ABOP wins awards
The Argyll & Bute Orienteering Partnership (ABOP) is a partnership between EckO and Argyll & Bute Council. ABOP was formed two years ago with the aim of developing the sport of orienteering throughout Argyll.
The partnership has been extremely successful so far and this was recognised on Friday 10th November at the Argyll & Bute Council Excellence Awards. The Awards, supported by Ernest & Young, aim to give recognition to partnership projects in the region. ABOP was selected as one of the three finalists in its category “Vibrant Communities”. This category was sponsored by the Clydesdale Bank. At the awards ceremony held in Helensburgh, the winners of each of the five award categories were announced. ABOP was successful in winning its category. ABOP then went on to become the overall “Winner of the Leading Rural Area Award”. This award is presented to the best overall project within the whole region. Well done ABOP!
As well as receiving a certificate and trophy, ABOP was awarded £500 towards the project.
Some of the major achievements of ABOP to date are:
- Mapping of every school (over 90) in the region
- Training of the entire Active Schools team to Level 1 Coach standard
- Orienteering resource packs for every school and community
- Mapping of new areas across the region suitable for local events and national competition
- Equipping EckO with two sets of sportident electronic punching equipment
- A significant increase in the number of participants at EckO local events
- A permanent orienteering course in Glenbranter Forest
The next project is the establishment of a network of permanent orienteering courses across the region, including courses on the islands of Mull and Islay.
ABOP has already begun to increase participation in and awareness of the sport of orienteering in Argyll and has plans to continue this development over the coming years. A key success of ABOP has been gearing the activity around the club and helping the club to develop. This should, in the long run, lead to more sustainable development.
A big thank you must go to the members of EckO who have put in a huge amount of their time and effort to ABOP.
Visit the Argyll & Bute Council website for the official report.
Niall Urquhart
