SICAP Programme
The Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP) 2024-2028 provides funding to tackle poverty and social exclusion at a local level through local engagement and partnerships between disadvantaged individuals, community organisations and public sector agencies.
Administered by Pobal, SICAP 2024-2028 is co-funded by the Irish Government, through the Department of Rural and Community Development, and the European Social Fund Plus under the Employment, Inclusion, Skills, and Training (EIST) Programme 2021-2027.
SICAP is managed locally by the Local Community Development Committees (LCDC) with support from Local Authorities.
About SICAP
SICAP is a targeted, community development programme, working with those who are most disadvantaged and less likely to access mainstream services. We provide supports directly to beneficiaries and link them into existing services.
We engage with marginalised communities and service providers using a community development approach to address issues relating to social exclusion and inequality. SICAP also prioritises local engagement and partnerships, between SICAP Programme Implementers, disadvantaged individuals, community organisations and public sector agencies.
It is a multi-faceted programme that provides supports to respond to individual and community needs, aiming to ensure that beneficiaries receive quality, tailored supports, while also allowing flexibility to tailor actions to community needs. It enables bottom-up approaches within the framework of a national programme which provides targets, performance indicators and requirements.
The programme is structured over two Goals:
Goal 1: Contribute to Building more Sustainable, Inclusive and Empowered Communities: Empower groups of individuals, local community groups, networks and social enterprises to address collective community needs.
Goal 2: Empower Disadvantaged people to Improve the Quality of Their Lives: Support disadvantaged individuals, children and families to progress their formal education and participate in lifelong learning, to progress into employment/ self-employment, and to improve their soft skills and wellbeing.
Goal 1 is distinguished from Goal 2 in that the desired change is at community level – i.e., whether working with groups of individuals (non-caseload), Local Community Groups, Social Enterprises or networks, the intended impact of activities is positive change for the wider community.
Goal 2 is distinguished from Goal 1 in that the desired change is at the individual level – i.e., whether working with individuals or groups of individuals, the intended impact of activities is positive change for the specific individual/ group participant engaging in the activity (rather than community wide change, as with Goal 1).
Each programme goal has its own distinct KPI targets, eligible beneficiary types, core areas of work, objectives, outcomes and indicators.
