Winners will be selected by a panel of impartial judges.

The judges are:

• Laura Turkington, Vodafone
• Ruth Findlater, former Director of Development with the Irish Heart Foundation
• Niall O’Sullivan, Community Foundation for Ireland
• Peter Ireton, Bóthar (and winner of the inaugural Fundraisers of the Year award in 2008)
• Richard Dixon, Concern

All nominations forms have been reviewed against the eligibility criteria by a sub group from The Wheel and Fundraising Ireland. All eligible nominations forms were then reviewed to create a 'long list' in each category. The 'longlist' was circulated to each member of the judging panel within two weeks of the closing date. The judging panel then marked each nominations form against the published criteria. The panel subsequently met to review the respective markings and to agree the outcome. At any stage, they may request more information from a particular nominating body. A short list and a winner have been selected in each of the categories and the shortlist and longlist was published on the website and in various communications. The winners will be announced at a dedicated event in the Four Seasons Hotel in Dublin on October 20th 2009, MC'd by celebrity guest Mary Kennedy. All nominees and nominators will be invited to this event.

The prizes for each category will be a trophy award that the winner is entitled to keep. There will be no cash prizes.

All nominees and nominators should be aware that because a key objective is to promote best practice in fundraising, all eligible forms will be displayed on the National Fundraising awards website from mid September 2009. Therefore the information should be written in a way so as to make it possible to communicate to the wider world as well as to the judges. By submitting a form both nominator and nominee are agreeing to have the information posted on the www.fundraisingawards.ie website.