We are delighted to welcome Orla O’Neill, ACJRD’s new Executive Director, who started in February. Prior to joining ACJRD, Orla was Executive Director of St. Stephen's Green Trust (SSGT), leading the charitable foundation for over two decades between 2004 and 2025. SSGT is an all-island independent grant-maker which supports groups to effect positive social change in critical areas of social justice. 

As part of her grantmaker role in SSGT Orla worked with community and voluntary organisations in the prison and probation sectors, most recently around contributing to improving systems of support for families affected by convictions and imprisonment to improve rehabilitation and resettlement outcomes.

“I’m delighted to be joining ACJRD as its vision of a fair and effective criminal justice system accords with my own passion for and commit to social justice. I believe the mission of ACJRD to inform the collaborative development of effective evidenced-based policy and practice in criminal justice systems can contribute to that vision. There is enormous potential and value in networking, collaboration and learning to effect positive sustainable change and I look forward to supporting ACJRD’s continued contribution to that change over the coming years,” said Orla.

Orla is a Fellow of Chartered Accountants Ireland (FCA) and was previously Executive Director of Schizophrenia Ireland (now Shine). She also worked in Nexus Research, Edelman PR and several accountancy practices. Her education includes a Professional Cert in Governance (IPA), Postgraduate Diploma in Grantmaking Management (Bayes Business School, London), a Cert in Voluntary Sector Management (DCU), Diploma in PR and BA in Economics & Politics from Trinity College.