Glenullin GAC New Community Sports Programme 2025

Who are we?

Glenullin GAA Club is deeply rooted in the heart of the Glenullin community. Our Club aim is to enrich the lives of our residents by promoting traditional Irish sport, community involvement, cross community work, youth development, and improving overall health and wellbeing. 

We have strong community links locally such as groups who regularly use our facilities throughout the year. For example: 

• Local charity Eagle Glen Community Partnership- For their charitable activities with older people, young people and the wider community; 
• Glenullin Camogie Club- For their female sporting programmes that encourage more girls to take up sport in our rural community; 
• Surrounding Primary Schools- For their extra curricular PE programmes;
• Glenullin Community Resource Centre- For Christmas community fun events and occasions. 

This demonstrates that we are much more than just a GAA Club. Our facilities are used by 1000s of people each week. At the core of our mission is the promotion and preservation of Gaelic games. 

Our club acts as an important platform for our sports and is committed to ensuring they contribute to the rural Glenullin area and beyond. We offer people of all ages, from children to adults, the opportunity to actively participate and enjoy this unique game and our club. By fostering an environment that encourages skill development and competition, we aim to instill a deep appreciation and love for Gaelic games in our community.

Glenullin GAA Club is much more than a sporting organisation. It is a vibrant community organisation. Our commitment to community participation continues. We understand that strong communities are built on shared experiences, shared goals, and a sense of belonging. We bring people together through various events, competitions, and social gatherings, creating an atmosphere of unity, pride, and togetherness in a rural area.

Why are we crowdfunding?

We are Crowdfunding to get more people into sport and exercise in our rural community of Glenullin. Coming in 2025 from Jan to March, we’re planning a new programme of community sports and exercise right up to the end of March. The new programme is designed to offer fun and active winter & spring sport and physical activities for rural isolated residents in particular, to get more people active more often!

Our goal is to create a vibrant, inclusive environment where everyone can enjoy staying fit and healthy while accessing sporting programmes in our rural community, regardless of where people come from.

Starting from the basics, we will be Smoke and Vape free at our Club grounds from Jan 1st 2025 to improve the health of our community so they are better able to take part in physical activity. 

We also want to use this crowdfunding to encourage more of our volunteers to gain sporting qualifications for example,  train up coaches on the GAA Coach Education Programme to enhance their team management skills and for more girls for example, to join in our teams. 

We plan to run a new 4 week short camp in Feb to encourage our young girls to join the LGFA U16 team.

We will use our current facilities, such as our pitch pathways, to deliver a new "Every Step Counts" in conjunction with “Ireland Lights Up” programme in February/March to encourage people to get outside and walk more. 

We will use our indoor facilities to deliver a new 10 week Yoga/Pilates initiative for older people from Jan to March. We will also bring in approved facilitators to deliver a physical fitness programme for young people in March and also to deliver several workshops for better mental health in our rural community Feb and March.

How we’ll spend the money raised

To make this happen, we need your support through our crowdfunding. Your donations will help us cover the costs of project specific equipment, upskilling opportunities for our volunteer coaches, expert facilitator costs, refreshments, and promotional costs to ensure the programme reaches all in our rural community.

Budget breakdown includes:

1. Project-Specific Equipment (£4,000)

• Footballs (40 @ £20 each): £800
• Training cones (5 sets of 50 @ £30 each): £150
• Bibs (100 @ £5 each): £500Yoga mats (40 @ £50 each): £1000
• Resistance bands (20 @ £10 each): £200
• Step counters for "Every Step Counts" (50 @ £10 each): £500
• Reflective armbands for "Every Step Counts" (100 @ £3 each): £300
• Gym quipment for fitness and mental health workshops: £550

2. Upskilling Opportunities for Volunteer Coaches (£2,000)

• GAA Coach Education Programme (5 coaches @ £300 each): £1,500
• Workshop on youth engagement and inclusivity (Facilitator fee + materials): £500

3. Expert Facilitator Costs (£2,500)

• Yoga/Pilates facilitators for older adults (20 sessions @ £50/session): £1,000
• Physical fitness trainer for youth programme (20 sessions @ £50/session): £1,000
• Mental health workshop facilitator (2 workshops @ £250/workshop): £500

4. Refreshments (£1,000)

• Healthy snacks and drinks for sports camps and workshops (10+ events @ £150/event): £1,000

5. Promotional Costs (£500)

• Design and printing of flyers/posters (500 copies @ £0.50 each): £250
• Social media advertising campaign (targeted ads over 3 months): £250

Every little bit helps, and your support will have a huge impact on our community here in rural Glenullin, getting more rural residents active and into sport!

 Please spread the word about our crowdfunding, and donate what you can! Thank you for your support

Community impact

Our project is about Connecting Communities and Enabling Participation in our rural community of Glenullin. For example:

• Our programme fosters inclusivity by providing sports and physical activity opportunities for all ages, genders, and abilities in the rural Glenullin community. This aligns with Sport NI’s goal to enable more people to take part in sport and physical activity throughout Northern Ireland.

Engaging Underrepresented Groups

• The focus on girls' sports through our camps and Glenullin Camogie Club addresses the needs of underrepresented groups like women and girls, a key target audience for the programme.
• Initiatives like "Every Step Counts" and yoga/pilates sessions target older people and rural residents, further contributing to levelling the playing field.

Innovative and Additional Initiatives

• The programme includes new activities such as the “Smoke and Vape-Free” initiative, walking programmes, and physical fitness workshops. These additions ensure the project meets the requirement to offer new or additional activities rather than maintaining standard club operations.

Building Resilience and Planning for the Future

• By upskilling our volunteers and coaches through the GAA Coach Education Programme, the initiative strengthens our club’s capacity to deliver sustainable activities, fostering resilience and future growth.

Target Groups Addressed

Our programme directly engages several of Sport NI’s target groups:

• Women and Girls: Through our LGFA camp and Glenullin Camogie Club.
• Children and Young People (11–18 years): Through fitness workshops and sports camps.
• Older People (65+): Via yoga and pilates sessions.
• People Living in Rural Areas: By addressing isolation and providing accessible activities in Glenullin.
• Community Inclusion: Supporting cross-community work through partnerships with Eagle Glen Community Partnership and local schools.

Levelling the Playing Field

Our programme explicitly addresses barriers to participation by:

• Offering free activities to residents who may otherwise lack access to sport and fitness opportunities.
• Reducing health disparities with initiatives like the smoke and vape-free grounds.
• Encouraging women, girls, and older adults to engage in physical activities, helping traditionally underrepresented groups.

How you can play your part

There are four simple ways to help us reach our target, and make this project a reality.

1. Make a pledge. Don’t delay if you’re going to support us because momentum is key to our success!

2. Spread the word. Share our project on your social media pages and tell the world to get behind us! The more people we reach, the more support we will get.

3. Offer rewards. Get involved if you are a local business by donating things we can offer to our supporters. We will give you a shout out!

4. Fundraise for us. If you want to run your own fundraiser – maybe a sponsored activity or similar – use the 'contact project' button at the top of our page to let us know. Setting up your own page only takes a few minutes and you won’t need any bank details. Just a fun idea!