About
The report of the Commission for the Economic Development of Rural Areas (CEDRA) contained a recommendation that a Rural Innovation and Development Fund should be developed to support “innovative, small scale pilot initiatives that explore the diverse range of potential identified through the CEDRA process”. The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine provided for the setting up of this Fund in his 2015 budget allocation.
In June 2015, a request for tenders was made, through a public procurement competition. The ACORNS initiative developed by Fitzsimons Consulting was selected as most suitable to achieve the stated objectives. It is designed to unleash the potential of female entrepreneurs living in rural Ireland, who have recently started a business or who have taken concrete steps towards starting a business. The objective is to equip these early stage entrepreneurs with the appropriate knowledge, confidence and networks to successfully start and develop sustainable businesses.
The name ACORNS was put forward by Fitzsimons Consulting after careful consideration, not only for its rural connotations and symbolic significance but because, as an acronym, ACORNS sums up what the initiative is designed to achieve – Accelerating the Creation of Rural Nascent Start-ups.
Based on a belief that entrepreneurs learn best from each other, the ACORNS initiative was designed to be centered on interactive round table sessions facilitated by female entrepreneurs who have started and successfully grown businesses in rural Ireland. These are known as ACORNS Lead Entrepreneurs.
Over 550 early stage entrepreneurs have participated in the programme, which is now in its eleventh year. Many report increased sales, exports and job creation. Since the pilot, the programme has also developed to offer on-going support to those that successfully complete the initiative, in the form of group meetings, topic based workshops and annual events.
Dr Colm O’Gorman, Professor of Entrepreneurship at DCU, together with a DCU researcher, composed a 10 Year Report and Evaluation of ACORNS. This was extremely positive and captured the impact and qualitative impact of ACORNS over the period. The full report can be found here.
For more information, please visit the website here.
Awards and Recognition
ACORNS was included as a Good Practice on the Interreg Policy Learning Platform. Click here to view.
ACORNS was selected as a national winner in the European Enterprise Promotion Awards 2025 and has been shortlisted. The team will head to Copenhagen for the SME Assembly 2025 to compete at the European level.
Sponsors
This innovative programme is funded through the Rural Innovation and Development Fund by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.