A New Vision for Sport in Australia

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From golf courses, bowling greens and tennis courts to aquatic centres, stadiums and squash courts, clubs offer a diverse range of sporting facilities for their local communities. If your neighbourhood club doesn’t have sporting facilities, chances are they are still actively engaged in sports in some capacity. This could involve substantial investments in constructing or maintaining facilities or promoting sports within their local communities.

Australia is a world-class sporting nation, and with the 2032 Olympics on the horizon, it is crucial for our nation to establish a strategic vision to ensure the ongoing success of sports at all levels in our communities.

The Office of Sport is supporting the Federal Government’s commitment to create active, healthy and safe communities by developing the new National Sport Plan. ClubsNSW believes that registered clubs are an important part of this Plan.

What is the new National Sport Plan?

In November, the National Sport Plan Public Consultation Paper was released. The Plan identifies Australia’s priorities for building healthy, active, connected, and thriving communities. These are underpinned by the guiding principles of leadership and capability, diversity, inclusion and equity, safety and education and development.

Many of the proposed priority areas align closely with clubs, including inclusion, participation, and international engagement.

Did ClubsNSW provide feedback on the Plan?

ClubsNSW, through Clubs Australia, provided a submission on the new National Plan which can be found here.

The Plan establishes a comprehensive framework crucial to the success of sport in both regional and metropolitan locations. Clubs Australia believes that there are additional opportunities to incorporate clubs into the proposed vision.

Clubs Australia recommended the following:

Promote clubs as safe and inclusive sporting environments.
Use clubs for word-class and interstate sporting events, such as international golf tournaments and football games.
Take into account recreational or casual use of sporting facilities in assessing sporting participation.

In summary, the Commonwealth Government should maximise the use of club infrastructure for significant sporting matches, and further promote the secure and inclusive atmospheres they offer.

Clubs can stay tuned on the progress of the Plan here.