2026-05-07

8. Deputy Paul McAuliffe asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport the engagements he and his Department have had with local authorities and national sporting bodies to ensure local sports clubs are supported in applying for available grants; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32806/26]

Will the Minister of State outline the engagements he and his Department have had with local authorities and national sporting bodies in advance of the forthcoming round of sports capital grants?

I thank the Deputy for the question. I know the sports facilities fund is something he is very committed to in relation to supporting clubs in his local area. In line with the previous rounds of the community sport facilities fund, a review of the current funding round has been undertaken and will be finalised shortly. It is anticipated that the objective of the next round will particularly target areas and sports that have been under-invested in over the years. We are working to be in a position to be ready for opening a new round next month. The Department is currently collating feedback from sporting clubs and organisations which will provide valuable input to our ongoing preparations for that next round. I and my officials engage regularly with local authorities and national governing bodies and this engagement is helping to shape the criteria for the new round. New guidelines will be published in advance of the opening of the next round to ensure clubs have clarity in relation to the application round. We will also undertake a comprehensive communication round to help clubs make their applications. My aim is to have as many eligible sporting bodies as possible applying, by simplifying the application process and guide, and carrying out a wide-reaching communications campaign, including with local authorities and national governing bodies. Many clubs are relying on volunteers, and with a revised and simplified application and assessment process which my Department is implementing, it will be easier and quicker for clubs to navigate the system at all stages and allow for quicker turnaround times while also streamlining the workload for my Department. As I travel to many different parts of the country, I provide the opportunity for sports clubs to engage with me. I get their feedback on the challenges they face and how best we can make sure this next round of community sport facilities fund meets their needs as well as to give them as much information and answer as many questions as they have on how the programme and fund has worked and how they can best prepare for the next round. Once we finalise that review and publish the new round, we will communicate that clearly through the national governing bodies and through our sporting organisations.

I welcome that engagement. I want to highlight an issue particularly in cities. Often within cities land is the key issue. There might be land owned by one party and then there is a club or sporting body. That needs a degree of co-ordination. Of specific concern to me is that co-ordination and bringing parties together is not being done on a structured level. I have done it in my own communities where I have tried to bring different parties together. Dublin City Council’s parks have so much potential across the city. I am not certain that at a senior level in the city council the opportunity of the sport facilities grant is being taken serious in regard to all-weather pitches. There are parks right across my area that have the potential. There is already the example in Finglas west, the Kildonan model, where two soccer clubs have joint access to a new all-weather facility. I want to see that in parks right across Dublin City Council. That involves Dublin City Council leading the charge.

Particularly in large urban areas such as Dublin city land can be a real challenge. That is why with the last round but particularly this upcoming round we are looking to encourage educational institutions as well as local authorities to work with clubs to make joint applications. For example, where we can get a school that has some land available, where facilities can be improved and the children can use that during the school day and a club or community can use it in the evening, we get a lot more participation return for the investment that we are making. I have tasked my officials with engaging in more detail with the Department of environment and the local authority structure about how we can better structure the collaboration in relation to identifying land and making sure that it is part of our wider policy analysis and sweep, to make sure that the provision of sporting infrastructure and amenity infrastructure is considered with regard to how we develop communities, particularly new communities.

I welcome what the Minister of State is saying. When the sports capital grant opens, it is almost too late to start to bring together parties in that way. That is why the city council has such an opportunity to lead on this. I am looking at a park like Albert College, for example. Many soccer clubs but also GAA clubs really need somebody to bring them together and to put that package together on city council land in a park. I am thinking of clubs like Glasnevin FC, which really wants an all-weather facility in Albert College. There are other parks like Johnstown Park or Poppintree Park in my area that could do with all-weather facilities. We know these pitches are used widely at the moment but the wet weather that we have often reduces the amount of usage that they get. Our public parks are for everybody and we do not want to see public parks losing space, but a well co-ordinated plan and better co-ordination with the Department of heritage about brent geese needs to happen. I ask the Minister of State to reach out to Dublin City Council and ask it what its intention is this year, because I am fearful that it will not be substantial or ambitious enough.

I have engaged on this and will meet local authorities across Dublin in advance of the round opening, with the objective of making sure that they are being as proactive as possible. I know from visiting a number of clubs and working with the Deputy in his own area that he and other representatives working with him are trying to ensure that the local authority is prioritising this as well. There are challenges, particularly in urban areas, but those are challenges that we want to try to do our best to address. It requires everyone working together. Regarding the next upcoming round, we want to see that happen as much as possible. Also, with regard to long-term planning, there should be a joined-up policy and regulatory approach to make sure that land availability is considered in the context of supporting and growing a community.