Official opening event held at Dungiven Leisure Centre

by Gráinne Connolly

Dungiven Leisure Centre officially opened on Friday 26th January, with local schools and clubs showcasing a number of different sport and activities. 

The facility was completed earlier this year, making a new era for sport and leisure facilities in the village and its surrounding areas. 

The project received £2.5 million from the former Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure, while Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council contributed £339,000. 

The Mayor of Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council, Councillor John Baird OBE said: 

"The community in Dungiven is rightly proud of their state-of-the-art centre which is accessible to all and hosts a fantastic variety of classes, courses and clubs. 

"As a Council, we want to promote healthy and engaged communities, and the enhanced facilities now available in Dungiven highlight our commitment to this.

“I would like to thank the Department for its significant contribution to this project, which is a successful example of working in partnership to bring about positive changes in our communities.”

Ian Snowden, Deputy Secretary at the Department for Communities said:

“I am delighted that the Department was able to support the development of high quality indoor and outdoor facilities for sport and physical activity for the people of Dungiven and the surrounding area.

“This facility shows the significant benefits of collaboration, between local and central Government. Together, Causeway Coast and Glens Council, the Department for Communities and Sport NI have been able to deliver a top class facility for the local community.

“It is a priority of the Department for Communities to encourage greater participation in sport and physical activity across the whole population.

"This is being taken forward through ‘Sports Matters: The NI Strategy for Sport and Physical Recreation’.  

"The development of facilities such as this one, at grassroots levels in communities, is vital in opening up opportunities for participation to a wider number of people, many of whom would not have had these opportunities previously.”

(Cara from St. Canice's primary school and Oisin from Gaelscoil Neachtain enjoying activities at the opening of the centre, alongside Willie Devlin (Sport NI) and Alderman William King (Causeway Coast and Glens Council). 

Sport Northern Ireland Chief Executive Antoinette McKeown added:

“This excellent new Sports Centre will play a crucial role within the community by providing better and more inclusive opportunities for local clubs and the wider local population to enjoy, engage and excel in sport.

"Sport Northern Ireland is pleased to have collaborated with Causeway, Coast and Glens Borough Council and the Department for Communities on this project, and to have provided technical and project management support.

"It is wonderful to be marking the start of 2018 with the opening of this new facility and we look forward to seeing the impact it makes in helping people here get involved in sport and enjoy all the physical and mental health benefits of an active lifestyle”.

The complex, located on the Curragh Road, includes a range of indoor and outdoor facilities including a gym, sports hall, dance studio, changing rooms, a kitchen and a floodlit 3G pitch.