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The controversial transgender organisation TENI has been granted an additional almost €100,000 in funding as part of €1.8 million announced in backing for 52 projects under the 2026 LGBTIQ+ Community Services Fund.
Last year, the Charities Regulator wrote to TENI warning that its advice to children on puberty blockers as posted on its website had the potential to cause harm.
Minister for Children, Disability and Equality, Norma Foley, today announced the funding while reporting on the National Inclusion Strategy – saying the financial backing will support a wide range of organisations nationwide to enhance services, strengthen community infrastructure, and promote inclusion for LGBTIQ+ people.
She said the first Annual Report on the National LGBTIQ+ Inclusion Strategy II (2024–2028) shows expanded mental health and sexual health supports, and increased visibility of LGBTIQ+ people in national data, in addition to strengthened protections against harmful content.
TENI – the Transgender Equality Network of Ireland – has found itself in hot water previously regarding funding. In 2022, the HSE suspended funding to the organisation because it had missed the deadline for filing its annual accounts for the fourth year in a row, despite receiving more than €1.3m from the HSE since 2017.
However, within weeks, the Department of Children and Equality had awarded TENI €93,000 to fund the creation of a “Trans Awareness Hub”.
TENI’s 2023 Financial Statements show that while HSE funding declined that year from €127, 667 in 2022 to €80,115, the organisation received €89,636 from the Department of Children and Equality, up from €3,979 in 2022.
In 2023, TENI also received €81,765 from the Office of Suicide Prevention and substantial support from both the Rowan Trust (€130,000) and the Sigrid Rausing Trust (€86, 102) for a total income in excess of half a million euro for that year.
TENI’s 2024 financial statements note that its income had declined to €476,313 from €540,955 in 2023, but also stated that Income for 2025 would include €201,649 from HSE and the Department of Children and Equality, with another €150,000 expected from public funding including the afore-mentioned sources.
The approach of the publicly-funded organisation has been criticised by leading medical experts. In 2023, Prof Dónal O’Shea said that groups like TENI were “shaping, if not brainwashing political thinking in Ireland” in relation t0 the provision of care, and that the thinking of senior management in the HSE was always to “say activist view is correct when it’s not correct”.
TENI continues to insist that “gender-affirming care” – which rejects that psychiatric screening or diagnosis is required for individuals seeking care for gender dysphoria – should be provided. It also sought “the development of high-quality youth services” including access to puberty blockers on the basis [of] parental consent”.
However, the organisation removed advice to children on its website which stated that the use of puberty blockers was reversible after being contacted by the Charities Regulator warning of potential for harm.
The section said: “If someone changes their mind about taking hormone blockers and stops taking them, puberty will continue from where it was stopped. You may go through puberty at a quicker rate than you would have.
”The regulator’s letter complained that this was “an unequivocal statement” – adding “In the absence of medical consensus on the use of certain hormone blockers, and given the young age of people who may be considering taking such medical interventions, there is a potential for this statement to cause harm, however unintended that may be.”
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Name of Organisation
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Project Name
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Grant Awarded
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County
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Belong To Youth Services
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LGBTQ+ Quality Mark for Post-Primary Schools and Alternative Education Centres
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€100,000.00
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Nationwide
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Common Knowledge Centre for Sustainable Living CLG
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Queer Sheds Network: Development and Coordination 2026/27
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€75,000.00
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Nationwide
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Dublin Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgendered Queer Pride CLG
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Pride at Work Ireland
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€95,045.00
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Nationwide
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LGBT Support and Advocacy Network Ireland CLG
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Sustaining, Enhancing and Innovating LGBT Ireland’s Frontline Support Services
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€99,999.00
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Nationwide
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LINQ Ireland (Advocating for Lesbian, Bisexual, and Queer Women, Trans and Non-binary Inclusive) CLG
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LINQ Ireland Employment and Education Support and Outreach Project
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€98,502.00
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Nationwide
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National Youth Federation
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Proud Spaces: Inclusive Youth Work for Marginalised Young LGBTQI+ People
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€88,016.00
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Nationwide
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ShoutOut
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LGBTIQ+ Inclusion Through Education
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€98,885.00
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Nationwide
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Transgender Equality Network Ireland Company Limited by Guarantee
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TENI Family Support Services – supporting trans young people and their families
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€99,999.00
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Nationwide
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The Outing Festival CLG
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The Outing Queer Arts & Community Programme
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€75,000.00
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Clare
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Gay Project CLG
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Continued: Strengthening The Rainbow: Gay Project Service Enhancement Project 26/27
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€100,000.00
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Cork
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The Sexual Health Centre CLG
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Peer Transgender Community Support and Counselling – A Community Response
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€46,132.00
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Cork
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Outhouse Limited
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LGBTQ+ Community Connection & Participation Programme
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€99,167.00
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Dublin
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AMACH! LGBT Galway
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COMHIONANNAS: The Galway LGBTI+ Community Achieving Equality
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€100,000.00
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Galway
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Listowel Family Resource Centre
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LGBT+ Community Support Worker
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€79,202.00
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Kerry
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Laois Youth Services CLG
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Midlands LGBT+ Project
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€100,000.00
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Laois, Offaly, Westmeath, Kildare
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GOSHH Ireland GLC
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Bridging Communities: Support and Outreach for LGBTQI+ Inclusion
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€100,000.00
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Limerick & Midwest
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Outcomers
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Operation Rainbow
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€100,000.00
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Louth, Meath, Cavan, Monaghan
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