New Ulster GAA Strategy

March 12th, 2009

Ulster GAA today launched the Council’s third strategic plan “Teaghlaigh agus Pobail an Fabraic de CLG: Family and Community the Fabric of the GAA” at the Stromont Hotel Belfast. The plan will direct the work of the Ulster Council right up until 2015. Launching the Plan Ulster GAA President Tom Daly said: “This is really about the GAA in Ulster putting its best foot forward in a very well planned and open way and saying “this is what we want to do over the next six to seven years and these are our objectives and targets”.

The new Ulster GAA plan has five strategic themes:

Governance- Keep Ulster GAA fit for purpose
Increasing and Improving the Games
The GAA Plant-Improving and increasing GAA facilities and Infrastructure
Enhancing the Gaelic in GAA; Culture and Heritage
The GAA’s end purpose: Community Development and Inclusion

The Ulster Hurling Strategy is also included as an appendix to the document:

The Strategic Outcomes of Ulster GAA Action Plan and Vision are summarised as follows:

Governance

Fit for purpose structures
Review of administration and financial procedures
Structured cooperation and links with the Counties
Marketing, Communication and PR
Confederation of Ulster Councils
Lobbying for “free to air” coverage of Games
Improving of “Twinning” Arrangements with Britain and Canada

Coaching and Games

20% Increase in participation levels
Social and Recreational Games
Disability Games
GAA Community Coaches
New Managers Award
Hurling Strategy
Improved CPD
Urban Development (Games)
Referees Academy re-established
High Performance
Enhanced support for Female Codes
Handball/Rounders

Infrastructure

Completion of County Ground Floodlighting Project and improvement of spectator provision and event control/media facilities
Floodlighting and improving facilities at secondary county grounds
Regional Centers of Participation and Excellence in each county
Three regional Handball centers
Urban centers in both Belfast and Derry City
Lobbying for improved provision for Gaelic Games by local government
Achieving Ulster Strategic requirement for a 45,000+ capacity stadium
Support for Club Development Projects

Culture and Heritage

125 Committee and Ulster Programme in place
Ulster GAA Archive (On-line historical project)
Ulster Sports Museum Project
Scór rebrand- 80% of Clubs participating in Scór
Public Signage for GAA Grounds
“Celtic” Art at County Grounds and GAA facilities
Increase use and promotion of Irish Language
Formal links with Foras na Gaeilge and Seachtain na Gaelige
Ongoing heritage and cultural events

Community Development

Club Development support service in place
Volunteer Training
Improved links with local and central government
50% of Clubs achieving Club Maith
Development of Scoil Maith
Strategic Plans in place for all Counties and Educational bodies
Health and Wellbeing
Diversity Training for clubs
Cross Community Projects
Community Outreach
Communication
Urban Development (Governance)

Hurling

Tom Daly highlighted the importance of the inclusion of the Hurling as appendix in the plan: “Because of the responsibility to, and the challenge we face in boosting hurling in Ulster we have developed a new specific Strategy for hurling in the Province, which is included as a full appendix to the overall Strategy and which will be useful to people involved in hurling promotion as a stand alone action plan.”

Summary of the Hurling Plan:

Increase in participation by 20%
Employment of 5 new Regional Hurling Officers
Full Nine Counties Participation
The Hurling Plan is broken down into five areas:
Governance
Communications
Refereeing
Coaching and Games
Schools and Colleges

Daly also stated: “Over recent years we have invested a lot of time and effort at Provincial Council and Committee levels determining how we want to move forward with games development and promotion, cultural matters, our internal GAA links, our links with associated organisations including camogie and ladies gaelic football. We have also carefully considered our external linkages – with Local Authorities, Government Agencies and Departments in both jurisdictions – and also considered how we relate to civic society generally and the contribution we can make, in a positive way to a better life for all in Ulster. You will find that in producing our Strategic Plan we have set ourselves objectives and targets in all of these areas. We have also tied into our targets everything that has been set out for us in relation to targets and tasks in the National GAA Strategy. Ulster has a long track record of supporting national GAA objectives and our commitment to the new National GAA Strategy is without equivocation.”

Danny Murphy Ulster GAA Provincial Director concluded by stating:

“What we have set out in this plan will stretch us; it will involve a lot of hard work and commitment. All of us involved in the development of the Strategy believe that this is the right way to go and we are prepared to invest our own funds in order to achieve our targets. We also believe that the approach which we are taking will fit in well with various exchequer funded programmes in both jurisdictions and with National GAA Programmes. We would expect support from all of these sources in order to move forward.”

For more information Contact:
Ryan Feeney
Community Development Manager: 07920528790
rfeeney@ulster.gaa.ie

– Ulster GAA Strategic Action Plan and Vision 2009-2015: “Teaghlaigh agus Pobail: An Fabraic de CLG”