Mid and East Antrim United - Strategic Football Plan by Mid and East Antrim Borough Council

Mid and East Antrim United Strategic Football Plan

www.midandeastantrim.gov.uk 1 | Mid And East Antrim United

Background

Mid and East Antrim’s Irish Premiership football teams joined forces with Council in 2020 to launch the ‘MEA United’ funding campaign, aimed at securing up to £25m of much-needed investment in our facilities.

MEA United intends to maximise every opportunity to lobby on behalf of our local clubs, and widely promote their case for significant investment in our facilities in Mid and East Antrim.

The MEA United taskforce is working to fully support Ballymena United, Carrick Rangers and Larne FC in their collective vision to transform the Ballymena Showgrounds, Taylors Avenue in Carrickfergus and Inver Park in Larne.

Improving the stadia facilities of the three clubs is an exciting prospect that would drive a positive change across the borough, raising the standard of sporting events in these towns for generations to come.

In 2015, the Northern Ireland Executive allocated £36m for a sub-regional stadia funding programme for local football. Following the return of power-sharing at Stormont in January of 2020, the Executive stated its intention to complete the programme, which includes plans to upgrade Irish League venues as well as Casement Park in Belfast. Irish Premiership clubs that have the ability to deliver Category Two status are eligible to apply for funding, with Ballymena United, Carrick Rangers and Larne FC all meeting the criteria.

2 | Mid And East Antrim United

Mid And East Antrim United | 1

All three clubs sit at the very heart of their communities and provide crucial services and facilities to residents, as well as uniting thousands of our citizens in their love of sport. This wide-ranging engagement, and the array of community initiatives and interventions provided through our clubs, is vital to our collective bid for investment to ensure the long-term prosperity of football in Mid and East Antrim. All three clubs recently submitted their responses to a Department for Communities evidence-gathering survey on sub-regional stadia facilities in Northern Ireland, which aimed to identify strategic priorities for the development of football.

Vision

DFC Regional Stadia Funding

MEA United is a partnership approach between Council and our three major clubs to improve stadia and facilities which are the lifeline of the local football fraternity, touching the lives of more than 200,000 people in Mid and East Antrim each year.

This document sets out how we will work together along with the Department for Communities to highlight the importance of this funding to our borough and our residents, and ultimately secure investment from the Executive.

Ballymena United, Larne FC and Carrick Rangers all play in the top tier of local football and have strong supporter bases and rich football heritages.

Our MEA United Team

MEA United fully recognises the huge contribution football makes to our society, including the health and wellbeing of our citizens, our economy, education and much more. Each of the three clubs require long overdue, significant investment in their facilities for the immediate and longer-term future, and to lay the foundations for increased future participation in football by our young people. We see the opportunity offered through regional stadia-funding as a game-changer for local football, which would in turn significantly benefit our local community.

2 | Mid And East Antrim United

• Chief Executive Anne Donaghy OBE • Ald Tommy Nicholl MBE • Cllr Matthew Armstrong • Cllr Gregg McKeen • Cllr Keith Turner • Ald Noel Williams • Cllr Marc Collins • Mr John Taggart, Chairman Ballymena United FC • Mr Gareth Clements, Chairman Larne FC • Mr Peter Clarke, Chairman of Carrick Rangers FC

Six years ago, the Northern Ireland Executive allocated £36m for the sub-regional programme for local football. In its 2015 consultation, the then Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure (now Department for Communities) had divided the pot of money into five areas. The Oval was set to receive an investment of £10m so it would be suitable for “hosting high level competition matches with a moderate capacity level of 6,000 to 8,000 persons”. A second strand of £17m was made available to other Premiership clubs who were capable of hosting fixtures with a 5,000 capacity. They could apply for funding of up to £3m to provide “stadia which can sit at the hub of key communities and can offer quality football facilities and community facilities which bring revenues into the club tenants, thus making football in these areas more sustainable”.

Mid And East Antrim United | 3

IFA Championship clubs were also set to receive a total of £3m, with a potential sum of £500,000 available to clubs who applied, while a further £3m would be put towards “a single high quality facility” for intermediate and junior football. The final strand was meant to be a sum of £3m put towards a national training centre to “support current talent and nurture future generations”. A location for the proposed centre had not been determined but the minimum requirement for the site was 20 acres. In January 2020, The Department for Communities said a fresh consultation needed to take place on sub-regional stadia funding, given the changes in football since 2015. A department spokesperson told the media that £36m was still available but would not commit to a timeframe or any extra money.

Mid And East Antrim United | 3

Achievements to Date Football plays a major part throughout the borough engaging both young and old, and from a range of backgrounds, in helping build stronger, safer communities. Mid and East Antrim is not only home to three senior clubs, but also has four teams completing at Intermediate level and 34 Junior clubs within the borough, providing football coaching, training and games for 1,162 adult players on a weekly basis. There are also four women’s and girls’ teams established across the local communities, with three attached to our senior clubs and one with Greenisland FC.

All of the above is supported by a club workforce of 830 club volunteers and an average of 5,370 spectators on a weekly basis. For a detailed breakdown of all the clubs please see Appendix 1. Since 2015, Mid and East Antrim Borough Council, through its Grants Programme, has invested over £95,000 across the borough to supply training equipment, coaching qualifications, holiday camps, first aid equipment and walking football from youth to adult and Junior to Senior level clubs to support the wonderful work all our clubs do to help build a stronger and safer environment for all our citizens.

3 x Senior Teams (Ballymena, Carrick, Larne) 4 x Intermediate Teams (Greenisland, Larne Tech Old Boys, Islandmagee, Wakehurst, Wellington Recreation FC)

34 x Junior Teams

A number of local clubs are also involved in providing football for those with disabilities. There are 10 youth football clubs in the local area who are affiliated to clubs from junior to senior level and collectively facilitate 164 youth teams and some 2,333 youth footballers for training and games.

10 x Youth Academys 164 x Youth Teams

Players - 1162 (Seniors) + 2333 (Youth) = 3495 Volunteers - 830 Spectators - 5390 per week / 200,000 per year

4 | Mid And East Antrim United

Mid And East Antrim United | 5

Local Benefits from Funding Sport, particularly football, within Mid and East Antrim, plays a key role in ensuring active healthy lifestyles and community participation and engagement. Senior clubs Larne, Ballymena United and Carrick Rangers also carry out a wide range of initiatives outside of sport, in order to support their local community. The opportunity to enhance their facilities and bring them up to a higher standard will build on existing hubs which increase and enhance community participation and involvement. In order to facilitate our collective vision for football in Mid and East Antrim we have undertaken a workshop with all three senior clubs in MEA United and found the following: • Ballymena United FC The architect, appointed by Council, presented a number of proposals for the main arena which could be developed at the Showgrounds and a number of options were discussed which would provide a UEFA Category 3 or 4 Stadium. Elected Members considered that the preference would be a stand at both ends of the ground to enclose the arena and thereby creating a better atmosphere.

6 | Mid And East Antrim United

The club currently has around 300 connected to Ballymena United Youth Academy and 112 ladies involved in Ballymena United FC Women and Academy. The average attendance at a Ballymena United match is around 1,300 per match.

Option 1 Upgrade existing floodlighting to Category D and provide one new 1,100 seater stand. This would increase capacity from 3,694 to 4,794 but the stadium would remain at the current UEFA Category 2 status.

Option 2 Upgrade the ground to a UEFA Category 3 stadium. This would include extensions and alterations to the existing stands, new electronic turnstiles, new playing pitch, new floodlighting to category 3 standard and new car parking for VIPs/staff. This would increase capacity from 3,694 to 4,519 but would leave both ends of the pitch open.

Option 3 Upgrade stadium to UEFA Category 3 plus additional 2250 seater stand to one end only which would increase the capacity from 3,694 to 6,519.

Option 4 Upgrade the stadium to a UEFA Category 4 Stadium, this would include two new stands at either end of the pitch, alterations to existing stands, new electronic turnstiles, new playing pitch, new floodlighting to UEFA Category 4 and new VIP/staff car parking. This would bring the stadium up to a comparable level to the National Stadium at Windsor Park, increasing the capacity from 3,694 to 8,005. • Larne FC Club Chairman Gareth Clements indicated that since the facilities had been bought, £3m has been invested in the ground. The Club has now increased from around 50 -100 people attending a match to 600 season ticket holders and an average attendance of 1,450, which is the 3rd highest attendance in the league. The Club Chairman also highlighted the ongoing business engagement and community engagement which takes place across the town. They have now 400 young people involved in their Larne Youth set up and two Ladies teams which brings the total weekly participating to 500-600 people in the playing side of the Club. They have now become the first club in NI to become a dedicated safe space for woman, working in partnership with Woman’s Aid and

Mid And East Antrim United | 7

is the first club on on the island of Ireland to deliver a full time education scholarship programme giving students the foundation to train full-time while studying a BTEC in Sport in collaboration with Larne High School and LLS. Currently in the first year of this course with a cohort of 24 students enrolled, next year a second cohort of 24 students will be enrolled on the two-year course, facilitating 48 students within the Club in a full time playing and learning environment and extending the access to full-time football down from the first team to begin at 16 years of age. The Club outlined its vision around its objectives as follows: Football • Deliver European Qualification • Deliver financial sustainability • Implement an effective player pathway Facility • To increase capacity to UEFA Category Two • Create a top class sports and community facility that is able to host other sporting groups, clubs, community groups and organisations, and have the capacity to establish key anchor tenants such as small local businesses and social enterprises.

Community Engagement • Deliver a vibrant and engaging community engagement programme, with projects running at Inver Park Stadium all year round. • Create new opportunities and additional pathways in to new areas for as many local people as possible using our facilities as the hub for everyone, ranging from other sports, music, dance, drama, physical activity and business. The proposed plans include a new main stand with a seated capacity of 2,000 based over three levels, with the ground level for players, middle level for the supporters and community, and the upper level for more modern and welcoming community facilities.

• Carrick Rangers FC Chairman of Carrick Rangers Peter Clarke initially gave an overview of the extensive community outreach that the Club is involved in, which includes a 500-strong Youth Academy, Ladies Football, Disability Football and extensive community outreach. The Club also secured funding from PCSP to undertake twilight soccer, which had an impact on antisocial behaviour in the town. Given the very tragic recent circumstances of one of their players, who lost their life by suicide, Carrick have a significant focus on mental health and wellbeing within their players, club and supporters. The overall plan for Taylors Avenue would help to increase the capacity of the ground from 2,088 to 3,000.

The Club is now at an advanced stage and has submitted their planning application to Council’s Planning Services. The Club hopes to obtain planning permission by April 2021. The projected overall cost of the project is £4.7m and in addition the Club sought the possibility of one or two Council representatives becoming involved in its working group to take forward the project and potentially short-term funding around the development of the business cases and economic appraisals.

8 | Mid And East Antrim United

Mid And East Antrim United | 9

Regional Benefits from Funding

MEA United’s vision will not only benefit local football and our community, it also offers huge potential for the future of football right across Northern Ireland. There are three main strategic documents setting out a regional vision, which MEA United should align with and can benefit long-term. Further details of each can be found within the appendix of this document. • Irish FA Five Year Plan 2017-2022 The Irish Football Association launched a five-year strategy in 2017 which is aimed at promoting, fostering and developing football for all. With the Northern Ireland senior men’s side having competed at Euro 2016, the new National Football Stadium at Windsor Park open, more people watching the NIFL Premiership and more people playing the game, football in the country is on a high. The IFA’s strategy, which MEA United aligns with, is designed to ensure that the game continues to grow at all levels and that the Association continues to deliver for the entire football family in Northern Ireland. It sets six long-term objectives: • To help Northern Ireland international teams challenge every time and qualify every other time in qualification for major tournaments • To help rebuild the football estate in Northern Ireland • To provide assistance for senior clubs in

10 | Mid And East Antrim United

European Competition and to help NIFL Premiership Clubs break the top 40 in UEFA co-efficient ranking • To reinvigorate the ‘everyday’ game • To build a thriving stadium business at the National Football Stadium at Windsor Park • To serve the Community Better Patrick Nelson, Irish FA Chief Executive, previously said: “We look forward to the long-promised £36.2 million of sub-regional funding being released by the Stormont Executive and will work to ensure that this capital investment has a transformative effect on football at all levels. “It is also our aim that the ‘everyday game’ flourishes whether at intermediate, junior or recreational level. It is also a priority of the Association that the National Football Stadium at Windsor Park is used for as many club finals as possible. “In short, we want to build on the foundations laid in recent years and to set new targets that will benefit the whole game in Northern Ireland. I believe that this plan will help us do that and I look forward to promoting, fostering and developing football for all over the next five years.”

MEA United’s plan supports the vision of Sport NI to provide accessible sport and physical recreation opportunities, including greater participation of underrepresented groups. Sport NI also focuses on providing inclusive environments with quality coaching, along with diverse activities being offered. Physical literacy in young people and other underrepresented groups is a priority, including women and girls, people with disabilities and older people, etc. The development of people is central for an effective sporting system, with equality and inclusion to be mainstreamed throughout our sporting system. • Irish FA Youth Strategy 2015-2025 Prior to 2015 the Irish Football Association (Irish FA) never had an overarching Youth Football Strategy. With around 50,000 young people playing the game regularly (DCAL, 2009), the Irish FA recognised the need for a fit for purpose youth football strategy in its Strategic Plan 2013-2018.

• Sport NI Corporate Plan Sport NI’s Corporate Plan aims to increase the number of people adopting and sustaining participation in sports and recreation, and ensuring Northern Ireland athletes are among the best in the world.

Mid And East Antrim United | 11

It felt such a strategy was required to revitalise the culture of the youth game, drive participation up in a structured manner in clubs and schools, and to develop clear pathways for young people to become involved and stay involved in the game. That 10-year strategy, Let Them Play, was first introduced in 2015 and is continuing to evolve. It is important that the Irish FA not only provides football for all but that it puts in place strategic systems which will develop young boys and girls, whatever their background or ability level, and nurture them to reach their full potential. Ultimately the Irish FA wishes to produce a youth football culture which empowers boys and girls to develop a lifelong love for the game, not only creating talented players who can one day play for Northern Ireland but helping to create positive citizens who can contribute to society.

MEA United’s link to Council’s Strategic Objectives Council is guided by its Corporate Plan 2019-2023 and the Community Plan Putting People First, which was published 30 March 2017.

Theme

Objective 2 – Encourage our people to realise their potential through awareness, training and lifelong learning

The Community Plan sets out a vision for 2030 for Mid and East Antrim will be a strong, vibrant, safe and inclusive community where people work together to improve the quality of life for all and the thematic groups are sustainable jobs and tourism, good health and wellbeing, progress in education, community safety and cohesion and our environment. The Mid and East Antrim Corporate Plan 2019-2023 has five strategic themes. Theme

Sustainable Jobs & Tourism

Learning for Life

Objective relevant to football plan Objective 4 – Attract more visitors to stay longer and spend more through delivery of our tourism strategy

Objective 2 – Improve and sustainably manage our environment protection it for future generations

Objective 1 – deliver a joined up approach to improve physical health and wellbeing

Good Health and Wellbeing

Objective 1 – Encourage good relations by creating vibrant, shared, cohesive communities within the borough Community Safety and Cohesion

Objective 2 – Improve community safety and confidence to enable people to feel safe and have a sense of belonging to their area

Objective 2 – play our part in enabling people to live longer and healthier lives, reducing health and equalities in social isolation Objective 3 – enable older people to be active, respective and supported in their community

High Performing Council

Objective 3 – Build the capacity of local community to become resilient and selfsustainable

12 | Mid And East Antrim United

Objective 3 – Develop a joined up approach to the delivery of education and training programmes in schools and in the wider community Objective 4 – Enhance opportunities for volunteering, work experience and apprenticeship programmes to develop social and employment skills

Objective 1 – Deliver high quality places where people want to live, work and invest Our Environment

Objective relevant to football plan

Mid And East Antrim United | 13

Objective 3 – be recognised as a leading Council delivering excellent services and facilities through collaborative working, innovation and continuous improvements

MEA United’s Goals

Overarching Aims MEA United aims to inspire and support the development of all football clubs within the borough to become socially responsible and community engaged organisations who use the power of football to positively influence the health and wellbeing of the local community. We aim to ensure the best possible facilities to create a local hub for community regeneration which will promote the social connecting power of football for social development, a more inclusive society, health and wellbeing and economic benefit. MEA United will become a hub for talent development by creating a pathway for all players to be the best they can be. Promoting and hosting Senior and under age International fixtures, Champions/Europa League games and NIFL, County FA and local league semi-finals and finals, in a safe and welcoming environment. Specific Aims Through MEA United, Ballymena United, Larne FC and Carrick Rangers have laid out their blueprint for the successful future of football in Mid and East Antrim – both on and off the pitch. The combined cost of all three projects would be approximately £24.867m. Should the stadia funding require a 20% match funding then Council would require to contribute £5m to lever in £20m.

14 | Mid And East Antrim United

If the contribution for match funding reduces to 10% as advocated by Council during discussions with the Department, then a £2.5m contribution would be required to lever in £22.5m. MEA United intends to build capacity through local clubs in partnership with MEA United and has ten key objectives: 1. To upgrade facilities in Ballymena Showgrounds to a UEFA Category 3 stadium with a capacity of 6,500 that can be used both for UEFA club competition and Northern Ireland U16 to U21 European and World Cup qualifying games and challenge games. 2. Support the development of Inver Park at Larne FC and Taylors Avenue at Carrick Rangers FC to UEFA Category 3 status and to become Irish FA Regional Hubs. 3. To create a National Training Centre at Ballymena Showgrounds focusing on the development of Women’s and Girls football and providing a home venue for all senior and youth international fixtures. 4. Creation of a Performance Academy for both male and female footballers aged 16-23 in partnership with the Northern Regional College. 5. Establishment of a covered Indoor football arena at Ballymena Showgrounds to facilitate both a floodlit 3G pitch and a full sized Futsal court. 6. To develop a Coach Education Programme based in Ballymena

Showgrounds, Inver Park and Taylors Avenue to enhance the quality and provision of coaching throughout the borough and create pathways to excellence for both male and female players and coaches alike. 7. Work with our intermediate level clubs to maintain their current status in the proposed new structure for club football and provide them with a platform to progress and realise any ambitions to grow and attain senior status. 8. To create sustainable Community Outreach Programmes from Larne FC, Carrick Rangers FC and Ballymena United FC in partnership with Mid and East Antrim Active and Mid and East Antrim Borough Council Everybody Active 2020 programmes to include Football For All focusing on people with disabilities, older people, women and girls working with already established working groups throughout the borough. 9. Set up a Performance School within the Mid and East Antrim Council area in partnership with at least one local school that will utilise weekday, off peak times, in at least one of our upgraded stadia. 10. Maintain and upgrade council owned facilities for our local junior clubs, youth, women’s and girls teams so they have adequate training, playing and changing facilities to create both pathways to excellence as well as sustain and grow participation through partnership working with the Irish FA Foundation.

Mid And East Antrim United | 15

Accountability Council is the lead partner on the MEA United group, and overall accountability rests with Council through its six Elected Members on the MEA United group and Chief Executive Anne Donaghy OBE and Director of Operations Philip Thompson.. Decisions and actions taken should be agreed and ratified in the first instance by the MEA United group, with regular updates brought to the monthly meeting of Full Council, for oversight by all Elected Members.

MEA United Testimonials LARNE The Music Yard “Based in Larne, The Music Yard is a facility providing music tuition, dance and drama classes, interactive music workshops and other artistically driven projects within the local community. We are incredibly passionate about what we do and see the huge benefits in sharing music between generations and different social groups, helping to engage and bring people together within the community, whilst promoting positivity and a sense of wellbeing. We have a close association with Larne Football Club and see it as an integral part of our community, sharing its vision of inclusion, cohesion and long-term sustainability for the good of the town.

of local initiatives and campaigns such as Women’s Aid White Ribbon, and the launch of the Brighter Futures Charity. The rise of this club has been a truly inspirational story and one which we hope to be involved in as it develops and builds momentum for years to come.”

Hodge’s Butchers “We are a small family run butchers based in Larne with a lot of our customers coming from all over mid and East Antrim. Larne FC have been working hard over the past few years on promoting the local club and investing in the local community. This has helped create a bit of a buzz, many more people are supporting and showing pride in their home town team. Customers are always coming into the shop discussing the latest games and results - it’s especially uplifting at the minute when times are so hard. Ourselves here at Hodge’s are sponsors of Larne FC, and are closely tied to the club with Dean’s wife and daughter involved within the youth section.”

Pre-Covid restrictions, The Music Yard recorded various charity songs which brought together the football team and hundreds of children from local schools all singing for a common cause. Our music students have also performed at many Larne FC events such as the Christmas Carol evenings and during Match Days. The Club has such a positive presence within Larne and not only boosts community morale, witnessing them going from strength to strength, but also their continued involvement and support

16 | Mid And East Antrim United

Mid And East Antrim United | 17

BALLYMENA McBurney Transport McBurney Transport has been the main sponsor of Ballymena United FC for 33 years holding the record for the longest corporate sponsorship in the UK. We are based in the Ballymena area and have been in business for over 55 years and although we now have grown and have 7 depots throughout N Ireland, Scotland, England and Dublin we have retained Ballymena as our head office. We currently employ 850 staff throughout our group with over 350 based in Ballymena. We are proud of our Ballymena roots and the association we have with Ballymena United FC over the years. It is essential to support local community groups and we believe the football club has been an integral part in providing Ballymena with a local sports team to be proud of. The team is one of only 12 in the Northern Ireland Premiership and has a loyal fan base who attend all matches home and away (pre Covid restrictions). The club has been successful in winning a number of prestigious awards including the County Antrim Shield and League Cup. It brings publicity to the town of Ballymena and when the club is in a final, the town’s support for the team can be strongly seen and it is encouraging to see the positive impact this can have on the community

18 | Mid And East Antrim United

We have many employees who have been die hard Ballymena United FC supporters from childhood and regularly attend the matches together with other family members both young and old. They were delighted when we as a company had a lorry painted to commemorate our association with the club. The company also invites employees and customers to the football matches and to the corporate events held by the club before matches. The managing director and founding owner of McBurney Transport is Norman McBurney OBE who is currently the president of Ballymena United FC and has served previously on the club’s board for many years. The company’s links are not just with the main Ballymena United FC but we also sponsored the youth teams and some of the McBurney family have been or are currently involved in these teams (boys and girls). The benefits associated with football of providing regular exercise and being part of a team can only improve the physical and mental wellbeing of all local young people.

Castle Tower School Castle Tower is a special needs school situated in Ballymena. We have worked closely with Ballymena United and last year we received the UEFA Fair Play Award grant which allowed us to bring in a highly qualified coach to deliver a block of football coaching to nearly fifty pupils. This coaching had a major benefit to our pupils both on and off the pitch. Not only did it help to improve the pupil’s practical skills, but also boosted their confidence and increased their enjoyment of the game. The school also has links with Carrick Rangers. John McAllister, one of our teachers, is one of the 1st team coaches. John is able to transfer and adapt the knowledge and skills he has developed while working with Carrick Rangers to deliver high quality fun sessions to the pupils at Castle Tower. I feel both these links are vitally important to our school community. They help us to deliver high quality fun coaching activities to young people at Castle Tower School. Chris Murphy PE Coordinator

Through our association with Ballymena United FC, we believe the club is an essential part of the social footprint of Ballymena.

Testimonials for the three clubs from

Mid And East Antrim United | 19

TESTIMONIALS FROM BRAVEHEARTS NI: Carrick Rangers Bravehearts NI worked with the Carrick Rangers supporters clubs to raise funding for a community defibrillator that would be based at the club. We spent some fantastic matches collecting at the turnstiles and during half time. The generosity of the supporters was incredibly heart warming. When disaster struck a couple of years ago and the defib was vandalised we were all devastated. We are a very small 100% volunteer led charity and buying defibrillators is a huge undertaking for us. Defibs are essential in our communities, not only for our Bravehearts but for every eventuality that someone may need one. A local company stepped in and funded a replacement defib and that alone is testament to the importance of community to the people of Carrickfergus. We were very proud to make a small difference to the supporters and their community.

Larne Football Club We were asked to help provide defibs for the various parishes of Larne. We did this by speaking and fundraising at church services, The Walk of Hope etc. We reached out to Larne FC to ask for volunteers to help collect at different events and they sent the message out to their supporters clubs with great success. The Chairman also called me and offered a chance for Bravehearts to collect at a home match where we were welcomed and received great support on the day. The knew the importance of community defibs. The outcome was that Larne parishes raised enough to part fund 4 community defibs which are placed all over the Larne area.

Ballymena United Football Club We first connected with Brian Thomson from Ballymena United FC who was so impressed with our ethos (and our locality) that he set about fundraising for us by spending nearly 2 years walking from Ballymena to every away Irish League match and collecting on his way. From this, Chairman John Taggart got to know more about us and firmly set his support in our corner. We collect at matches and are invited to speak at corporate lunches where we receive new pledges of support. In 2019 we held a huge Strictly Ballymena dancing fundraiser. The club got right behind us and put forward dancers from the supporters clubs and sponsored various dances. Even David Jeffrey got involved as one of the Strictly Judges. We raised a staggering £27,000 at that event. During Covid and the first lockdown BraveheartsNI were part of the national volunteers of NI Scrubs where thousands of volunteer sewers made scrubs for our frontline. We reached out to the club and within days they had raised thousands of pounds through their supporters clubs and the players even jumped in with a Cash4Tash fundraiser. The Club led the way in the community of what is accomplishable when they believe a cause to be worthy. We are fortunate and blessed to have received support from these vital pillars of our communities. Clare Caulfield Chairwoman BraveheartsNI

20 | Mid And East Antrim United

Mid And East Antrim United | 21

CARRICKFERGUS Castello Italia Castello Italia is an authentic Italian restaurant with a family friendly casual dining pizzeria on the ground floor, with an elegant restaurant and formal dining on the first and second floors. We consider ourselves to be at the heart of the community in both location and also by welcoming local regular patrons and attracting customers from further afield, bringing business to the area. The stadium is directly behind our restaurant on Taylors Avenue so we are a convenient location for both sets of fans and supporters before and after matches. Having properly maintained grounds will appeal for spectators to travel to our town and avail of local services and many local businesses. Away days for visiting supporters is always a great day out and so the more well maintained the ground, the more it will appeal to opposition fans. Once visitors have seen what Carrick has to offer, with great restaurants such as ourselves, we know they will come back time and again. Also I would like to mention the great work Carrick Rangers has done, teaming up with our restaurant to help our community during the first lockdown. Artur Cufaj Castello Italia Managing Director Learning Disability

22 | Mid And East Antrim United

YMCA Carrickfergus - Health Hub Youth Engagement Service YMCA Carrickfergus developed a great relationship with Carrick Rangers through our Big Community Football Match initiative - bringing together young people from all backgrounds and abilities, to enjoy the beautiful game. We continued to work together in providing young people with valuable experiences of local football. This included a ‘Meet the Players’ evening and interactive quiz within Carrick YMCA and a young people’s Fan Zone at a local derby match. Throughout our years of working together, we have embedded a desire to support our local team, Carrick Rangers FC, and feel that our direct link to the community and young people ensures that support and partnerships continue to make a difference.

Learning Disability Pride Learning Disability Pride is a day that brings the whole Learning Disability community together from around Northern Ireland. It’s a day that celebrates those with a Learning Disability and their contribution to our society. Carrick Rangers has been an invaluable support to us and provided a safe space for us to warm up and a meeting point from which to leave. The football ground was the ideal location as it has a fantastic atmosphere where we could celebrate together. From the onset of discussions with the club, they were very supportive and nothing was too much trouble. Learning Disability Pride has a great relationship with Carrick Rangers and one that I know will last. Thomas Haighton Manager Hawthorns Adult Centre

Last year we hosted an online version of our Big Community Football Match and had first team player, James Ferrin, join us on Instagram for a live Q&A and to discuss the importance of mental health in football.

Jackie Fullerton MBE I am a Life Member of Ballymena United and proud to be, and the club’s footballing and other activities are the hub of the local community. The three clubs, Ballymena United, Larne FC and Carrick Rangers, all deserve a lot of credit for how they continue to step up to the needs of their local communities, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, by providing testing for players so that they are able to give some level of football to their fans. And of course I have come out of mothballs to commentate on the live stream that Ballymena United makes available to their season ticket holders, but football will never be the same until we can get the crowds back. I would really like to praise Mid and East Antrim Borough Council for the work and commitment they have given to Ballymena United facilities at the Showgrounds, which are the envy of the vast majority of Irish League clubs. The remodelling that is planned for the future will of course require money so let’s hope the government will realise the importance of football and sports as a whole within our little province.

We are excited to continue our relationship with Carrick Rangers and look forward to developing new initiatives that benefit the lives of local young people through YMCA.

Mid And East Antrim United | 23

Appendix 1 - Senior Clubs Ballymena United FC • Facilities – home stadium in Ballymena Showgrounds with a average home gate of 1300 spectators. • Teams • Senior team play in the NIFL Premiership with Under 20s, Under 18s and Under 16 all playing within the NIFL Development Leagues. They have 48 adult and 34 youth players registered supported by 48 Club volunteers and staff. • Ballymena Youth Academy have 17 youth teams facilitating football for 6 to 16 year olds and 300 players supported by 54 Club Volunteers • Ballymena United Women and Academy have 2 adult teams and 4 youth teams. They facilitate 36 adults and 76 youth players supported by 25 Club Volunteers. • Community Outreach

• Larne FC Youth Academy. They have 40 adult players registered with 380 youth players from 6 years old to Under 18s within. The whole club has 120 staff and Club Volunteers working to service the club. • Community Outreach Larne Football Club have numerous business and community engagement programmes which takes place across the town. They have now become the first club in NI to become a safe haven for woman, working in partnership with Woman’s Aid and are now the first Club in Ireland to be involved in a full time education B-Tec course in partnership with Larne High School. This is the first year of this course which involves 24 students and with it being a two-year course, when the course if fully operational, there will be 48 students involved in the Club learning and advancing their football skills whilst at the same time gaining necessary A level qualification.

Larne FC

Carrick Rangers FC

• Facilities – play their home games at Inver Park in Larne and the Club have now increased from a previous 50 -100 people attending matches to 600 season ticket holders and an average attendance of 1,450 which is the 3rd highest attendance in the league. • Teams • Senior team play in the NIFL Premiership with Under 20s, Under 18s and under 16s all playing within the NIFL Development Leagues.

• Facilities • Teams • Senior team plays in the NIFL Premiership with Under 20s, Under 18s and under 16s all playing within the NIFL Development Leagues. They have 40 adult players registered supported by 30 staff with the senior teams. • Carrick Rangers Youth Academy have 19 youth teams facilitating football for 300 players 6 to 17 years old supported by 65 Club Volunteers

24 | Mid And East Antrim United

• Their Girls Academy has 3 teams from Under 11 to Under 15 with 31 players registered and supported by 8 staff. • Community Outreach • The community activity within the club includes 500 participants in the Youth Academy, Ladies Football, Disability Football and extensive community outreach.

Intermediate Football Clubs Mid and East Antrim is also home to 4 Intermediate Football clubs, namely, Barn United, Larne Tech Old Boys and Greenisland FC who all play in the Northern Amateur Football League (NAFL) and Wakehurst FC who play in the Ballymena and Provincial Football League.

Greenisland FC Greenisland Football Club is a community orientated charity. The charity offers football activities for approximately 400 users on a weekly basis which take place either on grass pitches or the floodlit 3G surfaces at their ground on Glenkeen Avenue, Greenisland. They have three senior men’s teams with the first team playing in division 1C of the Northern Amateur Football League supported by two teams playing at junior level as well as an over 35s team and a newly formed Women’s team.

Mid And East Antrim United | 25

Greenisland FC also operate programmes for 5-11 year old boys and girls and have teams at ages 12 to 18 taking part in youth leagues throughout Northern Ireland. The Club have more than 73 coaches and volunteers who support playing opportunities for 90 adult and 182 youth footballers. In 2019, thanks to £700k funding from Mid and East Antrim Borough Council and £128k from Sport NI, a brand new state-of-theart 3G football pitch was built at Glenkeen Avenue, Greenisland. The new facilities not only host Greenisland Football Club, but act as a sports hub for the entire community with outdoor gym equipment also installed by the council. The project was able to create a facility which would address the needs of the Greenisland area. The club is a progressive club which has had many successes on the field alongside the hard work that the club has delivered with their outreach programmes, such as the Greenisland Bears for players with a disability, mental health programmes as well as work with local primary schools and the development of girls football. The club hold a number of seasonal activities such as summer schemes, Halloween and Easter camps, as well as run a number of intervention programmes throughout the year for older teenagers. These interventions have included day trips, midnight soccer programmes or cross community football tournaments.

Mid And East Antrim United | 25

Greenisland FC’s facilities are used by a number of groups who are vital to community development such as after schools groups, ladies fitness classes and arts groups. The space is also used for meeting space and for workshop facilitation. Barn United Football Club is an intermediate club from Carrickfergus who play in Division 1B of the Northern Amateur Football League and they play their home games at Haslett Park, next door to their local rivals Carrick Rangers. The current club formed in 1954 taking its name from an earlier team, Barn, which played in the Irish League from 1923–1928. As well as Barn’s first XI, they field a second team in the Amateur League Division 3B and several youth teams in the East Antrim Youth League. In total the club has 40 adult players registered along with 182 youth players, all supported by 67 club staff and volunteers. Larne Technical College Old Boys Association Football Club, commonly known as Larne Tech Old Boys, play intermediate football based in Larne, playing in the Premier Division of the Northern Amateur Football League. The club formed on 30 May 1950 by former pupils of the Larne Technical College. Since 1971 they have played their home matches at Dennis Harvey Park on the Upper Cairncastle Road, Larne. They also a second team currently playing junior level in the NAFL Division 3B. The club has 45 registered players facilitated by six coaches and volunteers.

26 | Mid And East Antrim United

Islandmagee Football Club founded in 1955 Islandmagee is a Northern Irish intermediate football club who play in the Premier Division of the Northern Amateur Football League with a reserve team playing at junior level in division 3C of the NAFL. The club plays at Wilbourne Park, Islandmagee. Wakehurst Football Club The club, founded in 1969, hails from Ballymena. They originally played at junior level in the Ballymena & District League and Northern Amateur League until stepping up to intermediate football in 2003. Wakehurst originally played at the second pitch at the Ballymena Showgrounds, home of Ballymena United, but while playing in the Northern Ireland Football League (NIFL) in 2009–10 the pitch was deemed not to meet the criteria for the Championship, and home games were played at Tobermore United and then Moyola Park FC for 2010–11 season, before the club was relegated from the Northern Ireland Football League in 2015/16. At the end of the 2016/17 season they announced their withdrawal from football although that it would be a one year hiatus rather than permanent. In 2018/19 season Wakehurst returned to intermediate football and currently play in the Ballymena & Provincial Football League with their second team playing junior football in Division 3 of the Ballymena Saturday Morning League (BMSL).

Borough Council playing their home games at Ballymena Showgrounds 3G pitch. Junior Football Clubs Mid and East Antrim is home to some 34 teams playing a junior level throughout the Northern Amateur Football League, Ballymena Saturday Morning League and the Ballymena and Provincial Intermediate League. These teams facilitate almost 1000 players participating in training and games, supported by over 230 committee members and staff, across all three leagues. Youth Football Teams There are ten clubs who manage youth football in the Mid and East Antrim Council area which contain 164 under age teams allowing over 2300 boys and girls to train and play weekly for their club. Nearly 500 volunteer staff and coaches work with these players every week to provide opportunities to learn and play the game. Women and Girls Football We have four clubs in Mid and East Antrim Borough Council who specifically provide football for adult and youth female players. Ballymena United Women and Academy, Larne FC, Carrick Rangers and Greenisland FC all provide training and games for 7 under age teams, 107 youth players, 56 adult players which are supported by 37 voluntary officials and coaching staff.

Wakehurst have currently 40 registered players with a volunteer staff of 20 and are currently hosted by Mid and East Antrim

Mid And East Antrim United | 27

Appendix 2 - Synergy with Other Documents There are three main strategic documents -

1. Sport NI Corporate Plan (which has two outcomes) Outcome 1 - People adopting and sustaining participation in sports and recreation Outcome 2 - Northern Ireland Athletes amongst the best in the world Council approach will also align with SNI to include: • The provision of accessible sport and physical recreation opportunities to transition effectively into connected pathways within the sporting system, in order to sustain participation generally and for underrepresented groups; • A warm, welcoming, inclusive environment with quality coaching which is key to sustaining participation, along with a diverse product offering to meet people’s changing needs; • Physical literacy in young people and other underrepresented groups, women and girls, people with disabilities and older people, etc. to be improved; • People development will be central to our plans for an effective sporting system; • Equality and inclusion will to be mainstreamed throughout our sporting system; Also as part of Council’s Corporate Plan we are committed to delivering on our Community Safety and Cohesion Theme and we see sport playing a significant role that by 2023 we will:

28 | Mid And East Antrim United

1. Encourage good relations by creating vibrant, shared, and cohesive communities within the borough. 2. Improve community safety and confidence to enable people to feel safe and have a sense of belonging to their area. 3. Build the capacity of local communities to become resilient and self-sustainable. 4. Work with partners to provide support to vulnerable people who need it. As part of our Football Vision for Mid and East Antrim we will enhance or working relationship with the Irish Football Association and coordinate our strategies and plans to include both the Irish FA Five Year Plan 2017-2022 and their Youth Football Strategy – ‘Let them Play’ 2015 to 2025. The main points for Mid and East Antrim Council and MEA United are included below.

2. Irish FA Five Year Plan 2017-2022 which has six key themes THE IRISH FA’S VISION: To promote, foster and develop football for all in NI. THE IRISH FA’S INSPIRATIONAL DREAM: To inspire every child in Northern Ireland to be a part of our football family and to dream of wearing the green shirt. The Irish FA want to build on the foundations laid in recent years and set new targets that will benefit the whole game in Northern Ireland. To that end, and following

consultations across the football family, they have set six new long term objectives. Challenge every time, qualify every other time Areas relevant to Mid and East Antrim Borough Council: BUILD A NEW NATIONAL TRAINING CENTRE We will build a new, state-of-the-art training centre that will serve as a centre of excellence for every Northern Ireland team - from the senior men’s and women’s international sides down to the youngest Club NI representative team. Featuring up to six outdoor pitches, medical facilities, a physiotherapy clinic and a gym, this will ensure that every Northern Ireland team prepares at the highest standard of facility ahead of international matches. PERFORMANCE ACADEMY The Irish FA will work with local Universities to create performance Academies. They have already made progress in this area with Ulster University now the official Northern Ireland partner of the Irish FA’s Girls’ and Women’s Football Academy. The Irish FA want to replicate this model for young men. This will be aimed at 16–23 year olds and will build a football programme alongside an education pathway. PERFORMANCE SCHOOLS The Irish FA will establish six performance schools, across the geographical spread of Northern Ireland. Each of these will become a hub for post-primary school players. In

Mid And East Antrim United | 29

the current JD Club NI set-up young players from NI receive a maximum of 252 hours of coaching per annum. All the while, their counterparts in the rest of the UK, where the Academy set-up is already the norm, are receiving at least 450-500+ hours per annum. Through the schools programme the Irish FA will have the opportunity to increase contact time and to better prepare our players to help them succeed in their career ambitions. Becoming a professional footballer is one of the most competitive careers. As such, it is extremely important that players receive a good quality education. Working with our partner schools will help ensure that players are able to maintain a good school/football balance. . HOST MORE UEFA TOURNAMENTS In the summer of 2017 the Irish FA hosted the UEFA Under-19 Women’s tournament. This provided a fantastic chance to showcase of our country’s grounds and facilities. It also meant that Northern Ireland Under-19 women’s team has the chance to play at that level for the first time. The Irish FA have had more success in this area. In December 2016 Northern Ireland was chosen to host the European Under-19 Championship in 2020 (subsequently cancelled due to the global pandemic). The decision by the UEFA Executive Committee said a lot about the positive reputation of the Irish FA within UEFA and follows the excellent work that the team put in for the Women’s Under-19 Championship.

Mid And East Antrim United | 29

With the completion of the new National Football Stadium at Windsor Park and with further investment in local club grounds to come, there is the opportunity to host more UEFA tournaments, to let our younger players compete in them and to enable our staff to grow in their capabilities by delivering them. Rebuild the football estate Areas relevant to Mid and East Antrim Borough Council: NATIONAL TRAINING CENTRE The Irish FA want to use some of the capital spend from the Department for Communities budget to deliver a National Training Centre. A state-of-the-art facility would benefit all of Northern Ireland – from the senior men and women’s sides down to Club NI. The Irish FA would also use the National Training Centre as a base for clubs to prepare for European competition. STADIA IMPROVEMENTS The Irish FA will deliver several major stadia improvements. These will be significant, high profile redevelopments of NIFL Premiership grounds. These will radically improve the experience for supporters and will improve our chances of hosting further UEFA tournaments by increasing the number of quality stadia that we have in Northern Ireland. PROJECTS The Irish FA will complete up to 20 other smaller projects with clubs outside the NIFL

30 | Mid And East Antrim United

Premiership. These will include intermediate and junior football clubs and will incorporate stadia and training facilities.

and development would be furthered in an elite environment with a strong education element.

REGIONAL HUBS The Irish FA will aim to deliver a football hub in each of the new super-councils. This will serve as a host venue for small-sided games and will become the focus for all local Irish FA activity.

Reinvigorate the everyday game

FUTSAL The Irish FA will work with Northern Ireland’s super-councils to ensure that every local area has a futsal arena and associated equipment. LENDING STRATEGY The Irish FA will develop and deliver a financial service where the association will serve as a lender to ensure that clubs can access the full range of government funds available to them. PITCH STRATEGY The Irish FA will provide subsidised training for club ground-staff and will host workshops and practical demonstrations at the National Football Stadium. Break the top 40 in European leagues

RESTRUCTURE INTERMEDIATE FOOTBALL

Areas relevant to Mid and East Antrim Borough Council: PARTICIPATION Our football development team has made huge progress in terms of numbers playing football through the Let Them Play 10-year participation strategy (see below). The Irish FA, working alongside partners, has grown participation to approximately 58,000 young people between the ages of four and 24 across Northern Ireland. Significant growth and development have been driven in the Irish FA McDonald’s Small-Sided Games centres, the Irish FA DENI funded Curriculum Sports Schools Programme and the Irish FA’s new Disability, Referee, Futsal and Girls’ strategic plans. From 2017–2022 the Irish FA will continue to resource and fund Let Them Play to encourage growth in participation particularly among girls and women.

The Irish FA will institute reforms so that there is a maximum of 88 teams in the combined senior and intermediate categories of the game. The divisions in these areas will be structured and defined by the association but run by independent bodies.

Areas relevant to Mid and East Antrim Borough Council: PERFORMANCE ACADEMY The Irish FA want to create a Performance Academy for players aged 16-23 where players would be owned by the clubs but their fitness, strength and conditioning

Mid And East Antrim United | 31

The top three divisions will be run by NIFL. Below this, and with promotion/relegation to the Premier Intermediate league, will be two ‘regional’ intermediate sections (the definition of these regions will be defined following further consultation). These two intermediate sections will consist of a maximum of 52 teams and will be run by the association on a paid contract basis. Interested parties will bid to run each section.

Senior Football Intermediate Football

NIFL Premiership

NIFL Championship

Premier Intermediate League

REVIEW COACH EDUCATION The IFA coach education system is highly regarded in the game at the elite level it attracts some of the biggest names in football to study for Pro licences. At entry level we recognise that coach education is the key to helping develop our young players. We will review our coach education system to ensure that it is accessible and affordable for all. SUPPORT CLUBS IN DEPRIVED AREAS We will establish a new programme to support football clubs in areas of deprivation to develop volunteering and prepare funding plans.

via playoffs

Intermediate A – 14 Intermediate B - 12

NAFL Premier – 14 1A – 14; 1B – 14; 1C - 14

Northern Ireland Intermediate League 8

General Intermediate Football

Ballymena & Provincial Football League 15

Approx. 117 teams (excluding NIFL Premiership reserve teams)

Build a thriving stadium business (Only relevant to The National Stadium at Windsor Park) Serve the community better

3. Irish FA Youth Strategy 2015-2025 (which has five applicable objectives) ESTABLISH AN IRISH FA FOUNDATION For the past 137 years, the Irish Football Association has organised, promoted and developed football. It has discovered some of the greatest talents to ever play the game, helped make history in major tournaments on the world stage and, perhaps most important of all, engendered a life-long love of football in generations of men and women. The Irish FA have established the framework for a new charitable arm – the Irish FA Foundation. A legacy of the senior men’s successful EURO 2016 campaign, it is now the vehicle through which they increase participation and continue to reach the goals of Let Them Play, the Irish FA’s youth strategy (see below).

Preferred Future Structure The preferred future structure provides for a better geographical split of clubs whilst limiting travel to regional opposition and standardising league formats. The future structure is assumed to sit on top of the existing Junior leagues structure.

Region A – North/ North West Region B – Greater Belfast/ East Region C – South/ South East

The Foundation has four main aims: • Develop amateur football, youth football, schools football and futsal. • Advance education by providing work experience and support to educational establishments and extra-curricular groups • To provide funds and football facilities in areas of economic need with the object of improving circumstances • To improve the health and wellbeing of people in Northern Ireland through football

www.irishfa.com/media/24670/intermediate-football-restructure.pdf

32 | Mid And East Antrim United

Mid And East Antrim United | 33

Over the course of this plan the association will make the new Irish FA Foundation operational and use it as the primary vehicle through which they can serve all of the Northern Ireland community. OBJECTIVE 1 - Participation and Football For All - We will broaden the base of participation, especially targeting areas where football is weak, such as rural areas, this will increase the player pool and encourage a sense of belonging to football in the community. We will set clear targets for girls and players with a disability to fully integrate the IFA Football For All ethos into our plans moving forward. The IFA has lead the way in the provision of sporting opportunities for those with a disability directly through a sporting governing body with over 5000 participants partaking in football activities per calendar year. It is our intention to build upon this success by making disability provision a clear objective throughout this Strategy and to approach work in the disability sector with a concerted effort throughout Football Development. OBJECTIVE 2 - Schools, Colleges and Universities - Schools and College Football is one of the main areas where the IFA can access and influence young players on a regular basis. This objective seeks to revamp our Schools Football development work and take football back to schools where the connection has been lost or to schools that don’t traditionally engage in football. Futsal is a fantastic new vehicle to engage schools and school halls can be adapted to Futsal with ease. Futsal encourages good

34 | Mid And East Antrim United

technique and fast thinking attacking play both of which are essential for the modern player but the most important factor is that it is fun. The Districts School Player Development Programme will revolutionise how we identify and develop young players, preparing them for our boy’s and girl’s elite development programmes at Key Stage 2. The new IFA School Quality Mark is designed to build the capacity of schools and teachers to develop the game. The main development areas for new IFA School Quality Mark are after schools football, increased level of coaching, provision for girls and being able to demonstrate clear school/club links. The aim is to create Football Schools over a period of time. UEFA’s new Grassroots Charter have identified schools football as a priority area for future development and UEFA have expressed an interest in officially supporting our new Schools football plans as pilots. Schools and College Football is one of the main our new Schools football plans as pilots. OBJECTIVE 3 - Club and Volunteer Development - Development will be at the heart of the IFA’s Football Development plans moving forward. Volunteers are the lifeblood of the game and clubs provide crucial opportunities for change in the lives of young people through development, education, training and accreditation. We will invest in clubs and volunteers at all levels and prioritise support for the ‘Community Beacons’ that provide inclusive youth development boys and girls.

OBJECTIVE 4 - Youth Football Coach Education - Coach Education will be the vehicle to change the football culture and challenge hearts and minds. Our new Coach Education courses will be designed to be player focused, encouraging age appropriate coaching techniques which influence value based development. With Futsal, we will also be motivating coaches to champion this new game, so that we create a culture of Futsal which assists boys and girls to develop technique, quick thinking and to have fun. We will create a clear Youth Coach Football Education pathway, which encourages more coaches to aspire to ultimately achieve the IFA Youth Football Certificate. Disability awareness will also be a part of all the coach education courses that are delivered by the IFA. OBJECTIVE 5 - Elite Player Pathways This objective is designed to create clear player pathways for the best young talent, both males and females. We will maximise the elite player pool for IFA international managers, and increase the number of professional footballers (both men and women) from which they can select. The targets are designed to improve relations between Club and Country with the focus on the well-being and welfare of young players.

Mid And East Antrim United | 35

Notes

36 | Mid And East Antrim United

Mid And East Antrim United | 37