Huge number of Mayo youths receive President's Award

567 young people in Mayo have received a Gaisce Award over the last year. This year, the President’s Award is celebrating 40 years of recognising young people’s achievements and voluntary contributions all across Ireland.

Since its establishment in 1985, more than 480,000 young people have registered for Gaisce, and over 250,000 young people have achieved a Gaisce Award.

A core emphasis of the Award programme is ensuring that all young people, regardless of background, have equal access to personal development opportunities. New research by Maynooth University has further reinforced the value of the Award, highlighting its significant role in enhancing young people's employability and helping to level the playing field for their future success.

Speaking on Lá Gaisce, Avril Ryan, CEO of Gaisce, said: “Lá Gaisce is a celebration of the achievements, perseverance, and resilience of thousands of young people across Ireland, including an impressive 567 who achieved their Gaisce Award in Mayo over the past 12 months, each demonstrating incredible commitment, creativity, and community spirit. Lá Gaisce is an opportunity to recognise the Award programme’s lasting impact in equipping young people with the tools and self-belief that help them succeed in life and in work.”

“The new research reinforces Gaisce’s value for Awardees, showing its vital role in cultivating the skills, experiences, and qualities that enhance employability. For those on a journey of renewal in particular, Gaisce offers a powerful narrative of growth, resilience, and rehabilitation — attributes employers increasingly recognise and value as indicators of determination, adaptability, and potential for strong workplace performance.”

Lead researcher, Dr Amy Fahy, Assistant Professor of Business and Management at Maynooth University, said: “This study indicates that Gaisce has the potential to build confidence, resilience, and employability skills valued by employers. However, it also highlights the need to raise employer awareness and provide training to support participants in effectively communicating their Gaisce experience. Based on these initial findings, future research should explore how these skills can be better recognised within recruitment systems and integrated into policy and professional development frameworks.”

Last year saw record levels of participation in the National Youth Award, with the highest number of registrations (26,737) and Award completions (15,621), through a record 792 delivery partners. Of last year’s Awardees, 2,015 availed of the Gaisce SUAS Bursary Fund, which enables access for young people facing barriers to participation, including those from disability services, special schools, DEIS schools, youth diversion and youth probation, detention and other hard-to-reach youth settings.

Reflecting on the Award milestone, Avril said: “The Gaisce framework has remained largely unchanged in the past forty years since its founding, yet it feels more relevant than ever. Gaisce’s emphasis on building potential, encouraging self-discovery and goal setting instils a sense of purpose, fostering confidence, belonging and a can-do attitude among young people across the island of Ireland. Recognising young people’s achievements through an inclusive Award that celebrates individual strengths, qualities, learning experiences, and contributions to society is as essential today as it was 40 years ago.

"Today is the final Lá Gaisce with President Michael D Higgins as our Patron, a fitting moment to honour his enduring legacy as a champion of the Gaisce Awards and of greater access and inclusion, which have flourished throughout his tenure.”