About | Laois Sports Partnership |

About Laois Sports Partnership

Laois Sports Partnership (LSP) is a leading organisation for sport and physical activity in County Laois.

We work to help people of all ages and abilities take part in sport, recreation and active lifestyles. We support clubs, communities and individuals to get active and stay active.

LSP was first created in 2002. It was set up after Laois County Council saw the need to improve access to sport and physical activity for people across the county. An inter-agency group developed a plan and submitted it to Sport Ireland (then the Irish Sports Council).

Since then, LSP has grown to become one of the founding Local Sports Partnerships in Ireland and continues to play a key role in developing sport in Laois.

Our work is guided by a Board of Management. The board includes representatives from a wide range of groups, including local authorities, sports organisations and community bodies. They meet every two months to guide our work and make sure we deliver real benefits for people in Laois.

What We Do

Promote sport and physical activity in Laois
Support local sports clubs and community groups
Deliver programmes for children, adults and older people
Provide opportunities for people with disabilities and those who face barriers to participation
Work in partnership with local and national organisations

Our Mission

We aim to make sport and physical activity part of everyday life in Laois.

Sport Ireland asks Local Sports Partnerships to deliver these outcomes:

Enhanced planning of sport at local level
Increased levels of local participation, especially amongst specific target groupse.g., older people, girls and women, people with disabilities, unemployed people and those who live in identified disadvantaged communities.
Club development & volunteer training
Local Directories of sports bodies and facilities

Clear priorities for facility provision and improvement, with related quality management initiatives
School / club / community and school / National Governing Body links
Local sports events

Role of Laois Sports Partnership

The three main functions of LSP’s are summarised by Sport Ireland as follows:

Information: Resource audits and a needs analysis which can be used as a basis for planning at local level.
Education: To provide training opportunities, courses and to facilitate participation.
Implementation: Strategic plans used to implement local programmes based on local requirements, to maximise the impact and benefit of national programmes at the local level and to market and promote sport and physical activity.