All counties to receive grants with 154 charities and community groups securing funding
6.6 million was donated by the public last November to help change children's lives for the better
The RT Toy Show Appeal and the Community Foundation for Ireland announced today that over 1.1 million children and their families will benefit from donations raised during the 2021 Late Late Toy Show Appeal.
Over a memorable weekend last November, an audience of 1.8 million viewers helped raise over 6.6 million to help change children's lives for the better. The monies raised will now be used to support the work of registered children's charities and community groups across the island of Ireland. 154 charities are to receive grants, up from 55 last year, and for the first time, at least one project in every county will benefit.
Over the past number of months charities working at local, regional, and national levels were invited to apply for a grant under three thematic pillars: addressing essential needs from food to medical equipment, improving well-being including hospital and medical care, mental health supports and grief counselling, and creativity and play.
The RT Toy Show Appeal in partnership with the Community Foundation for Ireland has announced today that the following four charities are to receive transformative grants of more than 300,000.
Exchange House Ireland in Limerick promotes equal opportunities for Travellers in areas of health, education, training, accommodation, and enterprise on a nationwide basis.
Babor International Arts Festival for Children in Galway inspires all children regardless of geographic, economic, physical, intellectual, or cultural status to engage with the creative arts.
Spraoi agus Sp rt in Donegal provides affordable and inclusive opportunities, activities and experiences for children, families, young people, and adults.
Parents Plus develops and delivers evidenced-based parenting, mental health, and educational interventions for vulnerable families.
The remainder of the donations will be split amongst 150 charities across the island of Ireland including well-known organisations like the Jack and Jill Foundation, Barnardos, Family Carers Ireland, the ISPCC, the Irish Wheelchair Association, Children's Books Ireland, ARC Cancer Support Services and Oscars' Kids Ireland.
Local projects and organisations in every county of Ireland will also receive grants to help with a diverse range of needs including homelessness in Galway, migrant supports in Cork, sexual abuse victims in Carlow, and the mental health of young people in Wicklow to name just a few.
Over £525,000 has been awarded to 14 charities and organisations in Northern Ireland including Kids Together Belfast, Kinship Care Northern Ireland, and Clonmore Youth Club.
The full list of organisations can be found here
Speaking about the announcement host of The Late Late Show, Ryan Tubridy said: The Irish public has simply blown us away with their generosity and kindness of spirit. The donations given will enrich the lives of children across our island who need it most to give them the support, care, and encouragement that they need. We want to offer a huge thank you to every single person who donated. We were truly overwhelmed with the response.
Speaking about the impact of the RT Toy Show Appeal, The Late Late Show producers Katherine Drohan and Jane Murphy said: We are constantly inspired by children and with the unwavering generosity of TV viewers, RT will continue to work to bring the magic of the Toy Show to every child in Ireland in order to change their lives for good .
Director-General of RT , Dee Forbes said: The Late Late Toy Show is an evening where generations unite, and the country celebrates some incredible and inspirational children. Viewers once again responded to the call to give with extraordinary generosity, and those donations will make an enormous difference to the work of so many organisations. The fact that this money will impact the lives of over 1.1 million children is phenomenal and we are very grateful to everyone who gave, which is what makes all these grants possible .
Chief Executive of the Community Foundation for Ireland, Denise Charlton said: Children, parents and amazing organisations are seeing the magic of the RT Toy Show Appeal turned into actions which will transform young lives. From addressing essential needs, improving wellbeing to supporting creativity and play the generosity of television viewers is bringing not only vital support but also colour and joy to children, families and to wider communities. Offering support and benefit to 1.1 million lives is an incredible achievement. It is one which every viewer in every county should be proud of.
The RT Toy Show Appeal is a designated fund to help a range of children's charities and causes around Ireland, to be managed on RT 's behalf by The Community Foundation for Ireland www.communityfoundation.ie. All of the monies raised are received by The Community Foundation for Ireland who run an open grant round where children's charities across Ireland are invited to apply for a grant. All grant applications are independently assessed by an expert panel who make a final recommendation for funding.
The Community Foundation for Ireland, now over 20 years in existence, works with individuals, families, companies, and other trusts and foundations to support a diverse range of not-for-profit organisations. Since 2000 The Community Foundation for Ireland has awarded almost 100 million in grants. The Community Foundation for Ireland is a registered charity, (Charities Regulator Number: 20044886) and is committed to the highest standards of trust and governance.
More from RTE
02/04/2026
2FM Breakfast to extend on weekday mornings from 6am to 10am
Doireann Garrihy m...
02/04/2026
RT News & Current Affairs is pleased to announce the appointment of RT Radio 1 reporter, Barry Lenihan, as Political Correspondent.
Barry has reported across...
01/04/2026
Rugby fans won't miss a moment of the action this spring, with full Women...
01/04/2026
T Bluey ag teacht go RT ! Beginning on Monday 6 April 2026, Bluey will be available as Gaeilge on RT KIDSjr and RT Player. Children will be able to connect w...
27/03/2026
RT Supporting the Arts
RT is Supporting 20 Arts and Cultural Events all over Ireland this April
RT is proud to support an exciting month of arts and cul...
27/03/2026
Average of 1.37 million viewers watched Irish World Cup heartbreak on RT 2
Over one million streams on RT Player
Highest number of streams for any single eve...
26/03/2026
RT Commercial today announced Fiat as sponsor of The Louise Duffy Show on RT Radio 1, Weekdays 3pm 4pm.
The Louise Duffy Show is the home of daytime music...
24/03/2026
Jock and Conor are back in Cork for series 5
A new series of hit-comedy The Young Offenders will drop on RT Player on Good Friday 3 April. The show, produced...
24/03/2026
RT 's new history podcast, What Were We Like, is out now. Hosted by historian Diarmaid Ferriter and archivist Catriona Crowe, the series focuses on modern I...
24/03/2026
All three presenters, Maura, D ith and Sinead, celebrate as afternoon chat show filmed in Cork hits milestone.
Ireland's longest running afternoon show, t...
23/03/2026
RT is sad today to learn of the death of legendary RT Sport broadcaster Michael Lyster, who died this morning aged 71 years.
Kevin Bakhurst, Director-General...
23/03/2026
RT Documentary On One has scooped its first ever dedicated music award. At the 2026 Icelandic Music Awards, composer lfur Eldj rn won Release of the Year in t...
23/03/2026
Inside Sport, Liveline, Morning Ireland and 2FM DRIVE will all be in Prague to bring fans to the heart of the action
Every Moment, Every GenerationRT | FIFA W...
20/03/2026
Dingle, Co. Kerry - Animation Dingle is delighted to announce that Suzanne Kelly, Head of Children's and Young People's Content at RT , will receive the...
20/03/2026
It's time to play The Money List! Baz Ashmawy is back at the helm as the qui...
19/03/2026
Other Voices presents a legendary night of music as Foo Fighters bring their stadium anthems to St James' Church, An Daingean. The surprise performance teas...
19/03/2026
***Issued by RT on behalf of RTS Ireland Awards / Gradaim RTS 2026...
16/03/2026
After a nail-biting Grand Finale, Rose of Tralee Katelyn Cummins has been announced as the winner of Dancing with the Stars 2026.
The four finalists each dance...
16/03/2026
Welcome to Moore Street will begin on RT One and RT Player on Thursday 19 Marc...
13/03/2026
RT has announced today that Rick O'Shea is the new presenter of Arena RT Radio 1's flagship weeknight arts and culture programme. Rick has been pres...
13/03/2026
Lights! Camera! Action! The 98th Oscars set to air live as RT backs the Irish n...
12/03/2026
The Late Late Show Show St Patrick's Day special
Dancing with the Stars f...
11/03/2026
TELL US YOUR (SHORT) STORIES
The 2026 RT Short Story Competition is now open for entries
Recognising and rewarding the best new Irish fiction writing for...
11/03/2026
RT 's The Traitors Ireland is among the nominees for the 2026 Celtic Media Festival Torc Awards for Excellence, announced today....
09/03/2026
A powerful new national initiative supporting people living with dementia launch...
06/03/2026
We are deeply saddened to hear the very sad news of the death of our friend and colleague, John McHugh. John was an exceptionally talented creative leader who s...
06/03/2026
First exclusive look at RT 's promo as Ireland prepare to take on Czechia
Every Moment, Every Generation
https://youtu.be/2ijo96EadLU
36 years after Geor...
05/03/2026
Celebrating 21 Years of the RT Choice Music Prize
RT Choice Music Prize
In association with IMRO and IRMA
RT Choice Music Prize Irish Album of the Year 2...
03/03/2026
RT is proud to support a rich and diverse programme of arts and cultural events taking place across Ireland throughout March 2026. This month brings a remarkab...
03/03/2026
RT Media Sales has announced Spry Finance has renewed it's sponsorship of M...
27/02/2026
One of Ireland's favourite lifestyle shows Home of the Year, returns for its 12th series and will be proudly sponsored by SIRO. The brand-new series will ai...
27/02/2026
Our Farm: A GIY Story lands on RT One and RT Player from March 3
From walled garden to community farm, new six-part series captures the unfiltered realities...
27/02/2026
Note: English version included below the Irish language version.
Seachtain na Gaeilge 2026 ar RT
A Ghaeilge mo cheol th '
T feachtas athnuaite i n...
26/02/2026
There were two big wins for RT KIDS shows at the 17th Kidscreen Awards in San Diego this week with Maddie Triggs and BeddyByes both taking home gongs.
The K...
26/02/2026
RT has confirmed that it has today received payment from the GAA for its 50% share of GAAGO.
RT confirmed in February 2025 that it had agreed in principle wi...
26/02/2026
RT Statement regarding the broadcast of Republic of Ireland vs Israel Nations League fixture
If the match goes ahead and that is a decision for the FAI as ...
24/02/2026
Katharine Wolinska appointed to lead Partnerships
RT Commercial has announced ...
23/02/2026
Audience peak of over a million on RT 2 as Ireland beat England in the Six Natio...
20/02/2026
Other Voices returns to RT this Spring with performances from Dermot Kennedy, A...
17/02/2026
Celebrating 21 Years of the RT Choice Music Prize
RT Choice Music Prize
In association with IMRO and IRMA
Classic Irish Album
And the winning album is
T...
17/02/2026
RT has today announced that as part of its public-service remit, it will expand...
16/02/2026
RT News & Current Affairs has today announced the new appointments of journalis...
13/02/2026
New RT series tells stranger-than-fiction stories of Irish con artists
Swindlers airs Wednesday 18 February, 9.35pm on RT One and RT Player
Swindlers, a...
11/02/2026
The intergalactic children's show starring Adam King will premiere on 14 February on RT 2, RT KIDSjr and RT Player
The Late Late Toy Show star Adam King...
09/02/2026
RT Investigates rapid rise in waiting list for the Central Mental Hospital
am...
06/02/2026
The Winter Olympics 2026 in Milano Cortina officially get underway this evening (Friday 6 February) with the Opening Ceremony live on RT Player and RT News ch...
04/02/2026
Following the passing of our friend and colleague Hugh Wallace, and with the full support of his family, RT will proceed with the broadcast of the new series o...
29/01/2026
RT has today announced that Annette Malone has been appointed to the role of Chief People Officer, RT following a public competition.
As Chief People Officer...
27/01/2026
RT Supporting the Arts is delighted to support a dynamic programme of cultural events taking place across Ireland this February. From visual art, film, music, ...
All counties to receive grants with 154 charities and community groups securing funding 
