Chambers Irelands Excellence in Local Government Awards 2007

Press Release by South Dublin County Council Released 16^th November 2007

South Dublin County Council strongly congratulate Leitrim County Council on being awarded Local Authority of the Year 2007 by Chambers Ireland at its annual Excellence in Local Government Awards ceremony held in the Burlington Hotel, Dublin on Thursday 8^th November 2007, in association with the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government.

South Dublin County Council received the highest number of nominations of any local authority reflecting its close working relationship with the South Dublin Chamber. We are delighted to announce we won in the Sports and Recreation category with the excellent Sports Flexibility Programme.

The Sports Flexibility Programme is a joint venture between South Dublin County Council and FS which targets and supports early school leavers who are sports minded people and wish to pursue a career in that field.

Spoirt Teic Tamhlacht was established in 1993 as a FAS Community Training Programme sponsored by South Dublin County Council to enable a second chance to be given to young people from the South Dublin County Council administrative area, who may have left school early or did not complete the formal education process for whatever reason. The aim of the course was through the medium of sport to enable them to either gain employment or to return to education to further progress their education. This years course was the first year of the course being held in the Councils newly built Tallaght Leisure Centre, which brought all of the projects requirements of Swimming Pool, Sports Hall, Gym, Classroom etc under one roof.

Over the years the programme has developed and expanded to meet the changing demands of the health and leisure industry and now offers international and national awards. The trainees are equipped with the necessary skills to work as sports coaches in their local communities and to gain employment in any field of the health and leisure industry. Spoirt Teic has now evolved into one of the most successful of such projects in the country with 95% of the participants gaining employment in the sports and leisure industry. As well as progressing the trainees in the qualification side of things, Spoirt Teic has always tried to develop a sense of responsibility among the trainees towards their communities

South Dublin County Council this year decided to build on the successes of the course and its expansion to continue to make a real difference and where we can reach those at an earlier stage to provide an economic alternative to anti-social behaviour and delinquency pro-social alternatives.

South Dublin County Council was also short-listed in the following categories:

                 Outstanding Customer Service for - Libraries e-Books Service

                 Environmental Initiative for - Green Building, Vesey Park, Lucan

                 Partnership with Business for - Grange Affordable Housing Initiative

                 Technology for - Connect Projects

                 Overall Award - Local Authority of the Year

South Dublin County Council held the honour last year of being named Local Authority of the Year at the 2006 Chambers Ireland Excellence in Local Government awards, as well as winning awards in three specialist categories, and outstanding achievement.

Announcing the award winners, Chambers Irelands Incoming President, Dr. Chris Coughlan said, Against a difficult financial background, local authorities continue to find innovative ways of ensuring positive environments for Irish business and citizens alike. While we welcome Minister Gormleys fresh impetus on Local Government Reform, the footage of tonights honored authorities is a clear illustration of the dynamism that is already at work in many local authorities across the country. It is important that any future reforms build upon and consolidate this very positive resource.

Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, John Gormley T.D. said, The Local Government Awards give us an opportunity to recognize excellence in local government and applaud the efforts of those elected members and officials across the country that work to make our counties, cities and towns better places to live in.

Mayor of South Dublin Mr. Billy Gogarty, accepting the award on behalf of South Dublin County Council congratulated all those involved on achieving such high standards. He stated that the projects profiled is an indication of the level of innovation and best practice which is evident across all aspects of the Councils operations.

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