ASPIRE is a skills initiative developed by Farrans’ Community Engagement team.
In partnership Farrans and Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council would like to extend an invitation to those who are unemployed and students who are interested in studying any construction/ground maintenance related subjects. The age requirement for this programme is 17 years plus.
The ASPIRE programme consists of employability skills training, a site visit to the South Lake Leisure Centre site, work experience (both on site and in a Council Park), CV/application form writing and an interview skills workshop. Undertaking this programme will allow you to gain first-hand experience in ground maintenance matters and provide you with the opportunity to stand out from the crowd during your work experience.
The Lord Mayor, Councillor Julie Flaherty recently visited the Crazy Summer Schemes taking place at Tandragee and Keady Recreation Centres. The fun filled Summer Schemes started at the beginning of July, with between 60 to 80 children attending daily and will continue until Friday 24 August.
The children are taking part in lots of action packed fun activities including soccer, tennis, badminton, basketball, arts & crafts, dance and many more. The children are also enjoying exciting day trips organised by each Centre, such as Loughgall Country Park, Slieve Gullion, Jumpbox, Cinema, and a few more.
Specialist coaches from the Active Community Coaches Programme are working with the Summer Schemes and are delivering a wide range of sports and activities over the 8 weeks period.
The summer schemes are supervised by qualified staff. Early bird, half day and full day sessions are available at affordable prices with savings for weekly tickets purchased.
Tandragee Recreation Centre Summer Scheme children with Lord Mayor, Councillor Julie Flaherty and leaders
Places on the summer schemes are limited. A place is guaranteed when you register and purchase a weekly ticket in advance. Alternatively, there’s a daily drop in facility, however, it is on a first come first served basis and places are not guaranteed.
Tandragee Recreation Centre Summer Scheme children with Lord Mayor, Councillor Julie Flaherty and Active Community Coaches Nick & Brenda
For further information or to register, please contact the relevant Centre or log on to getactiveabc.com
There’s still time for young sports fans to sign up for the finest fun filled activity camps in the Banbridge area as part of Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council’s Summer Activity Programme for Young People
From Monday 6 to Friday 10 August, Rathfriland Community Centre will be hosting a high energy Dance camp for 5 – 11 year olds. Running from 9.30am – 11am daily costing £12 per person.
Havelock Park, Banbridge is the location for an action packed Athletics camp running from Monday 6 to Wednesday 8 August, 10.00am – 2.00pm daily. Places are available priced £18 per person.
Dancing divas aged 5 – 11 years will also get to show their moves at Banbridge Leisure Centre’s Dance camp from Monday 13 to Friday 17 August from 9.30am – 11am daily. Places available costing £12 per person.
8 to 11 year olds will be jumping for joy at the Netball camp taking place at Banbridge Leisure Centre from Monday 13 to Friday 17 August, 11.30am – 1.00pm daily. Limited places are available priced £15.
It’s all round action for 5 – 11 year olds at the Multi Sports Camp in Rathfriland Community Centre from Monday 20 – Friday 24 August from 10.00am – 2.00pm. Places cost £25 for the first child and £20 for each additional child from the same family.
Further information about all sports camps, to register, or to find out about the wealth of other activities on offer over the summer months please visit www.getactiveabc.com/book or for enquires contact Laura O’Hagan, Sports Development Assistant on T: 4066 0637 or E: *protected email*
Celebrate National Play Day on Wednesday 1st August with a fantastic day of fun FREE activities for children of all ages to enjoy!
As part of the annual celebration of children’s right to play and its importance in their lives, the National Play Day events kick off in Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council’s Lurgan Park from 10am to 1pm followed by an afternoon event in Portadown People’s Park from 2.30pm to 5.30pm.
Climb aboard the Belfast Playbus and enjoy lots of soft play fun or for the more energetic have a go at scaling the climbing wall. With a range of art and craft workshops, face painting, inflatable games, balloon modelling, fun games and much more – there is something for everyone!
There is no need to book in advance, both events are run on a drop in basis – so for a fun day of FREE activities why not come along and have a go!
Lord Mayor, Councillor Julie Flaherty officially launched the new fitness equipment at Keady Recreation Centre following a £55,000 investment to transform the gym into a state of the art fitness haven.
The new fitness equipment provided by Podium 4 Sport includes treadmills, cross trainers, ski-ergs, rowers, elliptical trainers, climbers and bikes. Some of the equipment is Inclusive Fitness Initiative (IFI) accredited, meaning disabled as well as non-disabled people can benefit from a full body, cardiovascular and resistance-based workout.
Lord Mayor of Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough, Councillor Julie Flaherty with long standing Keady Recreation Centre members Brian Breen and his son Ciaran Breen.
The equipment provides a personalised fitness experience through clever use of technology. All consoles are touch screen, the user has access to popular apps such as Facebook, You tube, Twitter, Netflix, Vevo as well as a large range of television channels. Bluetooth connectivity and a USB port allows for the connection of smart devices to all Matrix equipment. An interactive feature called Virtual Active allows the user to select one of ten worldwide destinations to go for a run, cycle or hike. The equipment will automatically adjust incline, decline or resistance in conjunction with the terrain visible on the screen.
Lord Mayor of Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon, Councillor Julie Flaherty was very impressed with the new equipment, she said “This investment will enhance the offering of this fantastic facility with new state of the art equipment it will bring a whole new technological aspect to working out. I encourage people in the local community and surrounding areas to make use of these facilities that Keady Recreation Centre has to offer.”
People from the local area came along to the official launch to see the equipment, to watch machine demonstrations and of course to work out. To celebrate the launch a Facebook competition was launched to win a 1 month membership, and it was only £1 to use the new gym on the official launch day on Thursday 5 July.
David Flynn, Senior Key Account Manager for Podium 4 Sport was delighted with the new installation; “It has been a pleasure to work with the staff from Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council. At Podium 4 Sport we are passionate about fitness and we aim to provide facilities with the highest quality state of the art equipment. Keady Recreation Centre is the first site in Ireland to avail of this particular range of high tech Matrix Fitness equipment so it gives an indication of the quality values of the council’s leisure department in striving to provide its patrons with leading industry trends. It is wonderful to see the finished product at Keady Recreation Centre.”
July 2018 ARRANGEMENTS
Changes to the facilities and services provided by Armagh City, Banbridge & Craigavon Borough Council across the wider Craigavon area during the July holiday period are:
BIN COLLECTIONS
Bins due to be collected on Thursday 12 July will be collected on Saturday 7 July.
Bins due to be collected on Friday 13 July will be collected on Saturday 14 July.
New Line, Lurgan & Fair Green, Portadown Recycling Centres
Closed: 12 & 13 July
Craigavon Civic & Conference Centre
Closed: 12 & 13 July
Cascades Leisure Complex
Open: 11 July (9.00am-5.00pm)
Closed: 12 & 13 July
Open: 14 July (9.00am-4.00pm)
Craigavon Leisure Centre
Open: 11 July (9.00am-5.00pm)
Closed: 12 & 13 July
Open: 14 July (9.00am-4.00pm)
Waves Leisure Complex
Open: 11 July (9.00am-5.00pm)
Closed: 12 & 13 July
Open: 14 July (8.30am-4.00pm)
Craigavon Golf Ski Centre
Open: 11-14 July (9.00am-9.00pm)
Kinnego Marina Office
Open: 11-14 July (9.00am-8.00pm)
Oxford Island Site
Open: 11-14 July (8.00am-9.00pm)
Lough Neagh Discovery Centre
Open: 11-14 July (10.00am-6.00pm)
Tannaghmore Animal Farm
Open: 11-14 July (10.00am – 8.30pm)
Public Parks
Open: 11-14 July (7.00am – 10.00pm)
Town Halls, Community Centres and Brownlow Community Hub
Closed: 12 & 13 July
Except for bookings confirmed in advance.
Free bike hire at Scarva Bike Hire every Tuesday and Wednesday morning between 10.00am and 11.30 in July and August.
During your free one hour session, you can sightsee from your saddle and even get some exercise too!
For more information, check out Scarva Cycle Hires facilities page here
or check out Visit Banbridge for more details
Sign the pledge for you and your pal!
- Always clean up after your dog.
- Carry extra doggie bags.
- Gladly give others a bag for their dog.
For more information on Green Dog Walkers and to receive your welcome pack, which includes a green armband, dog bone bag dispenser, doggie bags and clip on hand sanitiser, please contact: 0300 0300 900
Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council’s state-of-the-art £35 million new leisure centre will create more than 500 jobs during the project’s construction phase, estimated to last until summer 2020.
The construction phase alone is expected to deliver an estimated £6.5 million in direct wages to the economy, and these 500 jobs are in addition to the staff that will run the new leisure facility.
As part of ABC Council’s commitment to high levels of spend within the local market and small to medium sized enterprises, it commissioned Farrans Construction through the Scape Procure National Construction – Major Works England and Northern Ireland framework to build the new leisure centre. Scape’s collaborative ethos involves engaging with approved local businesses, sub-contractors and suppliers, ensuring that the Craigavon project will provide significant employment opportunities for local residents and businesses.
Lord Mayor of Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon, Councillor Julie Flaherty commented,
“Our council is dedicated to showcasing our borough as an ideal location for working, investing and visiting. The South Lake Leisure Centre project ticks all those boxes – we are providing fantastic career opportunities for young people through one of the biggest flagship projects we have seen in this region in a decade, making the ABC borough the perfect place to visit and invest.”
As part of the community engagement process, this week local students and job seekers heard about the various career opportunities in all aspects of the construction industry – technical, contracts and support – at an ‘opportunities day’ in Craigavon Civic and Conference Centre, hosted by Farrans in partnership with ABC Council. The structured day included a site visit, allowing students and job-seekers to see the large-scale construction site in progress and hear about structured work experience opportunities and apprenticeship schemes.
SRC joinery student Jordan Lappin remarked,
“It was great to hear about the training and structured skills development opportunities. The apprenticeships in particular are great for students like me to get a chance to earn while we learn and have support from our employer while we are studying.”
International Women in Engineering Day at Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council’s £35m South Lake Leisure Centre site in Craigavon.
Celebrating International Women in Engineering Day, Farrans held an event for young female students, where they heard from one of the successful female engineers, giving them first-hand insight into life on a £35 million building site.
Brigid McGuigan, Community Engagement Manager at Farrans said,
“Recent research showed that the construction industry is struggling to cope with a huge skills gap, so we are keen to encourage as many young people, especially women, as we can to join this fascinating and exciting sector. We are delighted to be able to offer local jobs to local people, and urge anyone interested in getting into construction to get in touch with me.”
Brigid McGuigan (Farrans) encourages aspiring young engineers
The facility, which will be situated adjacent to Craigavon Civic and Conference Centre overlooking the South Lake, features an impressive eight-lane, 50-metre swimming pool, a teaching pool, fun pool and a spectator gallery.
Once complete, the new gym will be the largest available on the island of Ireland, featuring state-of-the-art equipment, spin and dance studios. It will also include an extensive health and beauty suite, activity rooms, squash courts and a large sports hall suitable for a variety of sporting activities, as well an extensive outdoor watersports provision.
Plans for the new leisure complex – first floated in 2010 – are part of a wider and ambitious regeneration programme across the ABC area. It will represent the largest capital project ever undertaken by the council since its formation in 2015 and will provide an enhanced facility, designed to improve the quality of life and wellbeing of the whole borough.
Mark Robinson, Scape Group Chief Executive, commented,
“The Craigavon Leisure Centre will play a key role in the wider regeneration of the ABC area, delivering fantastic benefits to local residents with health and wellbeing at its heart. The project will boost the local economy through engagement with local supply chain partners, whose specialist knowledge and expertise are vital to Scape’s collaborative ethos, and the key to delivering this essential community facility.”
Farrans placement student engineer, passes on his technical knowledge to aspiring young enginee
Anyone interested in work experience, site visits, workshops, apprenticeships or career opportunities at the South Lake Leisure Centre, Craigavon construction site should contact Brigid McGuigan, Community Engagement Manager, Farrans by email on *protected email*.