Irish Community Services

What Irish Community Services does

Irish Community Services is a UK-registered charity (Charity Number 1085033; Company Registration 03890639) founded in 1984 and headquartered at The Irish Centre, 2B Devonshire Road, Bexleyheath, serving the Irish community and wider local population across the South East London boroughs of Greenwich, Bexley, and Lewisham. Its mission is to promote Irish culture and support people struggling with age, infirmity, financial difficulties, or social isolation. The organization delivers a portfolio of free, human-delivered services — Social Activities (Lunch Club, Pop In Parlour, Fish & Chip Friday), Advice & Outreach Support (benefits, housing, debt), Carers Support, Elders Outreach, Legal Advice, Cancer Self Help, a Community Online / IT Hub addressing digital poverty, and Telephone Befriending — operating from the Bexleyheath centre plus weekly outreach hubs across the three boroughs, supported by a structured volunteer program with named roles including drivers, walkers, knitters, and office administrators.

There is no proprietary technology platform underpinning the offering; the technology posture is explicitly non-technological, with services coordinated through community spaces, in-person delivery, and basic website and social media communications (Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram). The business model is a non-profit funding mix: membership fees from individuals and groups at £10–£25 per year (a participation and engagement mechanism rather than a material revenue stream), individual and corporate donations including gifts in kind (legal, IT, building services), community fundraising, and grant funding from Community Fund NL (major), IAU-ESP and East Wickham Trust (supporting), alongside a strategic partnership with Dementia Inclusive Bexley. Go-to-market is community-led: word-of-mouth through existing members and volunteers, outreach hubs, events (e.g., St Patrick's Day), and email/newsletter communications to members and supporters.

The organization is governed by a Board of Trustees with an Executive Director and a small staff of 1–10 employees plus an extensive volunteer base, and serves over 1,600 members and service users. It is privately held as a charity with no parent company, no venture or private equity ownership, and no disclosed revenue figure.

Name

Irish Community Services

Legal name

Irish Community Services

Website

https://irishcommunityservices.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Irish Community Services is a UK charity founded in 1984 that delivers free social, welfare-advice, carers, elders, legal, cancer-support, digital-inclusion, and befriending services to the Irish community across Greenwich, Bexley, and Lewisham in South East London.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Social Services

NAICS

Other Individual and Family Services (624190), Services for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities (62412)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Centers & Neighborhood Support Services (BPAGAEAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Public Health & Health Equity Organizations (BPAGACAL)

Keywords

• Community support services
• Charitable outreach
• Cultural community programs
• Social welfare advice
• Digital inclusion services

Headquarters

HQ city

Bexleyheath

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: Annual membership fees from individuals and groups providing a recurring revenue stream and community engagement mechanism. Membership rates: Retired £10, Waged £15, Family £20, Unfunded Groups £15, Funded Groups £25.
2. Donations and Fundraising: Individual donations, corporate donations, and community fundraising events support operational costs. The organization accepts gifts in kind such as legal, IT, and building services.
3. Grant Funding: Funding applications from grants and trusts to support growth and expansion of services to reach more community members.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Irish Community Services is a charity that delivers free, culturally sensitive community support services to the Irish community and wider local community in South East London. Its core offerings include social activities (Lunch Club, Pop In Parlour, cultural events), advice and outreach support (benefits, housing, debt, welfare), carers support, elders outreach, legal advice, cancer self-help, a digital inclusion IT hub, and telephone befriending. Services are delivered from The Irish Centre in Bexleyheath and through weekly outreach hubs across Greenwich, Bexley, and Lewisham.

Product overview

Irish Community Services is a charity founded in 1984 that provides a portfolio of community support services to the Irish community in South East London. The organization operates as a unified set of interconnected services rather than a technology product platform. Core services include Social Activities (Lunch Club, Pop In Parlour, Fish & Chip Friday), Advice & Outreach Support (benefits, housing, debt advice), Carers Support, Elders Outreach, Legal Advice Service, Cancer Self Help, Community Online/IT Hub (digital inclusion), and Telephone Befriending. The organization also runs an extensive volunteer program with diverse roles. Services are delivered from The Irish Centre in Bexleyheath with outreach across Greenwich, Bexley, and Lewisham.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Social Activities Social activities and gatherings including Lunch Club, Pop In Parlour, Fish & Chip Friday, and cultural events designed to reduce isolation and build community connections among Irish community members in South East London.
• Advice & Outreach Support Specialist advice, information and practical help with benefits, entitlements, welfare, disability, unemployment benefits, housing, homelessness, and debt for people under 55 in the Irish community.
• Carers Support Support services designed to make carers' lives easier, helping them deliver better care while also taking care of themselves, including respite, information, and emotional support.
• Elders Outreach Culturally sensitive outreach and support service to older Irish people in the South East London community, addressing isolation and age-related challenges.
• Legal Advice Service Free legal advice services provided to the Irish community in South East London.
• Cancer Self Help Self-help group and support service for people affected by cancer within the Irish community in South East London.
• Community Online / IT Hub Digital inclusion initiative providing access to computers, tablets, and technology to help community members overcome digital poverty and learn digital skills.
• Telephone Befriending Regular phone contact with Irish community members to reduce isolation and provide friendly check-in calls.

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• The Irish CentrecoreOthersThe Irish Centre is the physical location housing Irish Community Services, providing the main community hub for activities and services.
• Dementia Inclusive BexleysupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to ensure services are dementia-inclusive and appropriately support those with dementia.
• Local Businesses and OrganizationssupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerBusiness supporters providing financial donations, gifts in kind such as legal, IT and building services, and volunteer time.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Age UK: The national charity for older people providing advice, social activities, and campaigning. Comparable because it delivers the same categories of support (advice, social connection, wellbeing) that form Irish Community Services' Elders Outreach offering, though at national scale and not diaspora-specific.
• Carers Trust: A national charity supporting unpaid carers through local Network Partners. Comparable because the Irish Community Services' Carers Support programme addresses the same caregiver-burden and respite needs that Carers Trust's network exists to serve.
• British Red Cross: A national humanitarian organization providing community support services including independent living support and refugee/diaspora assistance. Comparable as it delivers community-level social support, advice, and outreach services across the UK with similar operating methods.
• Mind: A leading UK mental health charity providing advice, support, and local services. Comparable because mental health and wellbeing improvement is one of Irish Community Services' stated outcomes, overlapping with Mind's core mission, though Mind operates at significantly greater scale.

Direct peers

• London Irish Centre: A Camden-based charity providing cultural, social, and welfare services to the Irish community in London. Directly comparable as a diaspora-focused Irish community services organization delivering advice, social activities, and outreach to a similar beneficiary profile, albeit at a larger scale.
• Irish in Britain: A national representative body for the Irish diaspora in Britain, advocating for community needs and supporting local Irish organizations. Comparable as it operates in the same Irish-diaspora social services space and interfaces with the same cultural and welfare agenda.
• Age UK Bexley: A local Age UK branch providing services and support for older people in Bexley, including advice, social activities, and information. Comparable because it serves an overlapping elderly population in the same geography with similar service categories (advice, social connection, wellbeing).

Regional players

• Greenwich Council for Voluntary Service: A borough-level infrastructure body supporting voluntary and community organizations in Greenwich. Comparable as it operates within one of the same boroughs (Greenwich) and supports the broader community-services ecosystem in which Irish Community Services operates.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/irishcommserv
• Facebookfacebook.com/IrishCommServ
• Instagraminstagram.com/irishcommunityserv

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Irish Community Services