Aer Lingus celebrates 12 years of Making a Difference

Volunteers from Aer Lingus transform school grounds at St. Finian’s Community College, Swords.

Over 120 Aer Lingus volunteers support major outdoor development projects for local students.

Aer Lingus today celebrates 12 years of giving back to its local community, as more than 120 Aer Lingus employees volunteered their time to help transform the grounds of St. Finian’s Community College in Swords, Co. Dublin.

The day forms part of Make a Difference Day, the airline’s largest annual employee volunteer initiative. Now in its 12th year, the programme brings colleagues from across the airline together to support local community projects.

This year, volunteers from across Aer Lingus – including cabin crew, pilots, engineers, operations, catering, planning, ground operations, IT, corporate affairs, communications, marketing, finance, legal and HR – worked together to deliver a series of large‑scale outdoor improvement projects at the school. An Aer Lingus pilot, cabin crew and engineer also gave a talk to pupils of St. Finian’s about roles at Aer Lingus to inspire future potential aviators.

Projects completed on the day included:

• Development of a new external yard sports area, incorporating a basketball court and football pitch
• Construction of a new entrance pathway providing improved access to the sports facilities
• Installation of tiered sports seating built into the natural landscape to support school sporting events
• Creation of planter seat structures overlooking the sports area
• Delivery of artwork murals to enhance outdoor spaces
• Upgrade of a lunch and social area, including facilities supporting the school’s Autism Unit
• Improvements to existing masonry walls across the grounds
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Principal of St. Finian’s Community College, John Paul Reilly said, “We are incredibly thankful for the generosity, hard work and community spirit shown by the Aer Lingus team. These new facilities and improvements will greatly enhance opportunities for sport, wellbeing, outdoor learning and social interaction for our students for many years to come. In particular, the upgraded lunch and social areas supporting our Autism Unit will provide a more inclusive and supportive environment for the young people in our care.”

Donal Moriarty, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer at Aer Lingus said; “This year, Aer Lingus marks 12 years of making a difference in our local communities. Over the years our employees have made a real impact in the local community and schools through our annual volunteering day. We’re thrilled to be at St. Finian’s Community College here in Swords, just a short distance from our headquarters at Dublin Airport, where our Aer Lingus volunteers have been hard at work transforming the school grounds for the benefit of the pupils. We hope it will make the pupils of St. Finian’s happy and that the work done today will inspire and motivate the pupils for generations to come.’’

St. Finian’s Community College is a co‑educational, multi‑denominational DEIS secondary school with over 700 students, celebrating its 70th year in the local Swords community. The projects were identified in partnership with the school to support its strong focus on sport, wellbeing and outdoor learning.

Aer Lingus’ Make a Difference Day reflects the airline’s long‑standing commitment to supporting local communities, fostering employee engagement, and creating positive, sustainable change year after year.