Investing in Hope: Bolster Community's Transformative Impact, Partnering for a Brighter Northern Ireland
The strength of any community lies in its ability to uplift and empower those facing the greatest challenges. For the past two decades, Bolster Community has been doing just that—acting as a beacon of hope, connection, and resilience across Northern Ireland.
What started as a lightbulb idea to spark grassroots connection has grown into a strategic, values-led organisation, improving lives across generations. As founder and CEO, I am deeply proud of the impact we’ve achieved—but none of it would have been possible without the enduring support of The National Lottery Community Fund.
Their investment has gone far beyond funding—it has helped build trust, stability, and strength. It’s laid the foundation for truly transformative work. Alongside a wider network of champions, partners and funders, we've stayed true to one aim: being there for people when they need us most.
What Works: Community-Led, Strengths-Based Support
Over 20 years, Bolster Community has shown that early intervention, relational practice, and strengths-based support improve outcomes, build resilience, and ease pressure on overstretched statutory services.
We’re guided by Professor Pat Dolan’s Four Ps framework—Policy, Practice, Provision, Participation—and committed to a whole-family, whole-community approach. We meet people where they are, with compassion, evidence-based tools, and a belief in their potential.
Powered by Partnership: The Role of National Lottery and Dormant Assets NI Funding
Our journey with National Lottery Funding began in 2009. Since then we have gone from strength to strength, working alongside individuals, families and the community, to support improved opportunity, and health and wellbeing. The National Lottery Community Fund has been an essential partner in our growth.
Dormant Assets NI has been instrumental in our long-term sustainability. This support allowed us to access £100,000 in strategic funding, helping us rethink our income strategy, strengthen our internal capacity, and reduce reliance on short-term grants. This is partnership done right—forward-thinking, long-term, and grounded in trust.
Why FRIENDS Resilience Matters
We’re proud to deliver FRIENDS Resilience as Northern Ireland’s only licensed provider. This WHO-endorsed programme equips children to:
- Identify and regulate emotions
- Replace anxious thoughts with constructive ones
- Build confidence, focus, and self-belief
This is a proven intervention, delivered to over 1,300 children in a single year. With NI reporting some of the worst youth mental health statistics in the UK, FRIENDS Resilience is not just valuable—it is essential.
Real People, Real Impact
Behind every statistic is a real person. A mum learning to trust again. A child managing anxiety. A carer receiving respite. Our annual impact report captures the numbers, but what matters most is the human transformation we see every day.
Extending Inclusion: Autism Connect and Disability Support
Another vital strand of Bolster's work is supporting individuals with disabilities. Our inclusive approach spans services like Bolster Buddies, Acorn social enterprise, and, most recently, National Lottery supported, Autism Connect — a ground-breaking initiative supporting adults with an autism-only diagnosis who fall outside of statutory mental health or learning disability services.
The Autism Connect programme has already changed lives. Participants have reported reduced isolation and anxiety, friendships have formed and flourished and families expressed relief and gratitude for this safe, accepting space.
The need for this service is great and growing. Thanks to multi-year funding exceeding £600,000, we are now scaling this model to reach more communities.
Connection at Every Age: Supporting Seniors
Inclusion doesn’t stop with children or families—it must reach every generation. That’s why Bolster Community is committed to supporting older adults, especially those who are isolated or living in rural communities.
Our Home to Hospital service provides vital transport to healthcare appointments, helping older people stay connected to essential care with dignity and ease. We also offer wellbeing programmes, social connection activities, financial guidance, and signposting support—tackling loneliness and hardship head-on.
As Northern Ireland’s older population continues to grow, these services are more important than ever. They don’t just offer comfort—they represent smart, preventative care that relieves pressure on the wider health system and improves quality of life.
Once again, the community and voluntary sector is leading the way—not just reacting to crisis, but proactively building solutions for the future.
Strategic Influence: Embedding What Works
At Bolster, we believe real change starts on the ground—and we’ve used our experience to shape better systems. From our role in the Children’s Social Care Review to our input on the upcoming Family and Parenting Support Strategy and ongoing advocacy for the Children’s Services Co-operation Act (NI) 2015), we’ve championed the idea that lived experience should guide lasting policy.
But policy change alone isn’t enough. Breaking the cycles of poverty and trauma requires bold, sustained investment in children and communities—not just short-term projects or piecemeal grants.
The Road Ahead
As we mark 20 years, our mission has never felt more urgent. With 115,000 children in poverty, over 4,000 in care, rising loneliness among older people, and thousands of neurodivergent adults without adequate support, the cost of inaction is far too high.
We need sustainable funding, embedded relational practice, and partnerships rooted in trust. Thanks to The National Lottery Community Fund and others, Bolster is ready to lead the next 20 years of compassionate, measurable change.
Let’s choose prevention over reaction, community over crisis, and hope over despair.
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