Support for Irish communities in Coventry and surrounding areas

Our organisation has gradually evolved to provide a wide range of health and welfare services, as well as a variety of cultural and heritage projects, including the annual St. Patrick's Day Festival.

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Coventry Irish Society Launches New Films

Coventry Irish Society is pleased to announce the publication of 2 new promotional films about the Charity’s work with the aim of securing a permanent Irish Heritage Centre.

Set up in 1993, the Coventry Irish Society provides a range of services to all generations of the Irish

community in Coventry and the surrounding areas.


We have a long tradition of helping the most vulnerable members of the Irish Community in Coventry,

and our aim is to provide a culturally sensitive service that gets the necessary help, support

and advice to as many Irish people as possible.

News from Coventry Irish Society

January 21, 2026
Join us on Wednesday 28 January from 11.00am-12.00pm (followed by a Ciorcal Comhrá). Discover the art of making a St Brigid’s Day cross at this bilingual workshop (Instructions in Irish first, followed by the English translation. Suitable for all levels, esp. complete beginners). All welcome, but please book a place in advance by emailing: cis@covirishsoc.org.uk Cost : £3.00 Members / £4.00 Non-Members (to cover materials & light refreshments). A Ciorcal Comhrá (an informal Irish language conversation circle) will follow the workshop (12.00 - 1.00 pm) for those who would like to stay on after the St Brigid’s Workshop and speak some Irish (or just hear it spoken) - all levels welcome!
January 13, 2026
Join poet Cathy Galvin as she invites you to find a space to look again, and more deeply, at the all-too-familiar landscapes of home. Using texts from her own work, focussed on Connemara and Coventry, she will help you consider what lies beneath and within the landscapes we think we know. Event details : Wednesday 11 March 2026 Doors Open: 5.00 pm Event start time: 5.30 pm Event finish time: 6.30 pm Admission: Free About the Writer, Cathy Galvin Poet, editor and journalist Cathy Galvin has roots in Coventry and Connemara. Her collection, Ethnology, A Love Song for Connemara, is due from Bloodaxe Books in the UK and Ireland in February 2026. Her poetry is widely published and includes the sequences Walking the Coventry Ring Road With Lady Godiva (Guillemot Press), Rough Translation and Black and Blue (The Melos Press). She is founder of the Word Factory and the Sunday Times Short Story Award. View Ethnology, A Love Song for Connemara here. You can follow her on Instagram @cathygalvinwords. Word Factory can be found on Substack How to book: Ticket only event – please book a place in advance by emailing cis@covirishsoc.org.uk , confirming the full names of all attendees.
December 10, 2025
Join us for this free event on Thursday 29 January 2026 at Coventry Irish Society. The event is free but advance booking is essential - To book, please email: cis@covirishsoc.org.uk and bring your booking confirmation reply to the event. Doors open : 6.00 pm Event discussion : 6.30 – 7.30 pm Event closure : 8.00 pm About Hen Norton: Henrietta Norton is a director, producer and writer whose work explores identity, connection and collective storytelling. Through her production company HOTFEET she develops community centred film projects across documentary, editorial and arts platforms, and is currently developing Mo & Me, a feature documentary about her late stepmother Mo Mowlam, co-produced by Underground Films and Erica Starling. Her work includes The Amber Light, which she produced and which was nominated for Best Documentary Feature Film at the Edinburgh International Film Festival, and Born and Reared, her directorial debut exploring masculinity and identity in contemporary Northern Ireland. Both films reflect her commitment to amplifying underrepresented voices and fostering understanding through story. Alongside her film work, Hen collaborates with artists, activists and community groups across the UK and Ireland. She produced The Unsung HERoes, an exhibition celebrating women peacebuilders, and founded Six Strangers, a digital discussion platform that created space for honest, human connection during Covid. Her practice centres on empathy, participation and the power of shared narratives to inspire social and cultural change. The Coventry Irish Society are proud to host this event with funding support from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Reconciliation Fund.
December 3, 2025
Beginners’ Irish Language Spring Course 2026 with Dr Ian Malcolm Professional Irish language teacher and acclaimed Journalist, Dr Ian Malcolm, will deliver a bespoke online course in Beginners’ Irish. This course will consist of 10x classes and will take place entirely over Zoom on Saturday mornings, with Dr Ian Malcolm. Course details: Saturday 7 March 2026 - Saturday 9 May 2026 with 10x classes on Saturday mornings, delivered via Zoom from 10.30 am – 12.30 pm (including a 20 minute break). The fee for this course is £140. Course materials: The class will use the textbook, Irish For Beginners (which is in the link below). This book costs in the region of £7.00 - £10.00 and it is strongly recommended that students purchase their own copies in advance of the course. You can find details of the course textbook here. Registration closes 25 February 2026 (or when course capacity is reached). Early booking is strongly recommended. The registration form for this course can be downloaded below. Please contact us at cis@covirishsoc.org.uk to return your booking form and complete course fee payment.
More Posts

We supported 1,500+ people in 2021-22

1,088

People availed of our day to day advice and support services

86

People received in depth caseworker support involving complex cases

54

People have attended a weekly Befriending Support Group

110

Irish elders attended bi-monthly Lunch Clubs for friendship and support

54

Irish Survivors attended quarterly Lunch Clubs for friendship and support

200

People had attended the Coventry Irish Society St Patrick’s Day event

Some of our core services

Health Project

Our Health workers arrange a number of basic health outreach surgeries in Coventry to reach those people less likely to go to their GP's.

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Irish Survivors

This is a new full time specialist advice information and support service for Irish survivors, including those survivors that were residents in the controversial Irish Mother and Baby Home Institutions.

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Welfare Advice & Support

At Coventry Irish Society we offer a reliable, friendly, supportive service to all of our clients. Our experienced welfare advisor offers confidential advice and information on many different welfare issues.

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Passports & Citizenship

The service supports first generation Irish people who were born in Ireland, second generation with one or both parents born in Ireland, and third generation who have grandparents who were born in Ireland.

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Join our volunteer community

Coventry Irish Society, like many charities, relies on the invaluable input of volunteers in delivering our work programmes. But we also seek to ensure that their experience is both fulfilling and rewarding.

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“The Coventry Irish Society supports the most vulnerable members of the Irish community in Coventry, and we also act as a ‘gateway’ to help them to access other community-based and mainstream services.”