SEE THE "TWO STEP's OF ENROLMENT" TO LOUISBURGH FOROIGE

FOR 2023-2024 A LITTLE FURTHER DOWN THIS PAGE

 

Costs of joining and lots of other important info is listed below.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There is lots of info and things to consider so please take a few minutes to read everything fully:

 

 

All the below info is subject to enrolment numbers, member demand and leader availability.

 

 

 

Louisburgh Foróige, the 2023-24 plan going forward.

 

 

Over the next year, Louisburgh Foróige will offer Foróige services in Louisburgh within the school term, in the school term means if the school is on holidays then so are we. Venues will be announce at a later date. Club's will meet as follows; every Tuesday evening within the school terms:

 

BRAND NEW for 2023/24: We are opening our brand new foroige tech room and podcasting studio.

 

We would like to welcome young people from 1st year to leaving cert, we aim to separate the members according to age groups but this is only done if membership is high and leaders are available.

 

 

 

 

Enrolment to our club is open to all Sancta Maria Students aged

12-18 years with some exceptions.

 

Enrolment details as follows;

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There is a TWO STEP process for joining Louisburgh Foróige:

 

Registration date extended to Saturday the 2nd of September;

 

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STEP ONE:

 

A parent or guardian of the intended joining member MUST pre-register your child(ren) via email to louisburghforoige@yahoo.ie on or before Saturday the 2nd of September 2023. Please note this email does not guarantee acceptance into our clubs. Acceptance will be based on a number of factors.

 

 

 

In this pre-register email we will need:

 

Your full name (parent/guardian) and a contact phone number.

Child/Childrens full name(s).

What year (from Sept...) will your child(ren) be attending in Sancta Maria Louisburgh?

 

 

Await to hear back from us.

 

 

STEP TWO:

 

If accepted: A parent/guardian (without the member) must be available to attend our official enrolment evening and parental induction to our club on Tuesday the 12th of September 2023 at 7:30pm in Louisburgh Parish Hall. Induction will take about 40 minutes. Even if you are a returning parent/guardian, you MUST attend our club induction.

 

 

PLEASE NOTE: No extra enrolments/inductions nights are planned. If you miss the times dates given above please contact us.

 

 

The costs: If your child is offered a place in our club the cost is then 50 euro per child to a max

90 euro per family. Most of this fee is "returned to the members" by way of their

start up in-club fund. There is no charge for pre-registration

 

 

 

 

 

 

Other important things to consider:

 

YOU MISSED OR YOU ARE NOT AVAILABLE FOR THE REGISTRATION DATE GIVEN: We are all very busy and here in Louisburgh Foróige we try to be as flexible and accommodating as we can be toward parents, guardians and members. If you missed enrolment, please get in touch.

 

 

Please do keep in mind, no child will be accepted into Louisburgh Foróige unless their parent or guardian has attended an induction evening, this is so everyone knows up-front what to expect from our club and there is NO EXCEPTIONS to this, this also applies to all returning members.

 

 

 

 

IF YOU ARE ONLY SIGNING UP "JUST" FOR THE DISCOS AND THE OUTINGS

WE URGE YOU TO SERIOUSLY RECONSIDER.

 

 

 

 

Foróige has so much more to offer parents/guardians/members than just Disco's and outings. If, after induction, you still view us as just a Disco or outing club then you and your child will not enjoy the Foróige experience, yes Discos and outings are a very important part of our club, we love them, they play a huge role is personal development and socializing but we encourage all parents/guardians/members not to view Foróige as just a Disco or outing club. We have rules and guidelines clearly set out the state you must be activity participating and attending club regally or you won't be permitted attend any of the Foróige events.

 

 

A quick recap - Dates now updated!:

 

Step one - parents / guardians "pre-register" members by email to us before the 2nd of September 2023

 

Step two - A parent or guardian MUST be available on Tuesday evening from 7:30pm for a parental induction to our club on the 12th of September.

 

No child can join without a parent or guardian having attended a parental induction first. There is currently NO exceptions to this rule.

 

 

 

Question's:

 

Q. I missed enrolment, what happens now?

A. You will need to contact our club to discuss your options.

 

Q. What can I expect while attending the parental evening?

A. Our enrolment covers lots of little but very important points and often club guidelines get lost in the rush and sometimes people tick the yes box and not fully understand what they have just agreed to. We operate a strict data protection policy and from September we will be using WhatsApp and lots of people do not fully understand how accessible your personal information is while using such an App., other things like our detailed club participation and attendance rule needs some time to explain. So this year, we have arranged a relaxed approach to making sure everyone fully understands what is expected of them.

 

Q. When does enrolment close?

A. The final date for accepting enrolments is Sunday the 20th of Aug 2023.

 

Q. My son won't make it to club every week, he has sports, I work some Tuesday's and its hard to juggle everything. He loves his sport and he's really good at it, he's training for the county team but we also want him to attend your Disco's, is this ok?

A. We fully support and encourage all young people to get involved in sports, music, art, dancing ect. but if this interferes with them attending our Foróige regularly then you and your child need to consider if Foróige is the right place for you right now, we do operate an attending and participation policy within our club so if young people can't make it to club regular, then they won't be permitted attend the Foróige events or outings either.

 

Q. Can my child join without me (the parent) attending a parental evening?

A. NO, all parents or guardians of members must attend an induction session first. There is no exceptions to this rule.

 

Q. I can't afford all the enrolment fee up-front, can I have a little more time to pay?

A. Yes of course you can. Just chat to one of our leaders, honestly we are here to help but do make us aware you would like a few more weeks to pay.

 

Q. My second year daughter has lots of third year friends, can she join the third year club instead?

A. No, all members must join the club appropriate to their school year.

 

Q. I'd like to help out as a volunteer but I'm not comfortable joining as my child is in the club and I don't want to invade their space, how else can I help?

A. This year we are operating different clubs so if your child is in first year, why not consider volunteering with the second or third years, they all meet at the same time so while you wait for the first year club to finish, you can help out else where.

 

Q. I'm Garda vetted with my job, do I still have to complete the process again for volunteering in Foróige?

A. Yes, Foróige Garda vetting while much the same as other organizations must be completed by Foróige volunteers.

 

Q. If I join as a leader, will I just be there to make up the numbers or will I be actively involved?

A. Joining as a leader is very welcomed, we value everyone on the same level, all new leaders will need to complete start-out training and complete the Garda vetting process, we will help you with these, you can have as much or as little interaction with the members as you like staring off, once you become more comfortable with the way it all works you are invited to get involved a little more. Your opinion is valued, if you don't offer it, we can't consider it.

 

Q. Clubs are running at staggered times, I have first and second year members, this is a lot of running about for me?

A. Last year tried to spread our experienced leaders out over different club all running at the same time but this meant over stretching our full time leaders as staggered clubs this year is regrettable but we have no other options available to us at this moment in time,

 

Q. Is separating the members by year really a good idea?

A. Pre-covid, we had a first year only, a second year only and a third year only club, half way through the year we asked all our members were they ok with the current set up, 99% of the first years said they were delighted to remain on their own and 100% of the second and third years asked to remain divided into two separate clubs. Listening to our members is what we do. Foróige works better in smaller more age appropriate groups, less really is more.

 

 

Note:

 

We are all Louisburgh Foróige, same great club, same hoodie, same group of leaders. We will travel to Discos and outings as one club, we will take part in things like citizenship, prom ball and senior banquet also as a single club. we are just making Foróige more accessible and more enjoyable for everyone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Some more important info for you:

 

 

 

 

WHO CAN JOIN:

 

Our enrolment is open to everyone currently in first year right through to leaving cert attending Sancta Maria School here in Louisburgh.

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HOW MUCH WILL IT ALL COST:

 

Enrolment fee is €50 per child or €90 max per family. Installment options are available. Foróige Ireland get €30 of this fee for insurance and affiliation.

 

€3 (TBC) per person, per week after that.

 

The weekly fee is to cover hall rental, light, heat, tea, milk and biscuits for everyone every week. We also use any unspent funds from this contribution to go towards trips and outings at members request.

 

Discos and outings are all costed and paid for per event, the average cost of a Foróige Disco is €7 entry and normally €5-€10 for the return bus. This is exceptional good value for money considering what some local Discos are charging young people.

 

Other things to keep in mind, we are a non profit club, all funds raised by way of weekly contribution, fundraising or grants is spent directly on our members or the running of our club. All our adult leaders and committee members are volunteers and don't receive any payment for their time. Our accounts are audited and are available for inspection by anyone on request by appointment. Costs are merely a guideline, if you are finding it difficult to cover enrolment or event costs PLEASE do come in and chat to one of our senior club leaders, we are here to help, pay what you can, when you can.

 

 

Louisburgh Foróige are hoping to get more older members into our Foróige:

 

A TY & up club. Mayo Foróige are implementing programs county wide to try and retain/attract more older members into Foróige. Louisburgh Foróige have signed up to this policy and we are hoping to secure more TY, fifth and leaving cert. members into our club. Your club, ran by you, for you.

 

Please visit www.AxisYouthSpace.com for more details on our older members club.

 

 

MORE INFO FOR PARENTS & GUARDAINS:

 

Dear Parent / Guardian,

Louisburgh Foróige Club is one of hundreds of Foróige clubs throughout the country supporting thousands of teenagers to be the best they can be. Foróige offers young people opportunities to run the clubs themselves in cooperation with their adult leaders. Our club is led by trained volunteer adults, whose generosity makes it possible for your child to have this club.

 

Through Louisburgh Foróige, young people can become more self confident and self reliant, develop their views beliefs and values, make friends and have fun, contribute to the development of the community; learn to accept and exercise responsibility and enjoy a great, safe social outlet. Foróige is Ireland’s leading youth organization, involving over 50,000 young people and 5,500 adult volunteers, supported by professional paid Foróige staff. For more info see the Foróige Ireland website on www.foroige.ie

 

For your Child’s Protection and Safety:

The National Council of Foróige believes that the protection and welfare of children and young people is of paramount importance. It is the policy of the National Council of Foróige that the organization’s staff and adult leaders take all reasonable care to ensure that all children and young people involved in its services are protected from abuse of any kind. This policy is grounded in Foróige’s philosophy which outlines the importance of young people being treated with respect, listened to and having their views taken into consideration.

As with all Foróige clubs, Louisburgh Foróige volunteer leaders, are reference checked; Garda vetted and receive appropriate training on an ongoing basis. Foróige has policies covering a number of areas and procedures which ALL adult leaders are expected to follow including: Child Protection, Code of Good Practice in Working With Young People, Computer, phone and Internet use, Recruitment and Selection of Volunteers, Safety on Trips Away, Interclub Event Guidelines, Tobacco Alcohol and Drugs, and Insurance.

 

No un-vetted leaders, even parents/guardians or visitor attending club will be alone with any of our members for any reason at ANY TIME. The is for the protection of our Foróige members and our leaders, our number one priority is the protection of all our members while attending Foróige.

 

 

Random breath testing within our club:

 

In order to reinforce the no alcohol policy within Foróige we operate random breath testing using a fully regulated Breathalyzer within our club. This test can happen without prior notice and at anytime our leaders deem the need to carry out the test.

 

Young people who fail the alcohol breath test will have a parent/guardian contacted immediately and that person will be expected to come collect the child without delay..

 

 

Social Media:

 

Louisburgh Foróige uses a vast range of social media websites. We are a big promoter of the 'correct use' of social media and we follow a strict code of conduct regarding same. We currently use 12 of the top social media websites in the world today. We don't know everything but we do try and keep up to date with every site we use. If you have questions about our use, or have questions about your Childs use of social media sites, come in and we'd be delighted to chat to you about this.

 

Parents Responsibility:

The Club normally operates on Tuesday evenings. If we have extra meetings or change nights we will let you know. The leader’s responsibility begins and ends at these times. You are responsible for getting your child to club, if a child leaves home and fails to turn up at club, we are not responsible for this. Please do not drop your child off before the specified time and ensure they do not remain after the club ends. The meeting place will not open until there are enough volunteers to take care of members.

 

At times we may need extra help in the club, such as supervising meetings or on trips away. We look forward to your cooperation.

 

Medication:

In the event of a young person needing to take medication, (e.g. headache/ hay fever or prescribed medication)

A. An Adult Leader must be informed in advance of the use of this medication.

B. No young person should be in possession of any more medication than is required for the duration of the Foróige activity.

C. Our Adult Leaders WILL NOT be responsible for the administration of these medications.

 

Trips away:

If the club is holding trips outside the normal club times, for example a visit to another Foróige club or a Disco, you will be asked to sign a Permission Form and given information. If you are unsure check with a leader.

 

Important Points to Remember:

1. If your child(ren) cannot attend the Foróige Club for any reason please inform one of the leaders

2. If your child(ren) is frequently absent from the Foróige Club, is arriving late or leaving early; we may be in contact with you to check that everything is OK

3. As a parent/guardian we would like you to be as involved in the club as much as you can. We are all volunteers and you are welcome to join us.

 

 

More Info:

 

Need more info? Visit our About Us page for lots more information about Louisburgh Foróige and if you need more help visit our contact us page for contact details.