Aim:
To identify and explore key stakeholders and their policies focused on physical education (PE), physical activity (PA) and (youth) sport (YS), as relevant to the PEPAYS Ireland key domains.
Methods:
Initially, all relevant and active stakeholders in PE, PA, and YS (PEPAYS) in the Republic of Ireland were identified. This involved a review of the stakeholders’ websites to extract existing policies, assisted by dialogue with National Governing Bodies, Local Sports Partnerships, and experts in relevant academic disciplines. Followingly, key policy documents from the stakeholders identified were reviewed and compiled into a matrix to document their alignment with PEPAYS key domains through deductive content analysis. Stakeholders were contacted to identify any further relevant documentation not captured in the matrix. A Venn Diagram was used to graphically depict the alignment of policies across the PEPAYS key domains.
Results/Findings:
In total, 18 active stakeholders in PEPAYS were identified. Healthy Ireland, Department of Education (including NCCA) and Sport Ireland were identified as the most prominent stakeholders. Healthy Ireland direct their focus on PA, Sport Ireland concentrate on sport, and Department of Education target PA and PE. PA is prioritised by over half of the stakeholders identified (n = 10). Although documentation of six stakeholders reference all three domains, only one (The Government of Ireland policy entitled ‘Programme for Government: Our Shared Future 2020’) explicitly addressed all three domains.