Caoilfhionn Gallagher KC awarded Presidential Distinguished Service Award
February 5, 2024
Coventry Irish Society is pleased to congratulate Caoilfhionn Gallagher KC on the announcement that she is one of this year's recipients of the President of Ireland's Distinguished Service Award for the Irish Abroad.
The President's Distinguished Service Award is presented by the President each year, and it recognises the service given to Ireland or to Irish communities abroad by those who live outside Ireland.
Caoilfhionn Gallagher KC
is from Ireland and holds degrees from University College Dublin (UCD) and the Honorable Society of the King's Inns, as well as from Cambridge University. She has been practising from Doughty Street Chambers since 2005. In her 18 years at Doughty Street she has acted in many leading human rights, public law and media law cases, both in the UK and internationally. This includes acting for bereaved families of the 7/7 London Bombings and the Hillsborough Disaster, and in a series of cases which have changed the law on the rights of children in police custody. She is a world expert on accountability for crimes against journalists and journalists' safety, and has led the international legal teams in a series of key cases in this field, including for the bereaved family of Daphne Caruana Galizia, assassinated in Malta in 2017; for pro-democracy campaigner and publisher Jimmy Lai, imprisoned in Hong Kong; and (jointly with Amal Clooney) for Maria Ressa, the Nobel Peace Prize Laureate from the Philippines.
Caoilfhionn has acted in a number of cases concerning the rights of the Irish in Britain and in complex cases concerning cross-border issues between Ireland and Britain. She led the legal team acting for the family of Margaret Keane, overturning a ruling preventing them from using an Irish only inscription on her gravestone. She has recently been appointed Ireland’s Special Rapporteur on Child Protection; is a Commissioner of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission; and she is an Adjunct Full Professor at UCD. She was appointed a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts in 2017 for her “outstanding commitment to enabling the Human Rights Act’s protections.”
Coventry Irish Society is delighted to have received an Awards for All National Lottery grant to support Irish Survivors in Coventry and the surrounding areas. Thanks to the generosity of National Lottery players, Irish Survivors will benefit from regular bi-monthly Lunch Clubs and social outings over the next two years. These gatherings provide much more than an opportunity to enjoy a meal or spend a day together. They offer a welcoming and supportive space where Survivors can meet, build friendships, share experiences and enjoy time together as part of their community. For many Survivors, these regular activities provide an important opportunity to connect with others and help reduce social isolation. We are incredibly grateful to National Lottery players for making this funding possible and helping Coventry Irish Society continue to create opportunities for Irish Survivors to connect, socialise and build community over the next two years.
Beginners’ Irish Language Autumn 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 3 October 2026 - Saturday 5 December 2026* with 10x classes on Saturday mornings, delivered via Zoom from 11.00 am – 12.30 pm (including a 20 minute break). £105 for Coventry Irish Society Members | £110 for Non-Members *(or possibly slightly later, should the tutor need to take any unplanned leave during the course). This course consists of 10 classes and the aim is for the entirety of the course to be completed before Christmas 2026. 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 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.
Coventry Irish Society launch our new #GaeilgeOnTheGo flashcards to support and encourage learning and practising new words in Irish. Here are our first set of free flashcards, in Irish, to mark the start of the new school year, and to welcome the Autumn season. Click on a tile below to enlarge.
