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Submission by Harvey Jolly on 06 March 2009.
2. Better place sport and physical activity as a key component of the Government's preventative health approach
- Examine Government frameworks to ensure an on-going focus on grassroots and community sport and physical activity.
Sporting Clubs of Australia are the delivers of grassroots and community sport. The challenge for all tiers of government is to engage the sporting clubs of Australia to deliver key health messages while supporting them to provide sporting opportunities. 1. Identify and support key clubs that can demonstrate the ability to work in partnership with Federal, State and Local Government and provide a measurable commitment to increasing participation at all age and ability levels while promoting and addressing the key preventative health messages. 2. Assist State and Local Government to provide hubs for these identified sporting clubs to work together to provide social facilities that can be shared by various sporting codes. With good management and administration, this sharing of social facilities would provide the critical mass of people to ensure a sustainable financial future for the clubs involved. The provision of playing facilities does not require co-location with the social facilities. The playing facilities only need to be fit for purpose playing fields or venues with amenities including changing with toilets. These clubs would also need to commit to increasing participation at all age and ability levels while promoting and addressing the key health messages. This rationalisation approach may allow government spending to have impact at the grassroots level sport and ensure key health messages are delivered within the community. 3. Place sport firmly on the Education agenda, link this with the Health portfolio and key health messages, and link the club system to schools to ensure there is continuity of active involvement.
- Examine Government programs to increase participation rates in sport and physical activity, including analysis of existing programs.
Again clubs are the delivers, how are government programs impacting the sporting clubs of Australia? While well intentioned initiatives such as the “Active Australia” program have been conceived to impact on long term preventative health they have failed to be fully adopted and supported at the grassroots level of Local Government and sport. Long-term impact can only be obtained if there is stability and availability of the provision of opportunities to be active, no matter what age, ability, gender, etc. The current “After Schools” program provides for a limited number of individuals on an irregular basis and it only is available to these individuals while they are attending primary school. I believe this is a low impact result for a significant Federal Government investment.
- Identify and recommend opportunities to break down barriers to participation at junior, adult and senior ages with a view to making it simpler and easier for Australians to participate in the sport or physical activity of their choice, including for women, the disabled and Indigenous people.
Schools provide the first opportunity for young Australian's to taste sport, the provision of structured sport within the school curriculum would provide all young Australian's with access to sports of their choice. To maintain an involvement in sport schools and clubs must engage, without this link or partnership continuity of an individuals involvement in sport is left to chance. Once engaged with a club the percentage for an individuals sustainable involvement in sport increases. All tiers of government should tangibly encourage clubs to engage with their local schools, those sporting clubs who provide for senior, women, the disabled and indigenous people should gain greater tangible support. Grants at all levels of government should use criteria that supports school and club links and provision of access o the identified potential participants.
- Recommend strategies to increase the effectiveness of the promotion of sport by the Federal Government to better communicate positive health and activity messages to the broader community.
Engage community level sporting clubs, they are the delivers.
3. Strengthen pathways from junior sport to grassroots community sport right through to elite and professional sport.
- Examine the capacity of the system to ensure optimal and efficient delivery of the athlete and coach pathway for any given sport.
Many sports have become very proactive in providing modified introductory programs for “beginners” exploring their chosen sport. AFL’s “Auskick” and Cricket Australia’s “in2CRICKET” are two examples. The challenge for sport is to ensure once an individual has become engaged with the sport they remain engaged. The provision of facilities that can provide for each level of the sporting pathway would provide a strong sporting environment within which individuals can remain involved for the long term. Multi-sport facilities that provide for beginners may allow individual allow access to sports and then access to existing infrastructure. All levels of government need to recognise the hierarchy of sport and provide facility support accordingly. Local Government treats all levels of sport in a similar way, the lack of recognition of regional level sporting clubs by local government is having a significant affect on this level of sport to play its role in supporting the higher levels of sport. These linchpin clubs must be recognised and supported.
- Recommend the most effective support and recognition for the coaches, officials, umpires, administrators and volunteers who keep our community clubs alive.
People drive the Australian sporting landscape - volunteers give their time freely. While recognition through certificates is admirable it only recognises the individual who has already committed. Greater thought needs to be directed at getting more Australians involved in volunteering, administration, coaching and umpiring. In particular, the current playing participants need to be targeted to continue their involvement in the sport through an off field capacity. Find inventive ways to recognise volunteers. Examples such as tax rebates, rate reductions, and discount cards - something tangible that may encourage others. Existing education program exist and can be accessed by all.
- Examine how relationships between the Commonwealth Government and National Sporting Organisations, State Sporting Organisations and Australia’s peak representative bodies at key multi-sports competitions may be strengthened to deliver better performance outcomes.
No response
5. Identify opportunities to increase and diversify the funding base for sport through corporate sponsorship, media and any recommended reforms, such as enhancing the effectiveness of the Australian Sports Foundation
The Australian Sporting Foundation provides a framework, which could be used to drive change throughout the Australian sporting structures. Eligibility for funding for facilities provision or projects should only be supported if a club or association can demonstrate its ability to meet criteria such as; Partnership agreements with Local Government, Increasing participation, measurable targets set, Identifying talent, measurable targets set, Developing and supporting volunteers, administrators, coaches and umpires, measurable targets set, Championing key preventative health messages, Working with a minimum of four other sports, With funding being specific to clubs and associations that are focused on driving participation, identifying talent and supporting key volunteers, growth and sustainability will occur as will the opportunity to identify talent. Unless some compromise can be met between the political will to reduce gambling and the needs of sporting infrastructure I see limited opportunity to increase the funding base for sport. The Sports Lottery run in England has provided substantial funding to support sporting infrastructure at all levels. This model should be explored. Encouragement should be provided to corporate entities to support sport financially. This could be provided in the form of tax deductibility of such support. 1. Utilise the Australian Sports Foundation to steer funding to clubs and associations that meet criteria that work to support and maintain a robustness Australian sport system, 2. Provide incentives for corporate bodies to invest in sport, including urban developers, 3. Coordinated funding by all tiers of government for identified projects that meet the agreed criteria for such funding.
Page last updated: 06 March, 2009