Roscommon Sports Partnership (RSP)

The Local Sports Partnership Initiative was developed by the Irish Sports Council in order to create a national structure to co-ordinate and promote the development of sport and physical activity at local level. The initiative was created following widespread consultation with other agencies and organisations with an interest in the development of sport.

The objectives of the program are to:

1. Enhanced planning of sport at local level. 2. Increased levels of local participation, especially amongst specific target groups such as older people, girls and women, people with disabilities, unemployed people and those who live in identified disadvantaged communities. 3. Enhanced local coach deployment. 4. Club development. 5. Volunteer training. 6. Local directories of sports bodies and facilities. 7. Better use of existing facilities. 8. Clear priorities for local facility provision and improvement, with related quality management initiatives. 9. School/club/community. 10. Local sports event.

Roscommon Sports Partnership focuses on the following Strategic Aims for 2012-2014:

1. Participation Pathways: To increase participation in Sports/Physical Activity for all of the citizens of County Roscommon through their life stages. 2. Training & Development: To promote Training & Development, both for all involved in Sports/Physical Activity and their clubs throughout County Roscommon. 3. Communications: To increase good methods of Communications, at all levels, throughout County Roscommon. 4. Effective Operations: To promote effective Operational Systems within Roscommon Sports Partnership.

Key Concepts in Sports Development:

* Empowerment: A social process that helps people gain control over their own lives. It is a process that raises power in people, for use in their own lives, their communities, and in society, by acting on issues that they define as important. Empowerment also occurs at various levels: individual, group, and community. It is important that the individual and community are primarily connected.

* Advocacy: active support of an idea or cause.

* Foundation: Encouraging people, especially young people into the exercise habit and developing basic movement and sports skills (for example, throwing, catching, hand-eye coordination etc.) to provide a foundation for personal development and future participation in the sport of their choice.

* Participation: Opportunities for all members of the community to take part in a sport.

* Performance: Opportunities for those already participating to improve their performance standards, where the desire to improve is the key factor for involvement.

* Sports Development Continuum: A model that shows the different levels of sport development and abilities.

* Sustainability: Sustainability is the capacity to endure. Promoting the empowerment of individuals and communities, helping to support communities to develop their skills.

The Roscommon partnership has set up many programs to assist in many key concepts such as:

* Participation * community development * social inclusion * coaching and talent development * PE and school sport * working and volunteering in sports development * Elite performance and the Olympic Games, research and policy evaluation.

Participation:
For all for life:
On the basis of their initial three years of operation and the review process, the sports partnership recognised the need for a Participation Pathway. As people grow and develop they drop in and out of sports due to competing pressures, varying experiences or lack of opportunities. In response to this varied involvement in sports, RSP recognises the value of a Participation Pathway. The role of this Pathway is to highlight and present opportunities for participation in sports at all life stages. This Participation Objective in particular identifies the different life and development stages and the corresponding sports participation opportunities. They believe that everyone deserves and benefits from participation in sports and physical activity. Different stages of life involve different challenges and opportunities; their goal is to ensure an available range of participation opportunities for all life’s stages.

Life stages: Roscommon Sports Partnership does many tasks, aims and programmes specifically designed to keep all ages involved.

Youths:

* Continue to deliver programmes suitable for the introduction of preschool children to sports and physical activity. * Support the ongoing delivery of the Buntús program amongst National schools. * Support Sports Governing Bodies in their roll out of sports specific Buntús programs amongst National Schools. * Encourage the effective linking of school students with sports clubs. * Encourage and develop participation in individual and minority sports amongst youth. * Enhance the participation of secondary school students in sports and physical activities. * Support schools and clubs in the development of additional non competitive sports and physical activities opportunities for their students.

Adults:

* Promote awareness of the health, social, personal and community wellbeing benefits through physical activity. * Identify and promote a range of age appropriate sports activities for adults, particularly individual sports. * Support the development of non mainstream and individual sports and physical activities in Roscommon. * Support the Slí na Slainte programme. * Encourage family sports participation through school student and community links. * Continue to develop and deliver a “Women in Sports” Programme.

Older Adults:

* They believe in the principle of “Use it or Loose it” and so recognise the quality of life potential of sports and physical activity participation for older adults. * Promote and encourage participation in the Go for Life programme. * Continue to support the Physical Activity Leader courses.

Specific Targets:

As part of this Participation Pathway RSP recognise that for a wide variety of reasons, some members of the Roscommon community have lower participation rates or fewer participation opportunities. They recognise the importance of both checking for barriers and creating links to sports for these groups. In particular they understand that participation rates amongst people with a disability, women, ethnic groups, migrant workers and asylum seekers tend to be lower. At RSP they: * Establish and deliver a sports and physical activity action plan for people with a disability. * Increase sports and physical activity amongst traditionally low participation groups. * Develop and undertake an annual action plan for low participation groups.

Training, Development and People Involved:

Clubs and organisations: They Continue to support clubs and organisations in their development by identify where additional clubs and sports are required particularly amongst minority and individual sports.
2.2 Facilities
Facilities: RSP Identify and prioritise locations with a sports facility deficit in the County. They assist on demand the development of sports facilities in the County, in particular in locations with low sports facility provision. They continue to reduce barriers to school sports facilities and identify and publicise suitable natural sports facilities in Roscommon. They also assist in the development of an annual walking and cycling activity programme.

Volunteers: They enhance volunteer recruitment and retention amongst sports organisations. They continue to support attendance by club volunteers at relevant coaching courses and continue to recognise volunteers in the community.

Coaching: The RSP continue to provide and promote code of ethics, first aid courses and other appropriate coaching support programmes. They promote current coaching research and findings. The coaches try to lead by example through quality of courses provided or supported by the RSP.

Principles of partnership working:

Effective partnerships are characterised by people working together for a common goal, based on mutual respect and value for each contribution. Partnership should:

* Promote and contribute to shared outcomes in the delivery of social work education * Develop a strategic approach to workforce planning and social work education * Foster relationships between key people that are based on feedback, communication, understanding and respecting each other’s values * Provide clarity of roles and expectations as a basis for sharing the workload. * Partnerships should not become too large or complex to manage effective collaboration, but may have partners offering different levels of contribution. * Partnerships should be able to respond to new initiatives across the spectrum of social work education and professional development.

Programmes

Roscommon Sports Partnership is dedicated to the promotion and development of sports in Roscommon. They have introduced programmes to help further that aim such as:

* Buntús Generic – Primary Schools Programme * Buntús Start – Pre-School Programme * Go For Life * Let’s Get Active and Stay Active Programme * Playground Markings * Sports Personality Awards * Walking Initiatives * Secondary School Programme * Water Sports Programme * Community Programmes
Roscommon Sports Partnership also provide and facilitate courses for clubs such as: * Active Leadership * Code of Ethics * Children’s Officer