The ESF+ Social Innovation in Sport Officer will support new, targeted and innovative projects through sport and physical activity with a specific focus on people at risk of social exclusion and poverty. This includes but not exclusively limited to, ethnic minorities, youth at risk, persons with disabilities and persons from disadvantaged backgrounds.
To address the challenges faced by disadvantaged groups new approaches will be used. This will include co-creating and co-designing new projects that have the target groups needs at the core. The innovative principles of design thinking will foster a people-first approach, promoting creative problem-solving solutions within the projects.
The ESF+ Social Innovation in Sport Officer will collaborate with local partners and stakeholders to strengthen the programmes capacity and reach. This active involvement of stakeholders will contribute to achieving the programmes objectives and the creation of innovative sport and physical activity projects.
The ‘Sport 4 Empowerment’ Mission is
To develop and implement people-first programmes to improve lives, create meaningful opportunities and a sense of belonging through sport and physical activity.
The following four principles will underpin the S4E programme.
- Inclusion
- Partnership
- Innovation
- Learning
There are four pillars of success identified in the S4E programme which include
- Increased sports participation and physical activity levels
- Enhanced education and training opportunities
- Improved employment prospects
- Increased social inclusion opportunities
Evaluation
Evaluation and monitoring is a fundamental component of the S4E programme to track progress and identify areas of success and improvement. This will involve collecting and analysing data related to participants, implementation of projects and stakeholder engagement. This commitment to evaluation demonstrates accountability to stakeholders and will serve as a platform for sharing best practices, knowledge, and successes with relevant local, national, and international stakeholders.
Useful Links
For full details on the Sport Ireland Sport4Empowerment programme visit www.sportireland.ie/ethics/esf-programme
For more information on European funding visit www.eufunds.ie
