DCC Sports Plan to tackle 'off-putting' barriers faced by teenage girls
Dublin City Council’s sports plan aims to keep teenage girls active by tackling "off-putting" barriers, including a lack of private dressing rooms and safety concerns in local parks.
Research commissioned by Sports Ireland shows that many girls tend to drop out of sporting activities as they enter their teenage years and that there often aren’t enough opportunities for girls to take part. Sports Implementation Officer Carmel O’Callghan told councillors at the Community, Gaeilge, Sport, Arts & Culture SPC that their sports plan aims to prioritise tackling this issue.
With 84 specific actions, the ‘More Active, More Often’ sports plan for 2024 to 2029, aims to make Dublin one of the most active cities in the world. Under the three pillars of infrastructure, programming, and organisation, the major focus for 2026 is on inclusion, particularly for teenage girls and older adults.
Ms O’Callghan explained how the sports plan has developed over the past year and that the establishment of a Local Sports Forum in each of Dublin’s five administrative areas represents a desire for a shared vision across the capital . The newly established fora has already started having meetings to facilitate communication between the council, local clubs, schools, community groups, and national governing bodies.
Issues already raised include the delivery of sports programmes tailored to local needs, better engagement with communities and clubs, as well as prioritising evidence-based decision making. One central idea is to encourage the sharing of resources between clubs.
However, clubs “aren’t quite sold yet” on the idea of facility sharing, according to People Before Councillor Conor Reddy, who said it’s important at this early stage of the plan’s development to “give people an idea of what it means in practice.” He said there’s “misconceptions that sharing means less access” but stressed in practice it’s something that can benefit all.
Cllr Reddy also pointed out the need for equitable pricing for those with disabilities, as although there is a discount for old age pensions many vulnerable people “are paying full whack.” While it was revealed at the meeting that there is a discount available for those with disabilities, he said this needs to be better communicated to clubs because that’s not always what's been told to users.
Other issues brought up from the fora related to the importance of utilising the multi-use potential of all facilities and spaces. They are also looking to securing access to school grounds for club and public use.
The sports plan aims to host workshops for clubs educating them on the Sports Capital Grant. Another suggestion is an audit on facilities and open spaces in each of the areas across Dublin to get a better understanding of what is possible and available when it comes to the provision of sports.
Green Party Cllr Donna Cooney commended the plan’s focus on teenage girls and said it's important to address the fact that “some of our parks are not necessarily places they feel welcome in.” She suggested looking into designs that would be “more suited for activities for teenage girls,” while commending the early fora meetings as a prime example of “great representation across sports in the community.”
Labour Cllr Darragh Moriarty stated that the one issue that is brought up “time and again” is “the availability of dressing rooms,” particularly for teenage girls. He said sporting clubs suffer from a serious lack of changing facilties, and although there are some people getting changed at the side of pitches or on the buses on their way to games, for teenage girls this can be incredibly “off-putting.”
“It’s a core issue that is such a barrier for so many clubs and particularly girls. It’s something that should be at the forefront of our minds to address," he said.
Cllr Vincent Jackson also praised the plan’s encouragement of young women in sport and suggested they should temporarily reduce teenage girls’ entry costs for sporting facilities. He also highlighted collaboration between the council and schools as an important endeavour to teach children just how much Dublin has to offer when it comes to sport.
“Last year I took 30 local school teachers across all the facilities in Ballyfermot and Cherry Orchard because the school children would consistently say there’s nothing to do and the principals would know there is. It is about alerting young people about what’s in their local community as the first port of call,” he said.
Julian de Spáinn from Conradh na Gaeilge highlighted how the Irish language should fall under the category of inclusion and said it’s important to consider people raising their children through Irish within the plan. The Sports Plan does mention providing fitness and swimming classes in Irish, and Ms O’Callghan said expanding that is something they could consider.
The sports forum has assigned a chairperson for each of Dublin’s administrative areas. They include: North Central Area Cllr Donna Cooney, North West Area Cllr Conor Reddy, South Central Area Cllr Darragh Moriarty, and South East Area Cllr Fiona Connelly.
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