COMMUNITY
Community groups and centres
The groups that keep Swords going: who they are, where they meet, and how to find, join or support them.
Illustrative image, not a verified photograph
Most community groups in Swords have no website, only a Facebook page or a listing somewhere else, and there is no public directory. This page brings together the ones we could confirm, from their own pages and from Fingal County Council. Last checked 19 October 2026. For sports clubs, see Sport.
EstablishedDates and descriptions are each group’s own account, with a link, unless the card says otherwise. Meeting times change, so confirm before you go.
Groups and centres
Environment
Swords Tidy Towns
EnvironmentAcross Swords
Volunteers who began after Swords was named the dirtiest town in Ireland, more than a decade before 2020, according to The Journal. Their work covers gardening, biodiversity and sustainability projects, art projects with schools and sports teams, and competitions such as tidiest estate. The Journal reported 16 nationalities among its members. Results from Fingal: Silver in 2022 and 2023, Gold in 2024, and Gold in 2025 with 383 marks, up from 370.
No website found. Look for them on Facebook.
Sources: The Journal, 20 December 2020 · Fingal, 28 October 2025: 2025 Tidy Towns results · Dublin People, 6 November 2017: clean sweep for Swords
Heritage
Swords Historical Society and Fingal Genealogy
HeritageThe Carnegie Library, North Street
1982. Founded in 1982, with Fingal Genealogy in 1988, according to the society.
Runs a museum and heritage centre, open weekdays from 1pm to 4.30pm (an older notice says 1.30pm), and a genealogy service with researchers to help trace North Dublin roots. It publishes the annual Swords Voices, keeps an oral history archive, and gives historical walks. Fingal lists it as the only Swords-based society in the Fingal Heritage Network.
Sources: Society website · Fingal: heritage groups and societies
Support and company
Swords Men’s Shed
Support and companySeatown Road
The Irish Men’s Sheds Association lists it with opening hours of Monday to Friday, 10.30am to 5pm, and says new members are always welcome. The only news item on the listing is from August 2017.
Check it is still running before you visit.
Swords Women’s Shed
Support and companyBased in Swords (no venue given)
Fingal’s listing from October 2023 says it meets three times a week and runs craft sessions and information evenings, including a fairy garden project at the Broadmeadow Community Garden.
Contact is through Fingal County Council’s general form. Listing from 2023.
Sources: Fingal: Swords Women’s Shed
Community centres
Rivervalley Community Centre
Community centresRivervalley
1991. Set up on 11 December 1991, according to the centre.
Owned by the local community and open 9am to 10pm, seven days. It has a sports hall, meeting rooms, a pre-school and a function room, and gives residents’ associations free meeting space. Scouts, martial arts, dance and support groups are among its listed activities. It says it welcomed almost 120,000 people in 2024, and it was runner-up in the Urban Neighbourhood and Housing Estates category at the 2025 IPB Pride of Place Awards.
Sources: Fingal Community Facilities Network · FCFN newsletter, December 2025
Applewood Community Centre
Community centresCastleview Extension, Applewood
2013. Opened in early 2013 under the Fingal Schools Model, according to the network listing.
A sports hall with a basketball court, indoor soccer pitch and four badminton courts, a dance studio and childcare, sharing a campus with Gaelscoil Bhrian Bóroimhe and Swords Educate Together. Its listed activities include a youth club, Scouts and residents’ association meetings.
Sources: Fingal Community Facilities Network
Holywell Community Centre
Community centresFeltrim Hall, Holywell
2012. Built in 2012 under the Fingal Schools Model, according to its network listing, though the network’s December 2025 newsletter says 2013.
Open seven days, sharing a campus with Holywell Educate Together. It has a sports hall, an indoor soccer pitch, a dance suite and childcare, and its listed activities include a youth club, Scouts, drama and support groups.
Sources: Fingal Community Facilities Network · FCFN newsletter, December 2025
Skills and social
Swords Toastmasters
Skills and socialForrest Little Golf Club, Forest Road
1995. Chartered on 1 May 1995, according to Toastmasters International.
Public speaking and leadership. Meets every other Monday at 8pm. Guests are welcome, visits are free and there is no pressure to take part.
Visit their website →The listing does not say whether the club is currently active.
Sources: Toastmasters club finder
North Dublin Toastmasters
Skills and socialSt Cronan’s Parish Hall, with online meetings on Zoom
1994. Chartered on 1 December 1994, according to Toastmasters International.
Meets on the first Tuesday (in person) and the third Tuesday (online) of each month at 7.45pm. Open to everyone, and guests are welcome.
Sources: Toastmasters club finder
Still to establishWe could not find a Scouting Ireland or Irish Girl Guides unit in Swords on their finders, though the Rivervalley, Applewood and Holywell centres all list Scouts among their activities. Nor did we find current listings for residents’ associations, a youth service (a 2013 article describes a Swords and Baldoyle Youth Service) or groups such as Active Retirement, the ICA, Lions or the Society of St Vincent de Paul. If you run or belong to one, tell us.
How the community grew
ProbableThe centres follow the housing. Rivervalley Community Centre was set up in 1991 and is owned by the local community, in the estate that was built from the 1970s. Holywell and Applewood opened in 2012 and 2013, each on a campus with a new school. That is a pattern we read from the dates, not something the sources state. The River Valley guide has the estate’s story, and Sport shows the clubs that grew up beside it.
- 1982Swords Historical Society is founded. Fingal Genealogy follows in 1988. According to the society
- 1991Rivervalley Community Centre is set up on 11 December, owned by the local community. According to the centre
- 1994North Dublin Toastmasters is chartered, and Swords Toastmasters follows in 1995. According to Toastmasters
- 2012-13Holywell and Applewood community centres open beside new schools, under Fingal’s Schools Model. According to the network
- 2017Swords Tidy Towns is the overall winner of Fingal’s Cleaner Communities competition. According to Dublin People
- 2020Swords Tidy Towns is runner-up in its category at the IPB Pride of Place Awards. According to Dublin People
- 2025Swords Tidy Towns wins Gold, and Rivervalley Community Centre is runner-up in the Pride of Place Urban Neighbourhood and Housing Estates category. According to Fingal and FCFN
Still to establishHow many groups there are, which have closed, and the stories of the ones that built the town’s community life. Residents’ memories are the best source. Share one.
Find more, join or volunteer
Fingal Public Participation Network (PPN)
A free register of community, voluntary and environmental groups in Fingal, which the council says has more than 500 members. It publishes no public directory, which is why this page exists. A group with a postal address in Fingal and 12 months’ history can join.
Fingal Volunteer Centre
A free matching service for people who want to volunteer and for organisations that need volunteers, including Garda vetting support. Roles are posted on i-vol.ie.
Fingal Community Facilities Network
The directory of Fingal’s community centres, with what each offers and how to book.
Fingal Heritage Network
Eleven member societies across Fingal, and Swords Historical Society is the only one based in Swords.
More shops, services and organisations are in the directory.
Add your group, or tell us what we missed
Run a group, volunteer with one, or remember one that has gone? Use the form and choose “A sports club or community group”. A local business that would like to support local groups or reach people in the community can choose “Advertising or sponsoring”. If you would like occasional emails about local news and events, tick the box. It is optional and you can unsubscribe at any time.
Sources
- The groups’ own pages, linked on each card
- Fingal Community Facilities Network and its December 2025 newsletter
- Fingal: 2025 Tidy Towns results and Fingal: heritage groups and societies
- The Journal, 20 December 2020: TidyTowns and community spirit
- Irish Men’s Sheds Association and Fingal: Swords Women’s Shed
- Toastmasters club finder
Groups are named from their public pages and records. We do not publish committee members or private contact details, and no group has paid to be listed.