Access to physical and recreational activities

The majority of the Ukrainian Children who have been welcomed in Cavan are living in hotel/temporary accommodation, often in single rooms and situated in town centres. This has left many of them isolated and limited in access to activities and facilities to engage in physical/recreational activity together and with local children.

Cavan County Local Development (CCLD) continues to work very hard ‘on the ground’ across County Cavan to assist the Ukrainian Community and to try and address their many needs, including physical and mental health needs.

Healthy Cavan worked in partnership with CCLD in delivering this successful ‘Play For Peace’ initiative in July 2023, to try and increase the percentage of Ukrainian children meeting the National Physical Activity Levels standard and to provided increased opportunities/access for them to engage in fun play and physical activities together.

Collaborative solution created and then funded by Healthy Cavan

Healthy Cavan allocated a total funding package of €3,300 to CCLD to assist in the delivery of these camps in Cavan Town.

Consultation was held with the Ukrainian community across County Cavan to identify the main barriers to participation and the types of activities/sports that the children might like to try. This came in the form of focus groups at a number of accomodation centres with both adults and children.

The main findings from these consultations were that Transport, cost and lack of access to facilities were the main barriers to participation amongst Ukrainian children. These findings helped inform delivery of the initiative at a local level.

How it all came together?

The Multi Activity kid’s sports camps aimed to inspire kids to come along and encourage them to try new sports and new experiences. To improve self-esteem, help meet new people, improve mood, to give a sense of belonging and ease loneliness. Almost 40 children benefitted from the sessions which were held at Cavan Swimming Pool and Leisure Centre.

Healthy Cavan worked in partnership with CCLD and the Civil Defence, to ensure that children from all over the county came together to interact and try new sports in a safe, supported, comfortable and fun environment.

We also brought our Ukrainian Children from across the County together over the summer to take part in Tennis Lessons. The aim of the tennis lessons was not only to improve a child’s fitness but also to improve their reaction speed and be more alert. This, in turn, improves their overall wellbeing and academic focus in the classroom. It was a step away from reality, bringing some peace, play and positivity to the Ukrainian Children in Cavan.

Healthy Cavan funding was used to cover the cost of transport for all children, hire of facilities and equipment at both Cavan Swimming Pool and Leisure Centre and Cavan Tennis Club and hire of tutors for the camps. This funding removed the burden on the participating children and their families and helped to encourage participation amongst the target group.

Positive results for children and ongoing participation in activities

Almost 40 children benefitted from attendance at both of these summer camps.

The multi-activity sessions increased regular activity amongst our target group, and Cavan swimming Pool and Leisure Centre offered membership to participants at a reduced rate, with 10% of the group availing of this membership to date.

In relation to the impact of the Tennis Camp, Cavan Tennis Club offered participants a discounted membership rate for the new year and 15% of the group have availed of this so far.

It is clear from the planning and delivery of these types of initiatives that Ukrainian Children are eager to participate in and experience new activities and to increase their physical activity levels. The key lesson learned is that organisations must work together to remove the barriers to participation and engagement that are a reality for the majority of the Ukrainian Community. If these barriers are removed, then the Ukrainian community can better assimilate into the local community and be exposed to a wider range of fun, physical and mentally challenging activities to boost their overall health and self-esteem.

Benefits are extending beyond the initiative

The Tennis Camp and Multi-games camp delivered in partnership during the summer of 2023 created active participation for over 80 Ukrainian children under 14 years of age. These children have been displaced from their own country and now are living in accommodation with limited or no access to physical activity infrastructure. Healthy Cavan funded transport and participation/venue hire costs to allow these children to attend Cavan Tennis Club and the Sports Centre at no cost to them. As a result, 10% of children availed of a discounted membership of the Sports Centre and 15% of the Tennis club.

The majority of children that responded to follow up, after the conclusion of these initiatives, all reported being extremely grateful for and energised by what they had enjoyed. Many had not had the opportunity to take part in such initiatives previously due to home life/family/cost of living issues and these initiatives gave them a release from those pressures. They reported having a renewed or even new found confidence to actually seek out new clubs/activities/groups locally providing physical activity for people their age and many reported that they had begun to show more interest in participating in PE at school and many joining clubs/groups within the school setting that they previously felt excluded from.

Would you like to know more this or other Healthy Cavan initiatives?

If you would like any more information on the priorities and objectives of Healthy Cavan, or want to learn more about some of the initiatives being delivered in Cavan, using Healthy Ireland funding, then please contact Steven Ormsby – Healthy Cavan Co-Ordinator – via email at [email protected]

Alternatively, you can follow Healthy Cavan on Facebook and  0n X @healthycavan.