Call for outdoor gym equipment in Tipperary to encourage healthier lifestyles
A call has been made for outdoor gym equipment to be installed in Carrick-on-Suir to help improve adult health and fitness.
Speaking after a presentation from Healthy Ireland coordinator for Tipperary, Eoin Kaar, at the February meeting of the Carrick-on-Suir Municipal District, Fianna Fáil councillor Kieran Bourke said the equipment would be a welcome addition to the town.
"I put this in as a motion back in the day when we had a town council in Carrick-on-Suir, and this adult outdoor recreation equipment was spotted by people who brought it to my attention in other towns.
"Back then, we put in an application for funding to put this equipment, possibly adjacent to the Greenway as it leaves Carrick-on-Suir, but unfortunately we didn’t get the funding,” he said.
Cllr Bourke asked Mr Kaar for some advice on how to go about applying for funding again.
"How do we go about trying to get funding for this type of equipment, because I think it would be a great addition to activities that go on in the town of Carrick-on-Suir, and throughout the district,” Cllr Bourke said.
In response, Mr Kaar said that while his department didn’t have a huge pot of funding available, he would link in with the local councillors and try to support the installation of this type of equipment in the town.
“Our fund for Healthy Ireland isn’t massive, we have a fund of €75,000 to cover countywide activities, but we did support Cahir in terms of their older adult equipment,” Mr Kaar said.
"We weren’t able to do much for them, but we were able to provide a couple of small pieces, but we might be able to do something similar if the need is identified in Carrick-on-Suir. I’d be happy to support the councillors in and around that, so I’ll see what I can do in that regard,” he added.
Mr Kaar said that when Healthy Ireland helped to support the equipment installation in Cahir, they were also able to link in with a local gym to put on events there to promote health and fitness.
"In order to support engagement in Cahir, we put on a number of sessions, and we partnered with a local gym, and it was a great way of getting the community involved, training up local leaders, and creating that sustainable exercise programme locally,” he added.
Mr Kaar said similar initiatives could be undertaken in Carrick-on-Suir to help encourage residents to take part in regular exercise and build a sustainable community fitness programme.