3rd Floor Ulysses House, Foley Street, Dublin 1
+353 1 437 0323
info@varietyireland.org

Our Heart May Be Red,
But Our Ambition Is To Be Green!

We at Variety Ireland have adopted a progressive “Sustainability Programme” in our efforts to better service the needs of children with disabilities and educational needs in Ireland.

As a “charity with a conscience”, we recognise the importance of taking care of the wonderful children of Ireland with disabilities while at the same time, looking after the environment where they live.

Our two new sustainable programmes will supply new or pre-loved mobility and educational equipment to children with disabilities and learning needs living in Ireland.

From the 1st September 2020, families with children who have disabilities will be able to apply to Variety Ireland for both mobility and electronic educational devices as part of this sustainable initiative.

Sustainable Mobility Programme
Recycle Mobility

At Variety Ireland our aim as a children’s charity is to help keep children with disabilities on the move while realising their mobility potential. At the same time, we aim to be a responsible charity who are working towards becoming more environment friendly.
Families/guardians of children up to the age of 18 with disabilities can apply to us here at Variety Ireland online at our website for a mobility grant for items like Trikes and Scooters which we hope will allow children with disabilities in Ireland to get mobile.

Governance is of critical importance to Variety and all applications will be reviewed by our board. 

As part of our sustainability programme, after any child has outgrown an item supplied by Variety Ireland, we encourage families to return their preloved item to us. After a few important maintenance and makeover checks, we will then ensure that this is passed onto another child with disabilities for further enjoyment.

This practice not only ensures that another child gets to experience the real enjoyment of movement using their specially adapted mobility item, but also ensures it can be sustainably reused by children with similar disabilities in the future.

The Benefits

Variety Ireland will make a contribution to the cost of a Trike or Scooter for a child with disabilities which is not available through any HSE funding.
Each child is provided with the freedom to be able to move around in comfort and safety on a special mobility item that is adapted to their own specific needs.
Children and their families will benefit from being able to do lots more outdoor activities together. This includes simple things like trips to the park or shops, to holidaying where the child is able to move about in comfort.
Any mobility item that is returned to Variety Ireland after a child has outgrown it will be passed onto another child who can experience the same enjoyment.
Our environmentally friendly programme is good for the environment as it helps to prevent old mobility items going to landfill or being held in storage, never to be used or enjoyed by another child.

Our charity and partners can help more children!

With the money Variety Ireland saves in having to continually purchase new mobility items, means we have more funds to keep our children with disabilities in Ireland “on the move” for years to come!

Sustainable Educational Programme
Heart of Learning

Like our “Recycle Mobility” programme, it is our intention here at Variety Ireland to become more environmentally friendly and responsible when supplying children with disabilities, special needs, or leaning difficulties in Ireland with digital educational equipment.

Variety Ireland is passionate about helping children who require additional supports with learning. We recognise the essential duties that every Special Needs Assistant carries out on a daily basis, in helping children with learning difficulties.
By providing an iPad to every National School, we hope that we can help in some small way to make learning more accessible to some.

As a society, we need to protect and help our most vulnerable and in doing so we also need to protect the environment. Variety Ireland recognise the need to try and do whatever we can to be more sustainable and by supplying upcycled iPads to schools, we can do just that.
By using these upcycled iPads instead of brand new ones, we can limit the amount of carbon produced through manufacturing and international shipping.
Read More!

Counties

Number of Irish Counties who have received iPads to all their National Schools

Schools

Number of SNAs in National Schools who have received iPads through our campaign

Carbon

Amount of Carbon saved by using upcycled iPads instead of brand new iPads*

*We continue to make progress by improving Variety Ireland’s contribution to climate change. Every iPad we supply has been upcycled, saving 69kg of carbon per unit supplied.
(Figures taken from Apple Product Environmental Report iPad September 10, 2019.
So far this campaign has saved over 34 tons of carbon – the equivalent weight of nearly 1000 eleven year olds!!)

Frequently Asked Questions

If my appeal for a mobility item for my child is successful, how much will Variety Ireland contribute to the cost of the item?
We at Variety Ireland endeavour to help as many families with children with disabilities in Ireland as we can. As an organisation that does not receive regular funding from the government, it is important that appropriate any funding in a balanced way which allows us to help as many families as possible. We base each appeal on its own merit. The amount of funding approved by our Appeals Committee is paid directly to the supplier directly by Variety Ireland.

Will I have to pay for my old item to be returned to Variety Ireland?
Absolutely not. If a family is willing to return a Trike or Scooter that their child has outgrown that can be used by another child, we will collect this from you free of charge. You can contact our team who will make all the necessary arrangements to have your item collected.

Do I have to use your chosen approved supplier?
Not necessarily. However, all companies must be a bonified supplier of children’s mobility items. The supplier must also be prepared to work with Variety Ireland as part of our sustainable programme and have systems in place to collect and refurbish items if returned by families after use.

Why can’t my child have a brand-new item?
We at Variety Ireland endeavour to help as many families with children with disabilities in Ireland as we can. As an organisation that does not receive regular funding from the government, it is important that we distribute all funding in a balanced way which allows us to help as many families as possible.
As part of our sustainability programme, we have chosen to supply refurbished electronic like smart phones or tablets to children with disabilities. All items also come with a guarantee.
Because each item is refurbished means we are upcycling items which is good for the environment. We base each appeal on its own merit. The amount of funding approved by our Appeals Committee is paid directly to our supplier by Variety Ireland.