What YoungBallymun does

Youngballymun is a non-profit charitable organization, structured as a Company Limited by Guarantee and headquartered at the Axis Centre, Main Street, Ballymun, Dublin 9, Ireland. Founded in 2007 and operating as part of the national Area Based Childhood (ABC) Programme, it delivers prevention and early intervention services to children, young people, and families in the Ballymun area. Services are organised across four practice strands: Infant and Early Years Mental Health (including Newborn Behaviour Observation, Baby Massage, Circle of Security Parenting, Talk and Play Every Day, and IMH Therapeutic Support through fortnightly home visits), Family and Community Language and Literacy (Story Sacks, Breakfast Buddies©, Hug Your Book©), Social and Emotional Wellbeing (Incredible Years Parent Programmes, parenting workshops, Stress Control Online, and the Slaintecare suite), and Prevention and Early Intervention Policy and Partnership.

The organisation runs a small staff team of approximately 10 (Manager, Coordinators, Practitioners, Administrators) and delivers programmes directly across all 11 primary schools in Ballymun in partnership with Home School Community Liaison Teachers, as well as through community settings, family resource centres, and home visits. It does not operate a proprietary technology platform — services are supported by a standard web presence (youngballymun.org) plus social media channels. Youngballymun also operates a practitioner-facing capacity-building layer including an Oral Language Forum, a Balanced Literacy Framework, an Infant Mental Health Learning Network, an Infant Mental Health Master Class, reflective supervision, and ACEs training.

All programmes are provided free of charge to families and practitioners. Core funding flows from the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (formerly DCYA) through Tusla, The Child & Family Agency, supplemented by additional grants for specific strands. The organisation is governed by a Board chaired by Colm O'Shaughnessy and is part of a national ABC network of 14 areas coordinated via the Centre for Effective Services, with academic ties to Trinity College Dublin and Dublin City University.

Name

YoungBallymun

Legal name

Youngballymun Company Limited By Guarantee

Website

https://youngballymun.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Youngballymun is an Irish non-profit, founded in 2007 and part of the national ABC Programme, delivering free prevention and early intervention services in infant mental health, family literacy, and social-emotional wellbeing to families and practitioners across Ballymun's 11 primary schools, funded by the Department of Children and Tusla.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Family and Early Childhood Intervention Services

NAICS

Child and Youth Services (62411), Individual and Family Services (6241)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Family Coaching, Parent-Mediated & Home Visiting EI Services (EDACAFAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Mental Health & Infant/Early Childhood Consultation (0–5) (EDACAFAO), Family Resource Centers & Wraparound Support Services (EDACALAH)

Keywords

• Family literacy programmes
• Infant mental health
• Parenting support services
• Early intervention programmes
• Social-emotional wellbeing

Headquarters

HQ city

Ballymun

HQ country

Ireland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Government and Public Funding: Youngballymun is part of the Area Based Childhood (ABC) Programme, funded by the Department of Children and Youth Affairs (DCYA) through Tusla, The Child & Family Agency. Additional grants are received from various sources to support specific programme strands.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

YoungBallymun operates a multi-strand prevention and early intervention programme for children (0–12 years) and families in Ballymun, Dublin, delivered across four practice strands: Infant and Early Years Mental Health, Family and Community Language and Literacy, Social and Emotional Wellbeing, and Prevention and Early Intervention Policy and Partnership. Core services include parent programmes (Story Sacks, Breakfast Buddies, Hug Your Book, Circle of Security Parenting, Incredible Years, Baby Massage, Infant Mental Health Therapeutic Support) and practitioner capacity-building resources (Master Classes, Reflective Supervision, Infant Mental Health Learning Network). All services are provided free of charge, funded primarily through the national Area Based Childhood Programme.

Product overview

YoungBallymun is a community organization offering a multi-strand prevention and early intervention programme for children, young people, and families in Ballymun, Dublin. The organisation operates through four interconnected practice strands: Infant and Early Years Mental Health (supporting parent-child relationships from pregnancy to age three), Family and Community Language and Literacy (programmes including Story Sacks, Breakfast Buddies©, and Hug Your Book©), Social and Emotional Wellbeing (Incredible Years programmes, parenting workshops, and Slaintecare programmes), and Prevention and Early Intervention Policy and Partnership. Services are delivered through parent programmes (directly to families) and practitioner resources (capacity building for professionals), all grounded in evidence-based approaches and delivered in partnership with schools, health services, and community organisations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Story Sacks An 8-week language and literacy programme delivered in partnership with local primary schools, supporting parents to develop skills to help children enjoy books and reading through creating a story sack. Provided free of charge to parents in Ballymun.
• Breakfast Buddies Bi-monthly 90-minute interactive workshop for parents and children held at the Axis Centre, supporting parents to enjoy learning together through hugging books and fun activities to develop reading, writing, and talking skills. Provided free of charge.
• Hug Your Book Programme A 4-week book club programme where parents learn to bring books to life for their children and instil a love of reading, writing, and talking from birth through to primary school. Provided free of charge in Ballymun.
• New Born Behaviour Observation (NBO) Single session for newborns up to 3 months and their families, offering a space to observe the baby's communication style, preferences, and sleep patterns to better understand their needs. Provided free of charge.
• Baby Massage A 5-week course teaching parents massage techniques and how to read baby's non-verbal communication, helping deepen understanding of baby's behaviour and strengthen parent-child bond. Provided free of charge.
• Circle of Security Parenting An 8-10 week attachment-based course for parents and caregivers of children from 6 months, supporting them to understand their child's emotional world and needs. Provided free of charge.
• Talk and Play Every Day Weekly playtime group for parents and babies/toddlers aged 9–24 months, supporting healthy parent-child interactions and tips for language, social, and emotional development. Provided free of charge.
• Infant Mental Health Therapeutic Support Fortnightly home visits providing emotional support and practical guidance to expectant parents and families with children up to age three, promoting secure attachment relationships. Provided free of charge; 60–90 minute home visits.
• Incredible Years Parent Programmes Suite of programmes including School-Age, Extended, School Readiness, and Advanced programmes, helping parents build relationships with children through practical strategies for behaviour management and emotional support. Provided free of charge.
• Parenting Workshops Two-hour workshops on themes identified by parents, including First Aid for Parents, CPR, Breakfast Buddies, Mindfulness Toolkit, Managing Homework, Speech and Language, and Occupational Therapy. Provided free of charge.
• Stress Control Online Six-session cognitive-behavioural therapy class streamed live on YouTube, helping participants deal with common problems like anxiety, depression, panicky feelings, poor sleep, and poor wellbeing. Provided free of charge.
• Slaintecare Programmes Suite of programmes including Parents Plus Healthy Families, Parents Plus Children's Programme, Parenting When Separated, Triple P Fearless Programme, and Wilderness Explorer After School Programme. Provided free of charge.
• Oral Language Forum A community forum for educators, speech and language therapists, and academics to share experiences of best practice in oral language development, capture benefits of integrated service delivery, and inform local and national policy. Free to attend.
• Balanced Literacy Framework A research-based framework facilitating effective literacy development through four components — Word Knowledge/Vocabulary, Reading Comprehension, Reading Fluency, and Writing — along with the SPACES Family Literacy Framework. Free practitioner resource.
• Youngballymun Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Learning Network Monthly network meeting for practitioners providing health, education, care, and community services to children 0–5 years, developing relationship-based practice through peer learning and reflection on infant mental health. Free to attend.
• Infant and Early Years Mental Health Master Class Two-day training course for frontline service providers in healthcare, early education, and community settings, focusing on promoting optimal social and emotional development and preventing mental health difficulties in children from pregnancy to age five. Free training.
• Infant and Early Years Mental Health Reflective Supervision Monthly onsite group and individual consultation sessions supporting practitioners working with parents and children 0–5 years to reflect on practice, discuss personal impact of work, and develop infant mental health knowledge and skills. Free supervision.
• Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) Training Training and workshops exploring Adverse Childhood Experiences, their impact on children and families, and strategies to support families to overcome potential lifelong effects on health. Free training.

Quantifiable outcome

• Parents report high satisfaction with IMH programmes: 'I would do these courses again and again; I would continue doing it forever. I just thought it was brilliant.'
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Area Based Childhood (ABC) ProgrammecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerYoungballymun is part of the national ABC Programme focused on improving wellbeing and learning outcomes for children. The ABC Initiative is funded by the Department of Children and Youth Affairs through Tusla.
• Tusla - The Child and Family AgencycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrimary funder through the ABC Programme. Tusla is the State agency responsible for improving wellbeing and outcomes for children.
• Circle of Security InternationalmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational organisation providing the evidence-based Circle of Security Parenting Programme used extensively in Youngballymun's infant mental health work.
• Ballymun Family Resource CentremajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal community partner providing family support services in Ballymun.
• Ballymun Regional Youth ResourcemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal youth organisation partner in Ballymun for service delivery.
• Irish Attachment in ActionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational organisation focused on attachment-based practices that aligns with Youngballymun's infant mental health approach.
• National Adult Literacy Agency (NALA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in family digital literacy research and family literacy provision reviews.
• Ballymun Primary Schools (11 schools)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with all 11 primary schools in Ballymun for delivery of family literacy programmes and Incredible Years parent programmes through Home School Community Liaison Teachers.
• GAP BallymunminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for the Wilderness Explorer After School Programme delivered in Glas Community Garden.
• Prevention and Early Intervention NetworkminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational network for sharing learning about prevention and early intervention approaches.
• The Nurture Programme (HSE)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHSE infant mental health programme partner for national early childhood development initiatives.
• Centre for Effective ServicesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerConducts national evaluation of the Area Based Childhood Programme.
• Other ABC Programme AreasmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNetwork of 13 other ABC programme areas including Ballyfermot/Chapelizod, Bray, Clondalkin, Dublin Docklands, Dublin Northside, Finglas, Grangegorman, Cork, Limerick, Louth, Midlands, and Tallaght West working collaboratively on shared learning.
• Trinity College DublinminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner; Youngballymun staff lecture and collaborate with TCD on infant mental health education and research.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Barnardos Ireland: Ireland's largest national children's charity, delivering a broad portfolio of family support, early intervention, and children's services across the country. Comparable because of overlapping prevention and early intervention work with families and children in disadvantaged communities, though at much greater scale and geographic reach.

Others

• The Nurture Programme (HSE): Health Service Executive national infant mental health and child wellbeing programme focused on the 0-3 period. Comparable as a thematic peer because YoungBallymun is a delivery partner and shares content alignment on infant mental health in Ireland.
• Prevention and Early Intervention Network: National network of practitioners and organisations sharing learning on prevention and early intervention practice in Ireland. Comparable as an ecosystem peer given YoungBallymun's active participation and shared dissemination role within the Irish prevention/EI community.
• Family Resource Centres National Forum: National coordinating body for Tusla-supported Family Resource Centres across Ireland that deliver community-based family support, parenting, and early childhood services. Comparable as an ecosystem of family support providers that overlap with YoungBallymun's wraparound family services model.

Regional players

• Tallaght West ABC Programme: Peer Area Based Childhood Programme site delivering community-based prevention and early intervention services for children and families in Tallaght West, Dublin. Closely comparable given that YoungBallymun is part of the same national ABC network with the same funding framework and target population, but it serves a different Dublin catchment.

Direct peers

• Irish Attachment in Action: National Irish organisation promoting attachment-based practice and infant mental health among practitioners working with families. Directly comparable because it shares YoungBallymun's focus on infant mental health, Circle of Security, and reflective supervision for frontline staff.
• Home-Start Ireland: Volunteer-led home visiting family support charity operating across Ireland for families with young children. Directly comparable because its model of trained volunteer and practitioner home visits to support parenting and child wellbeing closely mirrors YoungBallymun's home-visiting IMH work.
• Archways: Dublin-based organisation focused on family support, parenting programmes, and community-based early intervention. Comparable to YoungBallymun through overlapping delivery of evidence-based parenting programmes and family relationship services in Irish community settings.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/young_ballymun
• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/youngballymun

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles18 records

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 YoungBallymun