Newsletter May 2019
2020 2020 2030 2030
NSW NSW FOOTBALL FOOTBALL INFRASTRUCTURE INFRASTRUCTURE STRATEGY STRATEGY
TO TO
Infrastructure Strategy for Football in NSW Begins
GROW, DEVELOP & PROMOTE THE GAME
This Issue
With the recent completion of the most comprehensive Football Facilities Audit ever undertaken, Football NSW and Northern NSW Football now turn their attention to the next phase of the process and the development of a Football Infrastructure Strategy for the period 2020–2030.
To support future planning Football NSW and Northern NSW Football completed a detailed analysis of every football venue in NSW, including pitches, clubrooms, change rooms, match official amenities, lighting, spectator accommodation, car parking and other features present. Football NSW Chief Executive Officer, Stuart Hodge said “the 2018 Audit was the first to be undertaken since a similar exercise was conducted as part of Australia’s bid for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Our latest Audit included 1,005 sites and a total of 2,284 football pitches and uncovered some alarming results for the State’s largest team sport”.
03 Football NSW and Tennis NSW
announce exciting new partnership
03 Central Coast’s new state of the art facility
04 Synthetic field update 07 Grant/Funding update 08 NSW State Elections
08 Waterfront Drive reopens 09 My Community Project – Grant Opportunity
09 Australian Sports Foundation
“The audit revealed insufficient playing pitches in certain pockets of the state, often resulting in players being denied access to a club, the poor quality of certain aspects of facilities such as drainage, irrigation and lighting, and in particular, the inadequacy of ageing facilities and their ability to cope with the growth in popularity of the sport amongst young girls and women’. The NSW Football Infrastructure Strategy 2020-2030 will utilise the latest in industry shaping technology platforms to measure and monitor participation in football and project future demand for the game. Internationally recognised data management group ActiveXchange will lead the project, whilst world renowned industry specialists ‘insideEDGE Sport and Leisure Planning’ will deliver the strategy and associated football community and government stakeholder consultation. insideEDGE was responsible for the Sports Facilities Auditor software that was behind the recent Football Facilities Audit. Hodge again stated “a strategic framework for the planning and development of football infrastructure across metropolitan Sydney and regional NSW as it is imperative to sustain current participation numbers and to help grow the game in the future. In simple terms, going forward the current
demand and growth of the game is only limited by our capacity to provide suitable facilities for players to play at”. The aim of the project is to use planning methodologies that is evidence based and driven by data from a range of government and other sources to deliver an integrated State-wide football facility supply, demand and investment strategy that guides the provision of, and investment in football facilities across NSW over the next ten years. Northern NSW Football Chief Executive Officer, David Eland commented, “the NSW Football Infrastructure Strategy will become an important piece in our ongoing engagement with all levels of government over the coming decade. This strategy will allow the sport and government the opportunity to plan and develop football facilities for the 350,000 registered participants that play the world game today. It will also help plan for the envisaged NSW population growth and an estimated increase of more than 110,000 players over the next ten years which we will require some 700 new pitches in order to accommodate them.” The NSW Football Infrastructure Strategy 2020-2030 is a joint venture project
demonstrating football’s commitment to investing in the future of football and is funded through the Football Federation Australia’s Community Investment Fund, in association with Football NSW and Northern NSW Football. Detailed engagement will take place throughout the development of the strategy including all Football NSW associations and Northern NSW zones, NSW Government – Office of Sport, Local Councils and other relevant bodies. Stakeholders and partners will be kept informed of the Project’s progress and opportunities for engagement via the NSW Football Facilities Website. The NSW Football Infrastructure Strategy 2020-2030 is anticipated to be developed throughout 2019 with a final version of the Strategy due by January 2020 ready for adoption and implementation shortly thereafter. NSW Football Infrastructure Strategy 20202030 Information Consultation workshops are scheduled to take place throughout May 2019 with local councils and football associations/zones to help inform and shape the Infrastructure Strategy. Workshop dates are as follows:
FNSW - Metro and Western Date
Workshop 1 Council’s
Organisations
Workshop 2 Associations
Time
Time
Monday 20th May
Sydney Metro Councils & Metro Associations
Valentine Sports Park - 235-257 Meurants Ln, Glenwood NSW 2768
2.00pm - 4.00pm
Valentine Sports Park - 235-257 Meurants Ln, Glenwood NSW 2768
7.00pm - 9.00pm
Tuesday 21st May
Western Branch Councils & Western Branch Associations
Orange City Council - Civic Centre, 135 Byng Street, Orange NSW 2800
2.00pm - 4.00pm
Orange Ex-Workers Club - 231-243 Anson Street Orange NSW 2800
7.00pm - 9.00pm
FNSW - Riverina & Southern Date
Workshop 1 Venue – Riverina Branch Council’s Only
Time
Workshop 2 Venue – Riverina Branch Associations Only
Time
Monday 27th May
Wagga City Council - Historic Council Chambers building - Wagga Wagga Civic Centre, cnr Baylis & Morrow Streets, WAGGA WAGGA NSW 2650
2.00pm - 4.00pm
Wagga RSL Club - Corner Kincaid & Dobbs Street Wagga Wagga NSW 2650
7.00pm - 9.00pm
Date
Workshop 1 Venue – Southern Branch Council’s Only
Time
Workshop 2 Venue – Southern Branch Associations Only
Time
Tuesday 28st May
Moruya Golf Club - Evans St, Moruya NSW 2537
2.00pm - 4.00pm
Moruya Golf Club - Evans St, Moruya NSW 2537
7.00pm - 9.00pm
?KNOW
DID YOU
Only 19% of
match official provisions are female friendly
02 | Football Facilities | Facilities & Advocacy Unit | May 2019 Newsletter
Football NSW and Tennis NSW announce exciting new partnership Football NSW and Tennis NSW are excited to announce a partnership agreement aimed at increasing the opportunities for their member clubs and associations to share access to existing tennis facilities across NSW. Working with community stakeholders, and aligning with Office of Sport initiatives, new and existing tennis facilities could be made available for multi-purpose community use, suitable for the conduct of small sided football competitions, or general training. With many recreational activities facing the pressures of limited space, increasing population pressures, and financial sustainability, this opportunity presents an ideal opportunity for both football and tennis. It is hoped that a joint share model is developed whereby football players and teams can share access to tennis courts thereby contributing to the sustainability of these facilities.
Stuart Hodge, Chief Executive of Football NSW was excited by this prospect. “This is a great example of two sports collaborating for the benefit of the community and demonstrating to government at all levels how sport can contribute to the local community. “This program will revitalise existing tennis facilities at the local level and increase their capacity”. Lawrence Robertson, Chief Executive of Tennis NSW agreed with the partnership agreement.
“We believe that this partnership can create some advantages for both sports. We know that the revenue derived from a single smallsided football facility can be significantly more than that of a single tennis court. “The message from government is clear, sport needs to work together closely in order to maximize the use of valuable community assets, particularly in metropolitan Sydney and large regional centres,” Robertson added. Moving forward, Football NSW and Tennis NSW will work together to identify potential pilot venues with the aim to roll out some trials of this exciting new initiative in coming months.
Central Coast’s new state of the art facility The Central Coast Regional Sporting and Recreation Complex was officially opened by the Hon Senator Arthur Sinodinos AO and the Central Coast Council Mayor Jane Smith on Friday 29 March.
shared pathways and multiple car parks to cater for large sporting venues. Central Coast Council invested over $13 million towards the facility with the Federal Government contributing $10 million which saw the total cost of the project exceed $23 million.
Council are now planning stage 2 of the facility which will see the development of a multi-purpose indoor complex and a grandstand to compliment the nine playing fields that have been built in stage 1.
The Central Coast Regional Sporting and Recreation Complex (The Complex) is a high quality, multi-use facility designed to accommodate regionally significant sport and recreational events. This new sporting venue in Tuggerah consists of nine playing fields which can be converted from football to rugby league with ease, an amenity building, over 2km of Football Facilities | Facilities & Advocacy Unit | May 2019 Newsletter | 03
Synthetic field update Canterbury-Bankstown Council opens first all-weather sporting field at Jensen Park The $2.5 million upgrade of Jensen Park has now been completed with the venue becoming the first all-weather sporting field in the City of Canterbury-Bankstown council. The synthetic turf field also includes adjacent training/warm up areas. Jensen Park is the home to over 6,200 players of the Bankstown District Amateur Football Association, Bankstown United Football Club and Bankstown City Football Club. Football players will have the opportunity to train and play matches on a perfect, even surface, rain, hail or shine. Synthetic turf fields help to accommodate and promote year-round sport on safe and resilient surfaces. Increased sports activity helps reduce childhood obesity (which is one of the NSW Premier’s priorities) and promotes well-being.
Gore Hill upgrades to synthetic turf The redevelopment of Gore Hill Oval was a $10.5 million project delivered by Willoughby Council. This Oval is home to AFL during the winter season and in the summer season will host Northern Suburbs Football Association (NSFA) summer football program. In 2018 there were over 4,000 summer football players participating in NSFA summer competitions. A continuing issue for NSFA is finding accessible and good quality sporting fields to host the largest growing sport. Upgrades to Gore Hill will support the growing needs of football in the Northern Suburbs of Sydney.
Photo courtesy of Polytan In place of the previous amenities a new modular amenity building with function room, viewing decks, change rooms, storage rooms and toilet facilities was constructed. See the oval take shape here
As part of the upgrade the field was realigned, new synthetic field turf was laid, new floodlights with seesaw poles (upper part of the pole to seesaw down by use of an electric winch), an on-site storm water detention system to prevent flooding was installed and the demolish of existing pavilion and changerooms were conducted.
Photos courtesy of Willoughby Council
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New primary school and synthetic field at Bella Vista The new primary school for Kindergarten to Year 6 for local residents in Bella Vista and the football community within The Hills Shire Council Local Government Area will share the school’s outdoor synthetic sports field and have access to two indoor sport courts under a joint-use agreement stipulated by the NSW Government when building new school facilities. This new agreement with the Department of Education will mean sports fields and indoor facilities can be used by both school students and the wider community, helping them live more active and healthier lives. The Hills Football Association with 16,400 players will benefit from this development as they are due to play weekly competition games for the 2019 winter football season and host summer football competitions during the off season at the school.
Images courtesy of NSW Department of Education – School Infrastructure
Synthetic field update Ian McLennan sports field open for play
Video provided by Wollongong City Council
Video provided by Polytan
Wollongong City Council and Football South Coast recently opened the councils first synthetic sports field at Ian McLennan Park in Kembla Grange, which will benefit their 14,500 players. Synthetic turf is a smart solution for overused, unsafe playing fields. A natural turf field begins to struggle with overuse once there is more than 35 hours of use. Artificial turf fields are durable all-weather surfaces, which let water drain through easily, meaning that training and matches can continue all year round even during wet weather. Additional upgrades to lighting and new player dugouts to improve the player and spectator experience have also been included at the site. The total cost of this project was $2.76 million with local council providing $1.4 million of the project; Football South Coast and NSW government also contributed, as well as the NSW Clubgrants Category 3 Funding.
The City of Sydney’s newest sports centre The City of Sydney recently opened its new sports precinct in the suburb of Alexandria that will cater for adult and children’s sporting competitions. The Perry Park Recreation Centre includes indoor and outdoor courts for netball, basketball, volleyball, badminton, futsal, a kiosk, an outdoor terrace and landscaped grounds. There are currently over 7,000 futsal players participating in futsal schools
and club competitions. This centre will be instrumental in supporting the development of futsal players and provide the opportunity for members of the local community to participate in social football activities. The facility shows that many councils are now starting to understand that the more dwellings that are built the more residents will require recreational space to be healthy and active. This facility is a prime example as it was built to cater for the growth in residents and the population in the Green Square area.
VISIT OUR WEBSITE FOR MORE INFORMATION footballfacilities.com.au Photo courtesy of City of Sydney Council
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Synthetic field update Claydon Reserve receives new amenities building Sans Souci Football Club and St George Football Association are the beneficiaries of a $950,000 new amenities building at Claydon Reserve, thanks to Georges River Council.
do not have a change room to get changed in, with players having to get changed in cars. The audit also highlighted that only 12% of change rooms across the state were female friendly.
San Souci Football Club have over 800 players participating in matches and training at Claydon Reserve throughout the year and this upgrade will help to accommodate improved accessible facilities. The building features public amenities, change rooms, canteen, storage facilities clubroom and undercover barbecue area. Amenity buildings play an important role for clubs in helping to provide a positive experience for their members and an opportunity to generate much needed income from canteen sales. Findings from the 2018 Football Facilities Audit found that 22% of buildings had no home change rooms with 41% of change rooms rated below standards. Thirty two percent (32%) of buildings had no away change rooms with 35% of away change rooms below standard across the state. The facilities across many local government areas have not matched the increase in female participation. Women and girls in some areas
Photo credit: Bahram Mia
Asian Cup 2015 funding lights up Rushforth Oval Facility development across the state is continuing to take place, thanks to the funding from the Asian Cup 2015 Legacy Fund. Installation of new lighting to three full size football fields including an upgrade to the power supply (power supply partially funded by Federal Government $30,000) was recently completed at Rushforth Park, Grafton. Four local football clubs who play out of the facility will benefit from this project thanks to Clarence Valley Council with funding provided from the Stronger Country Communities Fund ($301,075) and the Asian Cup 2015 Legacy Fund ($116,671).
Field 1 now has over 300 lux lumination while field 2 and 3 have over 100 lux. This project will provide more space for teams to train and play night competition matches.
LED floodlights are installed at Duke of Kent Oval Wagga Wagga City Council recently upgraded the Duke of Kent Oval with the latest LED floodlighting technology. These upgrades will allow for the correct quality and quantity of light to be projected onto the field. Previous spaces that were not lit can now be utilised thus sharing the usage over all the playing fields. The wear and tear of the field will be reduced with the turf having longer lifespans and the council saving on energy and reduced maintenance costs that would be associated with the field. The ground is home to football and cricket and has two synthetic cricket pitches and small sided fields.
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The upgraded infrastructure improvement will provide significant health benefits to the whole community and the opportunity to play more football more often.
Grant/Funding Update Let’s Light Up Football returns Football NSW is pleased to announce the Let’s Light Up Football Campaign is now open. Football clubs are now invited to apply for support under the first ever Football NSW Facilities Fund. Let’s Light Up Football allows Football NSW affiliated clubs and associations, together with local councils and schools, the ability to apply for funding to improve lighting on community football pitches. “We are excited to once again inject funding into the local football community across NSW” stated Football NSW Chief Executive, Stuart Hodge. “The recent state-wide facilities audit highlighted that 32% of the fields in NSW don’t have floodlighting and 42% of fields with lighting are below the minimum Australian Standards of 50 lux. This campaign aims to address this issue by providing participants with a safe and welcoming environment”. The fund will provide up to 20% of a floodlighting project with a maximum of $20,000 available per project. The project will also need confirmed approval from the relevant local government authority as part of the eligibility criteria.
Applications close, Monday 15 July 2019 at 4pm. The Guidelines and Online Application Form for the Let’s Light Up Football fund can be found on the Football Facilities website.
Once again $300,000 worth of funding will be made available to Member Associations and Clubs with the opportunity to upgrade lighting to a safe and suitable standard for the community and most importantly increase the capacity of open space through the provision of night training and games, throughout NSW.
For further enquiries or to discuss your lighting project, please contact the Facilities and Advocacy Unit on 1300 213 771.
Success for football with the Greater Sydney Sports Facility Fund Round 1 of the Greater Sydney Sports Facility Fund (GSSFF) was announced in early 2019 with a host of football projects receiving funding to improve infrastructure. The Greater Sydney Sports Facility Fund has been established by the NSW Government to create spaces and places that enable communities to participate in sport at all levels. One hundred million dollars has been made available across 3 years ($100 million per year). The main objective of the Greater Sydney Sports Facility Fund is to ensure funding is allocated to those sporting facilities that deliver the best outcomes for the communities they support. Over $13 million dollars was granted to football projects with Rydalmere Park receiving the largest amount being $5 million. Through the GSSFF Granville District Soccer Football Association (Rydalmere Park) and Nepean Football Association (Jamison Park) and will see their first synthetic fields built in their respective association footprints. “The new synthetic field at Rydalmere Park will be the first ever synthetic field in the Granville & District Soccer Football Association (GDSFA). This is a fantastic result for the oldest football association in NSW” said Football NSW CEO Stuart Hodge. Rydalmere Park will see a new synthetic field installed on the main field, the improvement of floodlighting at the park to host night games, spectator seating and other significant upgrades to the site. Synthetic fields allow double the amount of usage compared to the natural turf fields, allowing football and the local community use of the facility all year round. The synthetic fields installed at Rydalmere and Jamison Park will allow competitions and training to continue uninterrupted while providing a consistent and safe surface. With the population of NSW expected to skyrocket over the next 15 to 30 years synthetic fields are going to be one of the solutions in handling the increased demand that open space will experience. Other successful projects from the GSSFF included; new amenity buildings/upgrades at Mark Leece Oval, Mulgoa Rise Playing Fields and Charles Pirie Reserve. Wilton Park received funding
for implementation of the park’s masterplan with funding also announced for an indoor multi-purpose facility at Heffron Park. Round 2 of the GSSFF is expected to open in the coming months with another $33 million being made available to the sporting community across Sydney. The Facilities and Advocacy Unit suggests that clubs and associations begin discussions with local councils now so clubs can be prepared once the grant process officially opens. For any assistance with infrastructure development please don’t hesitate to contact the Facilities and Advocacy Unit on 1300 213 771.
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NSW State Elections With the dust settling on the nsw state elections the Coalition government have announced The Hon. John Sidoti as the new Sports Minister for NSW. Football wishes Minister John Sidoti all the best in his first term as Minister for Sport. Minister Sidoti takes the reign from outgoing Minister for Sport, Stuart Ayres. We would like to take this opportunity to thank Minister Ayres for his contribution to the sport portfolio and the work he has done in securing funding for football in particular the NSW Asian Cup Legacy Fund which saw $4.3 million invested into grassroots football. In the lead up to the NSW State election several funding announcements were made with football clubs across NSW benefiting, they included: • $750,000 for a new amenity building at Marco Reserve • $2,00,000 for a synthetic field at Gladesville Reserve
•$ 10,000,000 for the redevelopment of Eden St Playing Fields This funding will go a long way in improving facilities at the local community level for hundreds of children and adults, male and female.
• $1,500,000 towards a new synthetic field in the Hornsby state electorate
Facilities are a crucial element to any grassroots club. New synthetic fields will allow clubs to maximise use at their current venue allowing more people to play the world game.
• $300,000 towards a new amenity building at Oatley Park
New amenity buildings at the community level will become female friendly and
• $4,500,000 for facility upgrades at Ernie Smith Reserve
replace the old buildings that are 40 to 50 years old and don’t meet the current needs of the football community. The recent state-wide facilities audit highlighted that only 12% of change rooms across NSW are female friendly. Females represent close to 25% of the football participation base in NSW. We look forward to working with the NSW State Government over the next 4 years as we develop our NSW Infrastructure Strategy that will guide facility development over the next 10 years.
Waterfront Drive reopens Balmain and District Football Club the largest club in NSW and Australia welcomed the reopening of Waterfront Drive on Saturday 13 ApriL. The club who boasts over 2,400 members were excited to see their home ground officially opened by Inner West Council Mayor, Darcy Byrne, Federal MP Anthony Albanese, State MP Jamie Parker and other local dignitaries. The project included the upgrade of sports field lighting, irrigation, sub surface drainage, new turf and regrading and a new cricket net facility. Balmain and District FC contributed $200,000 towards the projects with council injecting $2.4 million towards the project. This upgrade has seen a gigantic transformation of the two fields at Waterfront Drive. With the addition of lighting the club can now maximise its use of the park and provide a safe and inviting environment for its members. Inner West Council Mayor Darcy Byrne said, “This upgrade will be
a massive boost for local clubs crying out for better training and playing space especially given the ever-increasing demand for recreation space in the Inner West.” The Waterfront Drive Sporting Grounds upgrade is part of Council’s $65 million investment. With newly renovated fields Balmain and District FC now turn their attention to stage 2 of the redevelopment of Waterfront Drive which is the refurbishment of an unused building. The club plans to make this unused building into a new community building which will house the club’s operations for the future.
08 | Football Facilities | Facilities & Advocacy Unit | May 2019 Newsletter
My Community Project – Grant Opportunity Have you got a great idea to improve your local community? Does your football club need a new amenity building, does your venue need new lighting? The ‘My Community Project’ is the perfect opportunity to make this happen. Grants between $20,000 and $200,000 are now available.
How does it work? Step 1: Come up with an idea, i.e. a new amenity building at your home ground. Step 2: Find a project sponsor to partner with. The most practical sponsor for most football clubs is your local council. Step 3: Once you have the support of your sponsor submit an online application together with your sponsor.
What projects are eligible? Projects must benefit the local community and request funding between $20,000 and $200,000. To be eligible for My Community Project funding, project must benefit the local community. I.e. upgrades to local sporting facilities.
How do I vote for projects? Unlike other state government grant programs, this grant will be decided by the people of your community. This is where football clubs and associations can have a big influence on the outcome of the grant. Football clubs and associations make up a large percentage of the total community which equates to votes. Voting will be open for four weeks from 15 July to 15 August 2019. People in NSW aged 16 years or older will be able vote for the projects in their electorate. You will be able to vote through Service NSW for the projects in your electorate. To do this, you will need:
Projects must align with one or more of the six program categories:
• A MyServiceNSW Account. Most families will have a MyServiceNSW account with the recent introduction of the Active Kids Rebate.
1. Accessible communities
• Your Medicare card to verify your electorate
2. Cultural communities
• Your NSW resident address to identify your electorate
3. Healthy communities
How much funding is available?
4. Revitalising communities
$260,000 per state electorate, $24 million across the state
5. Safe communities
Grants between $20,000 and $200,000 are now available per project.
Applications are now open until Wednesday 15 May 2019 and must be supported by a sponsor organisation.
More Information
How will applications be assessed?
For further information please see the My Community Project website and download the guidelines.
After applications close on 15 May 2019, 2pm projects will be assessed for eligibility and viability before they are published on the My Community Project website. This will involve confirming: • the applicant, project sponsor and the project are all eligible under the program guidelines • the project scope, timings and budget are viable.
My Community Project is made possible by the NSW Generations Fund. The fund helps keep the state’s debt at a sustainable level, while sharing the benefit of its returns with the people of NSW by funding community projects.
For other grants currently available see the grants list provided on Football Facilities website.
Australian Sports Foundation The Australian Sports Foundation was established by the Federal Government in 1986 with the mission to raise money for Australian sport For over 30 years the foundation helped clubs and organisations from the grassroots and community level, to professional and elite national level, and individual athletes to fundraise for sport. Fundraising for and donating to sport has become just as common as supporting any
other cause in Australia. Five reasons why people donate to sport: 1. Culture – sport plays a huge role in the Australian way of life. 2. Social and Community benefits – sport helps to build a sense of community and belonging.
5. Emotional – being part of a sporting community or helping a sport succeed makes people feel good.
support to Australian sport by providing tax deductibility for donations made to projects signed up. ASF are the only organisation that can provide a tax deduction for donations to sport across Australia. We are a deductible gift recipient (DGR) and have a special listing in the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (Subdivision 30-B, s30-90).
The Australian Sports Foundation is uniquely positioned to enable philanthropic
Visit https://asf.org.au/ for further information.
3. Health – sport has a direct positive impact on our health. 4. Economic – sport is an important contributor to the economy.
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