Fingal County Council’s Community & Sports Office, Balbriggan launched
Press Release October 16, 2018
A brand new Community & Sports Office in Balbriggan, was officially opened today by Deputy Mayor Cllr Gráinne Maguire, with David Gillick, former Olympian and sports personality speaking at the launch. David spoke passionately about the positive effects of community on people’s lives and in particular their mental health. He also commented on how he benefited from engaging in a physical activity programme in his local community, after he retired from professional sports.
The Community and Sports Office is a joint initiative between the Sports & Community teams in Fingal County Council and will be of great benefit to the town of Balbriggan over the coming years. The new office is located in Flemington Community Centre and houses a team consisting of Community Development Officer Mick Dunne and Community Sports Development Officer Ciaran Russell.
Mick Dunne, the Community Development Officer, who traditionally covered all of north Fingal, will now focus solely on Balbriggan. The work that is on-going in terms of support to community and voluntary groups, research, and development of projects and initiatives to benefit Balbriggan can now be deepened as a result of the dedicated presence here in Flemington Community Centre.
The Community Sports Development Officer is a new post for Balbriggan and speaking at the event Chief Executive of Fingal County Council Paul Reid said “I would like to take this opportunity to welcome Ciaran Russell and wish him success working with groups and clubs throughout the town to promote access to sport and healthy lifestyles”.
The position of ‘Community Sports Development Officer’ and the creation of a Balbriggan Community Sports Hub has been made possible with Dormant Accounts Funding through Sport Ireland. The Chief Executive also thanked the Fingal Sports Office Team who submitted the application to Sport Ireland and the Community Office Team who supported the process.
Speaking at the event, the Deputy Mayor Cllr Gráinne Maguire recognized the work of the Flemington Local Development Group. “I want to thank Flemington Local Development Group, some of whom are present today, and on whose behalf the application to Sport Ireland was made”. She added that “Balbriggan is a great place to live and work and we need to keep promoting the positive messages coming from the town such as this new office being launched here today”.
Regarding the social and economic development of the town, Chief Executive Paul Reid added that “Fingal County Council is currently engaged in a substantial regeneration of Balbriggan across a range of areas including public realm, economy and enterprise and training and education. Work is on-going and significant Fingal County Council resources will underpin the social and economic strategy and help to realize positive and lasting change for the town”.
