Leinster Rugby have confirmed that the Bank of Ireland Leinster Rugby Summer Camps will take place later this summer in 29 venues around the province.
The camp at Longford RFC is scheduled for July 12th to 16th. Inclusion camps will also be taking place simultaneously in five Leinster clubs.
Subject to a green light from Government and NPHET, these camps will run in a Covid-19 compliant manner in 29 venues across the province with 37 camps in total taking place during July and August.
The summer camp programme is aimed at girls and boys aged between six and 12, while inclusion camps are open to all children with disabilities aged between eight and 12.
Due to the ongoing pandemic and with the health and safety of attendees and staff of paramount importance, our camps will run similar to last summer, with a number of changes to the camps from previous years and these were also outlined this morning.
The summer camps will be held from 9.30am-1pm over five days and the inclusion camp over three days from 10.30am-12.30am. A daily Covid-19 health sign-off will be required.
For a full list of camp venues and dates, click here.
The camps will be offered on a modified basis and there will be changes to the rugby activities made accordingly with Government guidelines at the time of the camps.
There will be no visit from professional Leinster Rugby players.
Leinster Rugby is committed to providing a fun and safe environment for those in attendance as well as those working on the camps, and once your place on a camp has been confirmed a full overview of the camp arrangements for your venue will be communicated in advance of the first day.
“The last year has been hugely challenging for us all but we are starting to see some light at the end of the tunnel and we are delighted to announce that the Bank of Ireland Leinster Rugby Summer Camps will once again be in our clubs and be available to both girls and boys.
“The recent Government announcement that our young players will be allowed to return to play later this month gave everyone a huge lift and it allowed us to start planning for the summer ahead” said Ray McCabe, Bank of Ireland Leinster Rugby Summer Camps Manager.
“It was important for us as a club to offer as much rugby to as many kids and in as many areas as possible” added McCabe.
“As a result, we will host 37 camps in 29 different venues across the province, five of which will be our inclusion camps where we will be catering for children with additional needs. All camps will have qualified coaches, while we will also have SNAs to support each inclusion camp."
All of the Bank of Ireland Leinster Rugby Summer Camps will continue to work within the Government guidelines in place but will of course focus on them playing rugby in a fun environment.
McCabe continued, “The biggest focus on our camps has always been to create a fun and safe environment. The kids have missed out on so much rugby throughout this pandemic, so we want to get the kids back into our clubs feeling part of it again, making new friends and doing all of this while playing rugby.
“Just like last year’s camps, each venue will be Covid-19 compliant. All players and coaches will have to complete a daily health check form before taking part in any activities.
“Every parent or guardian will also receive an information booklet prior to the camp starting with all the details and the protocols outlined but of course should anyone have any concerns they are free to contact us directly and we will do our very best to reassure them.”
To provide further certainty to participants, Leinster Rugby is committed to reviewing its protocols on an ongoing basis in line with Government and HSE advice and, should a camp be cancelled due to new advice received, a full refund will, of course, be provided.
The Bank of Ireland Leinster Rugby Summer Camps are open to girls and boys aged six to 12 and are run by fully accredited IRFU coaches.
Each camp runs Monday to Friday from 9.30am to 1.00pm and participants will receive a Leinster Rugby goodie bag including an adidas t-shirt and a Rhino rugby ball.
The Bank of Ireland Leinster Rugby Inclusion Camps will be run in five venues this summer:
- Greystones
- Mullingar
- Navan
- Coolmine
- Newbridge
They are run by fully accredited IRFU coaches and special needs assistants. Our inclusion camps are open to all children with disabilities aged between eight to 12.
