage to engage in their Gaisce Award.
  • If the organisation applying is new to Gaisce, they must register to become a Gaisce Award Partner with at least one President’s Award Leader (PAL).
  • Applicants must be able to demonstrate how the participant(s) experience marginalisation and/or disadvantage.
  • Applicants must demonstrate how the funding will be used to directly support participant/s to complete their Gaisce Award, and PAL/s must be committed to supporting the participant/s on all challenge areas of their Gaisce Award.
  • Funding must only be used for the applicable costs.
  • The participant/s who the grant is intended to support must be registered for a Gaisce award or should be registered within the lifecycle of the grant.
  • PAL/s must engage with their Gaisce Development Officer during the lifecycle of the bursary.

Application requirements:

  • Only ONE application per PAL/GAP/organisation will be eligible for consideration.
  • Funding must be payable to an organisation’s account, not an individual.

If these criteria are not met, unfortunately you cannot avail of the SUAS Bursary Fund.

Gaisce SUAS is designed to be used to support participants who are experiencing marginalisation or who are living in difficult circumstances, to complete their award. 

The fund will contribute towards participant support costs associated with Bronze, Silver, or Gold award requirements.  

This can be for an individual or a small group of young people; up to €1000 per organisation. 

Examples of participant support costs covered under this fund include: 

  • Challenge Areas costs: Costs related to challenge areas for participants experiencing marginalisation and/or disadvantage (i.e. transport, gear, equipment), in particular the Community Involvement Challenge Area
  • Accessibility: Supporting accessibility for participants experiencing marginalisation and/or disadvantage with additional support needs i.e. accessible transport or accessible activities for any of the Challenge Areas.
  • Sustainability: The purchase of equipment/gear that can be utilised for current and future participants experiencing marginalisation and/or disadvantage, supporting a sustainable approach and use of funds.
  • Adventure Journey: Adventure journey costs (i.e. transport, accommodation, adventure journey provider fee, equipment, etc.) for individual participants experiencing marginalisation and/or disadvantage.

Note: The bursary fund is not intended to cover all costs that may be associated with completing the Award. please see list of ineligible costs included in the Information Guide.

The Uplift fund can be applied for by any organisation supporting young people that meet the above criteria. Please read the Information Guide in full before making an application. 

To apply for this fund, you must complete an online application form, which can be accessed via the links below. Please note there are two strands within Gaisce SUAS with separate application forms, please ensure you apply for the correct strand. 

  1. Uplift Fund: Click here to go to the application form 
  2. Youth Justice Fund: Click here to go to the application form 

The closing date for applications is Friday, October 17th at 5 PM

Note: Only one application per organisation is permitted. 

Check out the Gaisce SUAS Information Guide.

Uplift Fund

The Uplift Fund will be awarded to individuals or small groups of young people via their organisation or Gaisce Award Partner (i.e. school, youth project, organisation, service, etc).

Click the button below to complete the online application form for the Uplift Fund:

Youth Justice Fund

The Youth Justice Fund is available to individuals or small groups of young people via their organisation or Gaisce Award Partner i.e. Youth Diversion Project, youth probation and other Youth Justice organisations who can demonstrate barriers to participation.

Click the button below to complete the online application form for the Youth Justice Fund: