Sports Forum

Due to the Coronavirus, All Sports Forum funding (including the application process) is suspended until further notice.

The forum exists to encourage active participation in sport and leisure activities by supporting the development and sustainability of sports clubs in Ards and North Down.

Sports Forum's role

The forum will:

act as a consultative body between council and the sporting community
provide grants to support local sports organisations and athletes
inform its members about relevant sporting news
contribute to sports development in the area

Joining the Sports Forum

To join the Sports Forum, sports clubs and organisations in Ards and North Down must become affiliated members. The annual affiliation fee is £25.00. New affiliated members must wait three months before they can apply for grants from the Sports Forum.

Download the Affiliation Form.

2020/2021 Affiliation form

Meeting Timetable

The tables below show the monthly meeting dates of when the Working Group will be assessing applications and also the quarterly meeting dates of the Sports Forum. Please refer to the Working Group dates when making an application.

2019/2020 Sports Forum Meetings

MEETING	DATE	TIME	VENUE
Meeting 1	Wednesday 13th February 2019	7pm	Ards Blair Mayne Wellbeing and Leisure Complex
Meeting 2	Wednesday 12th June 2019 (AGM)	7pm	Ards Blair Mayne Wellbeing and Leisure Complex
Meeting 3	Thursday 10th October 2019	7pm	Bangor Aurora
Meeting 4	Thursday 13th February 2020	7pm	Londonderry Park

2019/2020 Working Group Meetings

MEETING	FINANCIAL YEAR	DATE	TIME
1	18/19	Wed 9th January	6pm
2	18/19	Wed 13th February QM1	6pm
3	18/19	Wed 13th March	6pm
4	19/20	Wed 10th April	10am
5	19/20	Wed 8th May	10am
6	19/20	Wed 12th June (AGM) QM2	6pm
7	19/20	Wed 10th July	10am
8	19/20	Wed 14th August	10am
9	19/20	Thurs 12th September	10am
10	19/20	Thurs 10th October QM3	6pm
11	19/20	Thurs 14th November	10am
* 12	19/20	Thurs 12th December	10am
13	19/20	Thurs 9th January	10am
14	19/20	Thurs 13th February QM4	6pm
15	19/20	Thurs 12th March	10am

Sports Forum Grant Programme

Ards and North Down Borough Council has allocated £25,000 in 2020-2021 for grants to be awarded by the Sports Forum to affiliated sports clubs, organisations and athletes within the borough. The grant categories are:

travel and accommodation
events
coaching
Gold Card
equipment
seeding
sport club anniversary

Applying for a Sports Forum Grant

Due to the Coronavirus, All Sports Forum funding (including the application process) is suspended until further notice.

Download the guidelines for the grant programme and application forms for each grant category.

If an organisation, club or individual receives funding, they must complete a report form about how they used the grant.