Garnock Rugby Club - Junior Section

Project code: 937

Amount applied for

£1,000

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Project Summary

We would like to apply for funding to support with the purchase of new equipment and to provide healthy, low-cost snacks and food to our junior players and their opponents. This will encourage physical activity, promote positive mental health within young people and also encourage eating well and ensure our young people have equal access to free food. We strive to ensure that all membership costs are as low as possible and seeking funding contributes to allow us to do this.

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Project Description

We are the Junior section of Garnock Rugby Club.  We deliver rugby training to over 100 young people within the Garock Valley, and the wider community.  We strive to keep rugby as affordable as possible to young people while providing opportunties to promote health and wellbeing through physical activity.  Rugby is not just about physical activity and exercise, the young people develop so many more skills that can be transferrable in many siutations for the rest of their lives.  Skills they develop includes communication, teamwork, problem solving, negotiating, as well as increase in confidence and ability.  It has been proven that physical activity in turn can promote positive mental health, and we want to target this from a young age.  We would like to apply for funding to purchase equipment.  New equipment ensures the young people are kept active, challenged and that they continue to attend as they enjoy the sport.  New equipment could include balls, target practices, tackling bags, cones and any ideas that the young people have. 

We'd also like to provide healthy, low-cost snacks and food to our junior players and their opponents.  Providing food options after games will ensure equal access to free food for all.  We understand the food poverty and financial restraints that parents have and in challenging times, and this would ensure everyone was included.  Having food available would increase a strong sense of community, creating a shared space where players, coaches and supporters can come together to unwind, reflect and connect - which promotes mental wellbeing.  At Garnock, we pride ourselves in providing a low-cost physical activity and funding would allow us to continue this.

We ensure that the young people are involved in any funding process by checking in with their needs, wants and wishes.  By seeking funding we are able to keep our membership costs as low as possible, which ensures costs are not restrictive in young people being involved in sport.

Costs

£500 - various sports equipment that the young people are involved in buying 

£500 - to provide healthy snacks and food after games for the young people and their opponents.

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How have young people been involved in shaping this project?

We have discussed with the young people about the new equipment that we will purchase for the teams. At training over the past few weeks, we have discussed equipment with the young people and what they would like to see involved in the training. Some have mentioned more tackle bags as that is something they feel that can really improve on and get their confidence up, whilst others have mentioned more balls so that they can all have one each or more equipment for certain games. One thing the teams really enjoy doing is tug of war, as this encourages teamwork and strength as well as developing communication skills within the teams. With our funding, the young people are always at the heart of the decisions we make and would help us to spend it the way they want! Another thing that they were keen to have was free food after games. Sometimes parents take turn to make things, which can include some families due to financial constraints and cost of living. If funding was to include food, this would ensure all the young people had free equal access to nutritional food.

Location: Garnock Valley - the club is based in Glengarnock, however there are young people who come from all over the Garnock Valley such as Dalry, Kilbirnie, Beith, Barrmill, Gateside and sometimes even broader in North Ayrshire.