Thursday 3rd December saw the conclusion of a collaborative 8-week programme, aimed at tackling unemployment.
10 men from the Swords area, aged between 30 and 45 were the first group to complete the Men’s Pitstop Programme, which was officially launched by Sporting Fingal Community Trust, and is spearheaded by the Swords Strategic Partners, (Fingal LEADER Partnership, the H.S.E, the Community, Culture and Sports Division of Fingal County Council and Football Association of Ireland) with enhanced training introduced by the Sporting Fingal Community Trust.
The aim of the programme was to educate and re-train the participants and to teach new skills that will help them get back into work and get involved with their local community.
The Pitstop programme ran 3 days per week over the past 8 weeks. Morning sessions focused on issues like CV preparation, career direction, job sources and mock interviews, as well as healthy eating and men’s health issues.
Afternoon sessions delivered practical sports training courses (Kick Start 1, Kick Start 2, Refereeing course and a FETAC-approved Stewarding course) that provided the participants with skills they can use straight away to get back into employment.
Speaking at the awards ceremony, Sporting Fingal Community Trust representative Shaun Maher said “It’s a fantastic programme to be involved in, and I think if you asked the participants, they’d say the same thing. Given the way things are in the country at the moment, I think it’s hugely important to address the issue of unemployment, and hopefully those who participated in the programme will see the benefits.”
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Sporting Fingal Community Trust was created as a charitable arm to Sporting Fingal F.C. in order to provide a range of community initiatives, using football as a vehicle for delivery.
For further information on the Sporting Fingal Community Trust, please contact:
Stephen Mc Ginn
Programme Manager
Sporting Fingal Community Trust
E: communitytrust@sportingfingal.ie
Ph: 0879864611