Cerebral Palsy Sport Ireland

ILAM -  The Industry Body for Sports, Fitness, Aquatic Facilities, Outdoor, Spas & Wellness, is delighted to announce that 89 leisure facilities and spas from across Ireland received the 2011 White Flag Award, the only comprehensive quality award and measurement of standards for gyms, swimming pools, spas and indoor leisure facilities in Ireland.

This year’s White Flag Awards, which celebrate their tenth anniversary, were presented at a gala dinner hosted by RTE’s Michael Lyster in Lynch’s Breaffy House Resort Hotel near Castlebar in Co. Mayo on Thursday, 14th October.

The ILAM White Flag Award is the quality mark that every leisure facility in Ireland must strive to achieve.   The White Flag Award is designed to provide a quality standard for swimming pools, sports halls, fitness studios, health suites, spas and gyms in the absence of government legislation.   Fifteen leisure facilities received the White Flag quality award for the first time this year and ten dedicated facilities received the award for their tenth consecutive year.

In addition to the White Flag Award, two specialist awards are presented annually - The Disability Provision Category and Training Ethos Awards. These specialist awards have been very successful and allow clubs to develop and specialise in areas of their business, further developing the quality of the facilities.

The Disability Provision Award was introduced in 2005 in partnership with Cerebral Palsy Sport Ireland and the Irish Wheelchair Association Sport and has grown every year since.  On Behalf of CPSI, Brenda O’Donnell says “that as an organisation we are extremely proud to be part of the award and it is very rewarding each year to see an increase in numbers applying for the award and also the standard to which the centers are achieving”

The award is broken done into 3 categories, Gold, Silver and Bronze Award standard.   Based on the level of Accessibility the centre is audited and awarded the appropriate standard.  This approach to the award gives the centres the opportunities to see the improvements they have made, increase their access levels and sustain the standard already achieved.

The awards for 2010 were announced as follows:

Gold:

DLR Meadowbrook Leisure Centre,

DLR Leisure Monkstown,

Leisureland Galway,

Westport Leisure Park,

National Aquatic Centre,

K Leisure Naas,

K Leisure Athy

Leisureworld Bishopstown, Cork

Silver:

ESB Sportsco,

Newpark School Sports Centre,

Grove Island Limerick,

Clondalkin Leisure Centre,

Coral Killarney and

Fermoy Leisure Centre

Bronze:

Portlaoise Leisure Centre

For more information on the Disability Category Award, please contact Brenda O’Donnell  - hopkins.bren@gmail.com or Mark Barry  - Mark.barry@iwa.ie.

Kilian Fisher, CEO of ILAM said:  “The White Flag Award has become an essential mark of quality that any gym, swimming pool or leisure facility must strive to achieve.  It is a clear sign that the leisure facility employs staff who operate to the industry code of practice and are committed to achieving the highest standards of quality in the Leisure Industry.   We are delighted that 15 leisure facilities have received the White Flag Award for the first time and ten facilities are receiving their 10th White Flag.”
“The White Flag awards criteria also ensure that fitness and gym instructors are properly qualified, facilities are clean, hygienic and safe and that equipment is maintained correctly.  A leisure facility can reach a very high standard, offering the best possible service, without resorting to major structural changes.  In the absence of legislation, The White Flag Award is the only measure of standards and quality in Irish leisure facilities.”  Mr Fisher added.

INFO SOURCE - ILAM Ireland -http://www.whiteflag.ie

INFO SOURCE - Cerebral Palsy Sport Ireland - www.cpsi.ie