Public Service Innovation Fund 2024

The Public Service Innovation Fund 2024 received 55 applications from public service bodies throughout Ireland which align to the core themes of Government’s Better Public Services Transformation Strategy – Digital and Innovation at scale; Workforce and Organisation of the Future; and Evidence Informed Policy and Service.

We are delighted and honoured to be one of the awardees of the Public Service Innovation Fund which signifies an important milestone for youth volunteerism. The fund will allow us to further develop The National Youth Volunteer Portfolio (MyVP) as a digital wallet that provides young people with a space and a place to record their volunteering achievements, have their skills and attributes endorsed, outline their key learnings, reflect on their experiences, and outline a vision for their future. The wallet will provide for Improved overall equity of educational outcomes by creating a pathway to education for young people who are disadvantaged by the ‘points race’.

Other awardees include:

• A user-centred, digital-supported project from Dublin City Council (in collaboration with NCAD and the HSE) to transform their Social Housing Maintenance Service;

• The development of a wearable device by Tallaght University Hospital (in collaboration with St. James Hospital) which will be used in the treatment of patients with asthma;

• A digital reporting portal for lifeguards, to be developed by Clare County Council;

• A study by St. Vincent’s Hospital (in collaboration with the HSE and UCD) to examine the feasibility of using an AI-based system to triage and evaluate for heart disease in a community setting;

• An app to be developed by Dublin City University and the Localise Youth Volunteering programme that will provide young people with a place to record volunteering achievements;

• A project to revolutionise maternity care by integrating an innovative risk assessment tool with the National Maternal and Neonatal Clinical Management System.

Since 2019, the Public Service Innovation Fund has provided around €3.5 million in funding support to over 105 projects across Ireland. The Public Service Innovation Fund 2024 is the sixth iteration of the fund and this year’s competition placed a strong focus on cross-organisational digital transformation to advance the vision for a digital Public Service as set out in the Better Public Services transformation strategy.

Announcing the recipients of this year’s fund, Minister Donohoe said:

“The Public Service Innovation Fund provides an important opportunity for innovators in our Public Service to explore new solutions for improved services, more seamless and inclusive digital delivery and the development of scalable innovations and enhanced collaboration between Public Service organisations.

“This year’s competition encouraged an emphasis on scalability, transferability and learning. I am very happy to announce the successful projects that my Department will support this year and which highlight the commitment to transformation within the Public Service, the potential for cross-sectoral collaboration and the ambition to deliver more for our people. I am looking forward to seeing these initiatives make a real difference in people’s lives and support our shared vision of better public services for all.”

You can find out more about the fund and this year’s successful projects at gov.ie/transformation .