The Department for Communities is consulting on the Warm Healthy Homes Fund. This is an energy efficiency scheme to improve warmth, health and energy affordability of low-income households in the owner-occupier and private rented sectors. This Fund will replace the Affordable Warmth Scheme which has been in place since 2014. The proposals include: Eligibility qualification […]
The Women’s Regional Consortium has submitted evidence to the Right to Food UK Commission, highlighting how women in Northern Ireland are being forced to skip meals, go without essentials and carry the burden of food insecurity as household costs continue to rise. Women in Northern Ireland are being forced to go without food, heat and […]
Right to Food UK Commission Call for Evidence The Right to Food UK Commission is collecting evidence and lived experiences regarding feeding families and communities in the UK. They are inviting written evidence in the following areas: Food insecurity in the UK, challenges and solutions that are having a positive impact Experiences of seeking support […]
Introduction to Gender Budgeting workshop, delivered by NIRWN on behalf of the Northern Ireland Women’s Budget Group and Ulster University took place. We were delighted to welcome women from organisations, community groups and local communities across Northern Ireland. The session explored gender equality, gender inequality, what gender budgeting is, and how individuals can become advocates […]
Year 2 of the Animate-Build-Connect Programme is now open, and NIRWN is looking for 8 rural women’s groups to join us from September 2026. If you’re part of a group that could do with some dedicated support, this is worth reading. Successfully selected groups will receive: a tailored mentoring and development plan, a mix of […]
The Women’s Regional Consortium, in partnership with Ulster University, has submitted evidence to the Northern Ireland Assembly Committee for Education strongly backing the proposed Education (Holiday Meal Payments) Bill and calling for urgent action to address rising child poverty and food insecurity. The joint submission draws on extensive research with women across Northern Ireland, revealing […]
Campaigns: Guarantee our Essentials Siobhán is part of a campaign from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation and the Trussell Trust calling for an Essentials Guarantee within Universal Credit. The Essentials Guarantee would embed in the social security system a principle that at a minimum Universal Credit should protect people from going without essentials. You can read […]
The Education Committee is welcoming views on the contents of The Education (Holiday Meal Payments) Bill. This is a Private Members Bill from Danny Baker of Sinn Fein. It seeks to restore the ‘Holiday Hunger’ payments which were made to those entitled to Free School Meals during holiday periods. These payments were stopped in 2023. […]
The latest Consortium research paper ‘Mental Health Matters for Women’ has now been published and is available on the Consortium’s website. The full report contains a wealth of evidence from women on the contributory factors to their poor mental health, the impact of poor mental health on their lives and the supports they need and […]
03 June 2026 – The Women’s Regional Consortium (WRC) has submitted our response to the Department of Health’s Draft Budget Consultation, raising serious concerns about the potential impact of proposed allocations on women and families across Northern Ireland. In our response, WRC highlights that ongoing financial pressures and constrained investment in health and social care […]
