The minutes of the Community, Sports and Culture SPC meeting held on the 25th June 2025 which were circulated were CONSIDERED.

It was PROPOSED by Councillor E. Dockrell and seconded by Councillor A. Donnelly and AGREED: “That the minutes of the meeting of 25th June, 2025 be ADOPTED and APPROVED.”

Betty Boardman, County Librarian provided a report on Capital Projects ongoing and scheduled in Fingal Libraries. Lilian Whelan, Senior Executive Librarian briefed the meeting with the range of planned initiatives, activities and events being hosted by Libraries in the Fingal County Council area.

Following discussion, the report was NOTED.

An update on the Fingal Arts Plan 2019-2025 was presented by Sarah O’Neill, County Arts Officer which proposed to extend the current Arts Plan.

Following discussion, the presentation was NOTED. It was AGREED to bring the proposal to extend the current Arts Plan to the Full Council Meeting.

Christine Baker, Heritage Officer, presented the 2024-2030 Heritage Plan and outlined the policy implementation matrix.

Following discussion, the presentation was NOTED.

Linda Ennis, Principal Community Officer provided a presentation on the current Community Activities Funding Grant Scheme and proposed changes to the scheme to come into effect in 2026 subject to the agreement of the Full Council.

Queries were raised on the detail of the proposed changes. These were responded to by Linda Ennis and Naomi Weir.

Following discussion, the presentation was NOTED and it was AGREED to bring the revised scheme to the Full Council meeting.

Motion: Councillor J. Humphreys - Replacement and Upgrade of Sports Facility Audit 

“That this Committee recommends to the full Council that the Chief Executive begin the process of replacing the current Sports Facilities Audit, the new audit should take a broader view covering not just outdoor pitches, but also swimming facilities, indoor sports and wider community recreational infrastructure, this work should be completed in advance of the next County Development Plan, so that zoning, land use and investment decisions are based on a proper evidence base that reflects where the Council is at now, and where it is going, the updated audit should: 1) Move away from UK-based benchmarks like Fields in Trust, which are not part of WHO or EU planning frameworks and do not reflect modern thinking around inclusion, accessibility or long-term public need; 2) Look to European planning models, where infrastructure is planned over 25–50 years and access is what is measured; 3) Include real indicators of pressure, such as waiting lists, club oversubscription, changing demographics and access gaps for particular age groups or communities; 4) Recognise public access to swimming and indoor sport are essential; 5) Support the planning of integrated, multi-use community spaces, as set out in Fingal’s Culture & Creativity Strategy and Active Together plan; 6) Identify and protect sites for future facilities, particularly in high growth areas where infrastructure is already struggling to keep pace.” 

Report:

The Sports Audit was undertaken by KPMG on behalf of the council. The draft audit was presented to the members in May and the consultant is currently dealing with a number of queries raised. The final report will be presented to Area Committees later this year.   

1) Move away from UK-based benchmarks like Fields in Trust, which are not part of WHO or EU planning frameworks and don’t reflect modern thinking around inclusion, accessibility or long-term public need; 

The Fields in Trust method has been identified as a well-established and well-regarded measurement for open space provision, including active recreation provision, going back several decades by the Fingal Sports Department/Parks & Green Infrastructure Division. This methodology employs a sport-agnostic methodology for identifying an appropriate benchmark that is applicable to pitch-based sports, allowing for benchmarking recommendations across a wider pitch sports category. The level of provision outlined in this model is in alignment with the adopted provisions of the County Development Plan. 

2) Look to European planning models, where infrastructure is planned over 25–50 years, and access is what’s measured;  

As part of the audit, sports facility demand models were reviewed from the UK, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Growth patterns were assessed to 2029, the end year of the current Fingal County Development Plan.  

3) Include real indicators of pressure, such as waiting lists, club oversubscription, changing demographics, and access gaps for particular age groups or communities;  

The audit assesses changing  ...  view the full minutes text for item CSC/14/25