Finances & accountability
ActionAid Ireland is governed by a Board of Directors whose principal responsibilities are the setting and monitoring of the strategic direction of the organisation, monitoring compliance, ensuring the efficient and effective use of resources and the establishment of policy.
Board of directors
- Renée Dempsey Clifford (Director and Chair since July 2024)
- Moira Leydon (Director since February 2021)
- Ben Burton (Director since February 2021)
- Sadhbh O’Neill (Director since March 2023)
- Bríd O’Flaherty (Director since October 2023)
- Gillian Barret (Director and Treasurer since May 2025)
- Zemdena Abebe Areru (Director since October 2025)
No remuneration is paid to Directors for their services on the Board. Directly incurred expenses are reimbursed if claimed. ActionAid Ireland’s Directors are required to declare any conflicts of interest at the start of every Board meeting.
Annual reports
Annual Report and Accounts 2024
Annual Report and
Accounts 2023
Annual Report and Accounts 2022
Annual Report and Accounts 2021
Annual Report and Accounts 2020
Annual Report and Accounts 2019
Annual Report and Accounts 2018
Annual Report and Accounts 2017
Annual Report and Accounts 2016
Staff and fundraising costs
As disclosed in ActionAid Ireland’s Audited Accounts for 2024, total expenditure in 2024 was €3,105,697. Of that, 73% was spent on charitable activities: overseas development work, emergency response activities, overseas support costs, local campaigning and communications, and governance. The remaining 27% was spent on raising funds.
As of June 2025, ActionAid Ireland has 14 full-time paid staff members and 3 part-time paid staff members.
As at June 2025 ActionAid Ireland’s CEO’s gross salary is €89,460. The company operates a defined contribution pension scheme which is available to all employees, to which both ActionAid and the employees contribute. The salary is decided by the Board of ActionAid Ireland based on the skills and responsibility required for the role.
Our accountability
to supporters
- Information concerning the projects which ActionAid Ireland supports.
- Confidentiality and a choice as to whether you wish to receive further information from ActionAid Ireland in the future
You can be assured that as a charity supported by voluntary public donations ActionAid Ireland will always:
- Prepare fully audited accounts which are available to you for inspection, in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice for Charities.
- Adhere to the Charities Governance Code, as set by the Charities Regulator
- Keep administrative and fundraising costs to a minimum
- Adhere to the Dochas Code of Conduct on Images and Messages. If you would like to provide any feedback on our implementation of the code, please contact Jo-Ann.Ward at ActionAid.org
Our commitment to transparency and accountability
Triple Locked
We take our obligations around transparency and good governance seriously. ActionAid Ireland has achieved the “triple-lock” of good governance and reporting standards:
- Each year we publish our annual audited accounts on our website in compliance with the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) under FRS102
- Adhere to the Charities Governance Code, as set by the Charities Regulator
- Adopted the Guidelines for Charitable Organisations on Fundraising from the Public and Charities Institute Ireland’s Fundraising Codes of Good Practice and use the Street & Door Diary managed by Charities Institute Ireland.
This has been recognised by Charities Institute Ireland, of which we are a member.
Integrity at Work
ActionAid Ireland is a member of the Integrity at Work programme, a Transparency International Ireland initiative that supports employers to foster an environment where staff feel safe to share concerns of wrongdoing. As part of our commitment to protecting workers who raise concerns, and addressing proactively wrongdoings, ActionAid Ireland has signed the Integrity at Work Pledge to ensure that workers reporting wrongdoing will not face penalisation and that timely appropriate action will be taken in response to the concerns raised.
Reserves statement
Reserves help to maintain financial stability and allow a charity to meet its commitments, continue to undertake work, and deliver services, even when unexpected events or costs arise.
Why we hold reserves:
- to meet our commitments when expenditure overruns or unplanned events occur;
- to fund shortfalls in income, for example when income is delayed or does not reach expected levels;
- to fund unexpected events calling on our services.
- to fund future commitments or projects;
- to respond to unexpected difficulties or crisis.
By holding appropriate reserves, we are acting to protect the charity from future challenges and uncertainties and changes in economic circumstances.
ActionAid Ireland considers it appropriate to hold four months of ‘core’ unrestricted expenditure as minimum reserve levels. As of December 2024, we are holding reserves of c4.8 months’ ‘core’ unrestricted expenditure (€621,079). The Board expects to reach minimum reserves levels during the next year in line with our approved strategy to invest excess reserves above minimum levels into fundraising in order to secure the medium-term financial sustainability of the organisation. The Board monitors the reserves position closely.
Charities governance code
The Charities Governance Code sets out the minimum standards that charity trustees should meets in order to effectively manage and control their organisation.
The Charities Governance Code consists of six principles of governance. These are:
- Advancing charitable purpose
- Behaving with integrity
- Leading people
- Exercising control
- Working effectively
- Being accountable and transparent
The six principles are linked to the legal duties of charity trustees. The Code specifically aims to help charity trustees to put good governance systems and processes in place which will assist them in meeting their legal duties under charity law.
Good governance minimises the risk of fraud and other damaging practices – ensuring a charity is managed in a professional, transparent, and accountable way. This also serves to give confidence to funders and donors. The ActionAid Ireland Board approves its compliance with the Charities Governance Code on an annual basis.