The Great Irish Bake is back with a bang – with bakers of all ages invited to give it a swirl and raise vital funds for sick children all over Ireland.

Hosted by celebrity chef Donal Skehan and proudly supported by Gem, the Great Irish Bake is your chance to dust off the apron, fire up the oven and make a real difference to the lives of sick children and their families around the country.

The funds raised will help Children’s Health Ireland in delivering life-saving equipment, patient and parent supports and ground-breaking paediatric research across its four locations – Crumlin, Temple Street, Tallaght and Connolly Urgent Care.

All you need to do is sign up and host a bake wherever you are, any time between now and March 27th.

Bakers also have the chance to win some amazing prizes – including a €1,500 Center Parcs gift card, a Kenwood Go Stand Mixer, a Kenwood Food Processor and one of 10 signed Donal Skehan cookbooks with Gem hampers.

To be in with your chance to win, sign up and share a picture of your baking creation with the hashtag #GreatIrishBake.

Saoirse at Children's Health Ireland

Signing up now helps support patients like Saoirse – who has been chosen to host this year’s event alongside Donal.

Saoirse was born a healthy baby in January 2015 but a year later, she was admitted to hospital with a serious kidney infection.

Just three years later she was diagnosed with Alport syndrome, a rare hereditary kidney condition.

From then on, she continued to attend regular clinics at Temple Street and in May of last year, she became critically unwell, spending almost ten weeks in hospital.

She is now on haemodialysis and travels from Clare to Dublin three times a week to visit Temple Street.

CHI patient and Great Irish Bake host Saoirse

During her time in hospital, Saoirse has been supported by staff on the ward and in the haemodialysis unit, who create an environment filled with fun, conversation and activities.

Play specialists, nurses and the wider team ensure she always has things to look forward to – all of which has been made possible by funds raised for Children’s Health Foundation.

Saoirse is now on the deceased donor transplant list, and her family is waiting for the call that will change everything.

The Great Irish Bake is officially happening on March 27th – but you can get involved any time between now and then.

Gather your friends and family, bake something delicious and raise funds for sick children across Ireland.

You can sign up for the Great Irish Bake here.