KSF funding comes primarily from Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM). During the early stages of project development (2013-2016) funding and supports coming from Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP), At that time, SICAP helped with necessary improvements or upgrades on new social farms to address health and safety or access issues, and purchasing safety clothing and footwear for new social farm participants. costs. Workers in the Rural Social Scheme (RSS) and Tus, both funded by the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection, initially helped with participant transport. This has now evolved and the social car scheme in partnership with TFI Local Link Kerry provides transport links across the county. Funding from Healthy Kerry will also provide support here. RSS workers continue to assist with farm upgrades and setting up signage and traffic management for farm walks and other events.

Since 2020 Kerry ETB have funded farmer training for number of courses including UCC Certificate in Practice Support in Social Farming and First Aid Responder. Kerry Group have become very strong supporters of our voluntary model of social farming. Kerry Group also provided direct funding to the project in 2023 and 2024. Kerry Agri provide access for KSF to their dairy farm walks on their farms and information events held in Kerry. This access to dairy farmers has allowed facilitators build relationships with these farmers and raise the profile of the project to a new audience.

Department of Agriculture Food & the Marine

2015-2016: The DAFM financed an expansion of the variety of activities available on social farms out of the Rural Innovation and Development Fund of CEDRA (Commission for the Economic Development of Rural Areas), while a proportion was match-funded by the host farmers themselves.

2016-2017: In 2016, Kerry Social Farming secured funding from the DAFM's CEDRA Fund to pilot a Social Farming Project in Kerry with national benefits. Through that funding, a full-time Social Farming Facilitator was hired to enhance the delivery, development and expansion of the project through 2017, recruit more farms and upgrades of the farms. It also funded the evaluation of KSF to independently review the project to date across its various stakeholders.

2017: In September 2017, Kerry Social Farming secured funding from the DAFM's CEDRA fund to finance the operations of KSF for 2017-2018.

2018: In September 2018, Kerry Social Farming secured funding from the DAFM's CEDRA fund to finance the operations of KSF for 2018-2019.

In September 2019, Kerry Social Farming secured funding from the DAFM's CEDRA fund to finance the operations of KSF for 2019-2020.

In September 2020, Kerry Social Farming secured further funding from DAFM under the Rural Innovation and Development Fund (RIDF) for 2020-2021.

In June 2021, Kerry Social Farming secured further funding from DAFM under the Rural Innovation and Development Fund (RIDF) for 2021-2022.

In June 2022, Kerry Social Farming secured further funding from DAFM under the Rural Innovation and Development Fund (RIDF) for 2022-23.

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SICAP (Social Inclusion and Activation Funding)

In 2013-2016 the project was primarily funded from The Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP), overseen by Kerry County Council and administered by SKDP and NEWKD to upgrade farms in terms of Health & Safety adjustments particularly in the early stages of project development (2013-2016). While SICAP resources are still used to fund aspects of KSF, the project is currently primarily funded by the DAFM. This funding was extended for 2023-2024.

SKDP produced a video in 2019 illustrating how SICAP funding assisted in developing Kerry Social Farming. View video

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