About Us – Coeliac Society Of Ireland

To make Ireland the best country in the world to live gluten free

Supporting, empowering, educating and inspiring those living a gluten free life every day

There are an estimated 50,000 people living with coeliac disease in Ireland, and a further 400,000 who are gluten intolerant. The Coeliac Society of Ireland is determined to make sure that every one of them has the support and help they need to make living with their condition as easy and as normal as is possible. We empower the entire coeliac and gluten intolerant community by providing them with information, advice and practical solutions as they navigate a gluten-free lifestyle.
The Coeliac Society also represents your interests by advocating to government health agencies for improved resources and services, so that you and your families can access the care that you need. Together we can make Ireland the best country in the world to live gluten free.

Who We Are

Founded in 1970, the Coeliac Society of Ireland is a national charity representing the 1% of the population (and their families) who live with coeliac disease, and the estimated additional 400,000 gluten intolerant sufferers living in Ireland today.

The Coeliac Society of Ireland is a registered charity CHY7484 and Registered Charity Number 20016548. It is the national charity supporting people affected by coeliac disease and gluten intolerance.

The Board

Niall Kavanagh

Chairperson

Niall joined the Board of the Coeliac Society in 2018. He is a Chartered Secretary (FCIS), Barrister and Non-executive Director. He is also a member of the ICSA Ireland Company Law and Regulatory Sub-Committee chaired by the ICSAs representative on the Company Law Review Group, where the Committee’s role is to review the activities and proposals of governments, legislators and regulators which affect the governance of Irish companies. Niall is a coeliac for over ten years also has a first class honours degree in Physiology from Trinity College Dublin.

Dr. Nick Kennedy

Honorary President

Assoc. Prof Kennedy is a medical academic at Trinity College Dublin (since 1984) with particular interest in nutrition and in coeliac disease. He runs the multi-disciplinary outpatient clinic at St James's Hospital (Dublin) for patients with coeliac disease (since 1995), in collaboration with consultants in the gastroenterology unit and with staff from the hospital department of clinical nutrition. He is (Honorary) President and an active board member of the Coeliac Society of Ireland (elected 2008). A founding member of the Irish Section of the Nutrition Society (1989), he subscribed to the incorporation (in 2010) of a multidisciplinary society in Ireland for health professionals with an interest in clinical nutrition (the Irish Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism, IrSPEN), of which he was a director and former chairman of the education committee. He supervises undergraduate and postgraduate students researching topics spanning clinical nutrition, community nutrition and nutrition education, as well as contributing to multidisciplinary research into coeliac disease. As a member of the College community, he has served as a college tutor and contributed on numerous College committees at college, faculty, school and discipline levels. At international level, he participates in networks relating to coeliac disease (research and patient organisation groups) and to nutrition.

Darren Harris

TU Dublin Bakery Programme Chair

Darren is the current chair of the Food Advisory & Research sub-committee of the Coeliac Society’s board. He currently leads the Bakery Programme in the School of Culinary Arts and Food Technology in TU Dublin. For the last 25 years, Darren has worked with expert bakers and award winning chefs in both a production and a food service environment. He has also worked in small and medium scale manufacturers as well as being the R&D lead on a state of the art €180 million production site. He is fully qualified chef and baker, and has a masters in culinary innovation and food product development.

Mattie O'Grady

National Strategic Account Lead - HSE, Bidvest Noonan

Mattie is an experienced operational and commercial manager with a demonstrated history of working in the real estate industry, food, and retail sectors across Ireland. He has a strong growth business development ethic and is passionate about member and customer services and their experiences with the Coeliac Society. Skilled in negotiation, market and business Planning and Operations Management, he chairs the Coeliac Society’s Membership sub-committee, where he advises both the board and the executive on best-practices and change management in relation to delivering best-in-class services for our members.

Deirdre Lennon

Fundraising & Corporate Affairs Manager, Cheshire Ireland

Deirdre has been the Fundraising & Corporate Affairs Manager with Cheshire Ireland since February 2021. Prior to this she spent most of her career in the Private Sector in Financial Services. A change in personal circumstances threw her into the world of Not for Profit, and she is also a qualified SNA. Her new career path has earned her various qualifications pertaining to the Charity Sector from The Law Society of Ireland and Charities Institute Ireland. Deirdre is driven and passionate to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to do what they would like to do in life even if they have extra needs. She brings this wealth of experience and passion for development and adventure to her new board position with the Coeliac Society of Ireland, as the Society embarks on it’s new strategic journey over the coming years.

Nigel Derrick

Client Services Director, ComputerShare Ireland

Nigel has more than 30 years' industry experience underpinning his current role as Client Services Director for ComputerShare Ireland. Nigel is actively involved within the industry and is a Council member if the Irish ProShare Association. Nigel is passionate about his corporate clients and wants to transfer this passion to assisting the Board and executive in the Coeliac Society to delivering the very best services for our members and staff. Driven by excellence in all element of customer service all under-pinned by an firm understanding of corporate governance, Nigel is a strong team player focused on organisational growth and development.

Dr. Bill O' Leary

Snr Manager Digital Johnson & Johnson, and Cobh Ramblers FC Chairman

Bill is a true leader of people with a proven ability to deliver. He currently drives the optimisation of operations with a real strategic nous, expertise in Operational Excellence, people /project management, finance and often complex stakeholder engagement across cultures. He holds a PhD in Chemistry from UCC and an MBA from the University of Warwick Business School. He is currently the Chairman of Cobh Ramblers Football Club, based in Cobh, Co. Cork. Bill is focused on growth, excellence and taking all opportunities that come, and he brings this vast array of talent and skills to the Coeliac Society with enthusiasm and passion.

Dr. Eimear Gallagher

Head of Food Quality and Sensory Science Department at Teagasc

Eimear is currently head of the Food Quality and Sensory Science department of the Teagasc Food Research Programme.Her expertise lies predominantly in cereal science and ingredient/bakery research. She has extensive experience in modulating ingredient interactions, empirical and fundamental rheology, confocal and scanning microscopy, digital and immersive structural imaging and sensory science. She has developed a particular capability in the gluten-free area, where she has conducted research in product reengineering, instrumental texture profiling and composition optimisation. She is also the coordinator of Sensory Food Network Ireland, a national network of excellence in sensory food science. As well as conducting publicly funded research, Eimear also has a number of confidential, industry-led short-term projects. Eimear is excited to bring her passion for gluten-free food development and her wealth of food production knowledge to the Society and its members

Eunice Dreelan

Head of Intermediary Business at Irish Life Group

Eunice Dreelan is Head of Intermediary Business for the Irish Life Group. Prior to this she has been Director of Strategy & Change at Irish Life Financial Services and Director of Investment Development at Irish Life Investment Managers. Prior to joining Irish Life Eunice worked with Goodbody Stockbrokers, Invesco and AON Consulting. In 1990 Eunice joined Irish Life International as Business Development Manager in the South African office and then as Head of European Sales and Marketing. She holds an MSc in Management Practice and Change Management from UCC, an Executive Diploma in Corporate Governance from the Smurfit School of Business and an Executive Diploma in Behavioural Economics from the London School of Economics. Her corporate governance and change management skills honed and strengthened over her years in financial services led her to chair the Irish Association of Pension Funds from 2019-2021. She is keen to bring her skillset now to the charity sector and help with the future growth and development of the Coeliac Society of Ireland.

Office Team

Gill Brennan

CEO

Andrea Murray

Sponsorhip & Advertising Manager

Trish Ledwidge

Head Of Finance

Jennifer Morrow

Marketing & Communications Manager

David Cooney

IT Manager

Barron O' Rourke

Cloud Security Specialist

Sarah Kiernan

Research Nutritionist

Frances Buckley

Technical Food Consultant

Financial Statements & Annual Reports

* All Financial Statements Are Available From The Chariries Regulator Website.

Services Provided To Members

The following provides an overview of services provided by the Coeliac Society of Ireland for our members and service providers. This list is always changing as we find more solutions to help you live gluten free.

Online and phone support for members and all those who benefit from a gluten free diet for medical reasons and have an interest in coeliac disease.
Provide a link between members and manufacturers of gluten free products.
Work closely with the food industry to improve existing and provide new gluten free products on the Irish market and distribution to food stores.
Advice for new companies introducing gluten free products into the Irish market in areas of sourcing of ingredients, labelling, cross contamination issues, product testing, etc.
Catering & Foodservice Manual to assist those working in the catering and hospitality industries with catering for gluten-free diets.
Events at national and branch level, including cookery demonstrations, presentations by medical experts and Food Fairs.
Annual Food List booklet of gluten free products.
Coeliac Handbook – general medical information on Coeliac disease and other related conditions
News and information through coeliac.ie plus a monthly ‘Coeliac News Online’ email
Publish tried and tested recipes and information on suitable non-contaminated natural flours for gluten free cooking.
An online training programme for the catering industry, detailing steps required to provide safe gluten free meals.
Publish travel information including Eating Out language cards and information about a gluten free diet and availability of products in other countries.

Why Was The Coeliac Society Set Up?

For most of the 20^th Century, there was no support or recognition of coeliac disease or gluten intolerance in Ireland – no one knew that at around 1% of the population was suffering from this lifelong incurable autoimmune condition. A group of coeliac sufferers and other volunteers sought to address this shortcoming and, in 1970, they founded the Coeliac Society with one person with a phone in a Dublin. The Society has grown since then to become an organisation with thousands of members, which represents sufferers throughout Ireland and collaborates with peer coeliac organisations around the world.

The Coeliac Society has developed best-in-class educational programmes and services to ensure that people suffering from coeliac disease and gluten intolerance can access the services and support they need. Our full-time staff are available to provide advice and support online or over the phone.

We are a national organisation representing all coeliacs and gluten intolerant people in Ireland. We are also a European organisation which, as part of the Association of European Coeliac Societies, works towards Europea-wide legislation and research. We are everywhere!