Cork Community Paint Grant Scheme 2025 Launched

Person holding a paint bucket in front of a teal wooden fence.

The Relove Paint Community Paint Grant Scheme is now open for applications, continuing a successful three year run in supporting community groups in Cork.

This scheme, supporting a circular economy through the recycling of unwanted paint, has attracted widespread participation over recent years. Last year, 96 groups, including Tidy Towns, community associations, sports clubs, and schools from across Cork, received over 2,000 litres of high-quality, upcycled paint. In return, the groups were encouraged to promote the initiative and share their positive experiences, helping to spread awareness and develop confidence in upcycled paint.

Mayor of the County of Cork, Cllr Joe Carroll, said 

The Relove Paint Community Paint Grant Scheme not only promotes environmental sustainability, but also builds confidence in the use of upcycled paint. The feedback from last year’s recipients was overwhelmingly positive, with many reporting the high quality of the paint which helped revitalise community buildings, sports clubs, and schools.
 

The Community Paint Grant Scheme is open to community groups, sports clubs and schools who can apply for up to 25 litres of paint, most of which is internal water-based paint, but some external paint may also be available.  The deadline for applications is Friday 4th April 2025.

Commenting on the scheme, the Lord Mayor of Cork, Cllr Dan Boyle said, “The Relove Paint Community Paint Grant Scheme is an opportunity to enhance circular economy initiatives within the city while allowing a cost-effective, high-quality paint product to be accessed by local communities”.

Relove Paint is the result of a collaboration between Cork County Council, Cork City Council and three local social enterprises: Northside Community Enterprises, IRD Duhallow Furniture Revamp, and Cycle Sense. The social enterprises collect unwanted paint from City and County Council recycling centres, then remix and recolour it, before redistributing a high quality but low-cost paint back into the community.  

To date over 30 tonnes of paint have been diverted from incineration to reuse. The public are encouraged to bring unwanted or leftover paint to their nearest recycling centre so it can be reused by the Relove Paint project. Members of the public can also purchase Relove Paint in Cycle Sense, Skibbereen; IRD Duhallow, Newmarket; and NCE Farranferris.

At a national level, there are 9 paint reuse social enterprises operating across the country, supported by 11 Local Authorities and 27 civic amenity sites. In total, over 80 tonnes of paint have been diverted from incineration and redirected to reuse.

For more information on Relove Paint and to apply for the Community Paint Grant Scheme, visit www.relovepaint.ie.