If the Barretstown Gang Camp were a company it would probably have received great plaudits in business pages for its rapid growth over the last five years.

Five years ago, it was bringing 124 seriously ill children for a week of activities and fun at its beautiful base at Barretstown Castle, Co Kildare. Now, more than 1,000 children come from all over Europe each year to enjoy the therapeutic recreation that underpins Barretstown's philosophy.

But talking to Mr David Strahan, chief executive of the charity since 1997, it is clear that the business and marketing skills he acquired in his previous 30-year career working for An Bord Trachtala have been invaluable in the massive fund-raising task that is his responsibility.

Every year he needs to raise £2 million (€2.54 million) to cover the camp's running costs. In addition, a plan to expand the infrastructure at Barretstown so that it can increase the number of children coming each year to 1,500, means he is currently working on raising the necessary £6.5 million capital investment.

The image of hard-working charity supporters rattling tins in Grafton Street is a far cry from the professionalised fund-raising approach taken by organisations such as Barretstown. More than three quarters of its donations are derived from the corporate sector where it has worked hard to build what Mr Strahan likes to term partnerships.

"We absolutely have to give return to the donor," he says. "Companies are increasingly aligning themselves with institutions where they can see that they in turn will benefit from the association."

To the cynic this may sound like companies cashing in on the PR benefits of associating themselves with worthy causes, but according to Mr Strahan it is more sophisticated than that.

To illustrate this he gives the example of Xtra-vision, a company that has recently become involved in helping Barretstown.

Instead of just writing a cheque, the company brought its 250 managers to Barretstown for a day. In the morning they used the camp's impressive theatre for their own business seminar, and then spent the afternoon helping out with work that needed doing at the camp. Chief executive Mr Martin Higgins later said it was the best day he had ever had in terms of generating good morale within the company.

"It's not just about being seen to do good in the eyes of the customer," says Mr Strahan, "but also in the eyes of the employees. Good people like to work for good companies, they like working for companies that are seen to do good in whatever way is appropriate."

Mr Strahan believes that corporate involvement in the voluntary sector is part of a changing business philosophy that recognises the importance of all the stake holders in the company - from the narrow sphere of customers and employees to the wider importance of the community in which that company is based.

Although Barretstown is heavily involved in corporate fund-raising, Mr Strahan stresses that individual donors both small and large are important. He fears that the association of well-known Irish business names such as Dr Michael Smurfit and Dr Tony O'Reilly with Barretstown has given the impression that the organisation is rich. However, despite generous capital donations from these people and multinational companies including SmithKline Beecham and Glaxo Wellcome, the need to maintain income to cover running costs is ever present.

Mr Strahan hopes that they will soon be able to start building up an endowment fund which would provide an income to help secure the camp's future funding. The Barretstown camp is part of the network of Hole in the Wall Gang camps founded by actor Paul Newman. There are four camps in the US, one in France, and the Barretstown Camp in Ireland, all of which aim to help seriously ill children and their families. The involvement of such a high-profile figure is a huge asset to Mr Strahan in his fund-raising work. With so many worthy causes competing for funding, the Newman name immediately gains people's attention.

"I think people are beginning to understand he's not just a wonderful actor, but also an extraordinary human being," says Mr Strahan.

Paul Newman visits the Barretstown Camp once or twice a year, and is apparently at his happiest when mucking in with the kids and their activities. His Newman's Own branded food products continue to sell worldwide, and the profits contribute to the upkeep of all the camps.

Another way voluntary organisations could be helped in their fund-raising work would be a change in the tax regime, says Mr Strahan.

"It is time for a sea change in our tax regime to enable companies and particularly individuals to make tax effective financial contributions to worthy causes.

"The enormous value provided by the voluntary sector in Ireland to hundreds of thousands of people is hugely undervalued by the current tax regime.

"Without the voluntary sector the cost of providing that service to the deserving and needy in our society would cost the Exchequer a fortune and in turn probably result in a significant increase in income tax rates."

The type of facilities that Barretstown is able to provide with its resources are impressive and Mr Strahan finds that bringing people to Kildare to see the camp is one of the best ways of persuading them to get involved. The 250-seat theatre and art and craft rooms can be used for indoor activities, while the 500-acre grounds have canoeing facilities as well as climbing, and horse riding. Mr Strahan jokes half-seriously that he is waiting for the day when the chairman of Nike will offer to build them an indoor sports hall and swimming pool.

As well as the financial support required for the camp, Mr Strahan emphasises that help is not just about giving money. "Money of course is hugely important, but help is so many other things. We could not survive here without the volunteers - doctors, nurses, translators, drama teachers, and many others - who give their time freely to contribute to our vision."

Now 58 years old, Mr Strahan says that he has never been so driven in his work than he has been at Barretstown. He enjoyed his time at Bord Trachtala but says he finds his current job a lot more challenging and rewarding.

Being able to look out of his office window and see the children playing outside helps confirm his belief in the value of the Barretstown project.

"After all," he says smiling and reverting to the language of his former career, "you must be convinced of the product, or you're not going to make a sale."