Target 83: Sport and recreation

Increase the proportion of South Australians participating in sport or physical recreation at least once per week to 50% by 2020

(the department is lead agency for this target)

The Office for Recreation and Sport (ORS) contributes to this target in the following key ways.

Affordability of sport and recreation opportunities for young South Australians

In March 2015, ORS launched Sport Vouchers, a discount system for primary school aged children to participate in a regular, structured sport activity. In the first calendar year (Mar–Dec 2015) 43 197 vouchers were redeemed valued at $2 137 650. That equates to more than 1 in 4 (26.9 per cent) primary school aged children redeeming a Sports Voucher to reduce the cost of regular participation in a structured activity. A powerful finding from the analysis was that 16 782 (38.85 per cent) children were using the vouchers to claim their discount with a provider (generally a local sport club) they had not previously been engaged with. This suggests that the vouchers encourage new participants to get involved in regular activity.

The analysis of the first year of the program also show:

the gender split was 56.89 per cent male, 43.11 per cent female
1222 (2.83 per cent) children identified as Aboriginal
2994 (6.93 per cent) children were from a culturally and linguistically background.

VACSWIM is an affordable water safety program for children aged 5 to 13 years conducted in the summer school holidays at pools and beaches around the state. The program saw 12 051 participants registered this year.

61 per cent of participants were aged 5-8 with a 50/50 representation of boys and girls
29 per cent of participants were aged 9-11
8 per cent of participants were aged 12-14

Inspiring the next generation

High performance sport provides a tangible pathway for talented athletes, helping retain existing athletes and inspire the next generation. Many of South Australia’s most talented athletes are identified and nurtured at the South Australian Sports Institute (SASI) and the ORS provides venues and support for the hosting of national and international events.

SASI’s Talent Search Program leads a state wide talent search initiative with over 5031 athletes having been tested in partnership with 60 schools towards identifying Australia’s future Olympians in a variety of sports. Past results stemming from the Talent Search initiatives have seen 31 athletes become SASI Scholarship holders with many having achieved international senior international podium performances at World Championships and the Olympic Games.
In 2015, 63 SASI athletes competed at world championships. 23 SASI athletes medaled in 7 sports bringing home a total of 38 medals across 32 events (11 gold, 14 silver, 7 bronze). Nine SASI athletes were crowned world champions in 2015. 40 members of Australia’s 2016 Summer Olympic Team have been supported through SASI’s programs.
As a key partner in Australia's Winning Edge strategy and High Performance System, SASI has worked extensively with the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) and other state institutes towards shaping the future of high performance sport with the staff being sought after for their wealth of experience across sport science and high performance management.
In addition the ORS also provided venues and/or support for the hosting of a number of national and international sporting events, including cycling, swimming, athletics, dragon boating and duathlon.

Funding for sport and recreation organisations to improve the participation experience

The ORS approved 769 grants valued at $32.058 million for sport and recreation organisations to improve the experience of participants. This included the following:

386 grants valued at $1.593 million for sport and recreation clubs to deliver programs, equipment and events
82 grants valued at $3.022 million for state level sport and recreation organisations to provide leadership, policies and support services
133 grants valued at $4.088 million for the delivery of significant and state wide projects that address inclusion, improve organisations and/or the experience of participants
61 scholarships valued at $0.142 million to support the development of talented and elite athletes to take on and beat the world’s best
107 grants valued at $23.212 million for the development of new and improved sport and recreation facilities. Of these, 58 (valued at $15.5 million) were in the metropolitan area and 48 (valued at $7.7 million) were in non-metropolitan areas.

Planning and development for sport and recreation infrastructure:

Planning Guidelines for the development of regional level recreation and sport facilities
Mount Barker concept designs for 2 key sporting open space areas
Provision of land at the former Kilburn Primary School for development of a multi pitch soccer facility
Master Plan for Roxby Downs Leisure Precinct
Upgrade of trails in Eagle Mountain Bike Park
Major BMX facility development investigations
Major outdoor courts sports precinct at Playford in development
Murray Bridge Aquatic Futures Study
SA Recreational Trails Statewide Master Plan
upgraded State-owned sporting infrastructure, including at the SA Athletics Stadium, Eagle Mountain Bike Park and Priceline Stadium (Netball SA).

Supporting peak bodies and state level sport and recreation organisations

Governance

The ORS works alongside state level organisations to support and enhance governance practices across the sport and recreation sector and:

deployed a Stakeholder Feedback Survey on behalf of 70 sport and recreation peak organisations and Industry Representative Bodies. The findings of these surveys will support their improvement in leadership, communication, relationships, policies and support services
provided support to the boards of sport and recreation peak bodies through the promotion of good governance principles, an evidence based board evaluation process, industry support and advice, workshops, resources and funding
supported the implementation of the recreation sectors new governance structure for the South Australian Trails Network
delivered 16 Child Safe Officer courses to 225 administrators working in the sector to enhance the safety and wellbeing of children in sport and recreation.

STARCLUB

STARCLUB is a South Australian Governments Club development tool for sport and active recreation supporting local clubs to provide the best environment for their members and the wider community through continuous improvement.

STARCLUB currently has over 2500 registered users in South Australia.
The information captured in STARCLUB helps the ORS identify development needs across the sector and work strategically alongside state sporting bodies, regional groups and local governments to deliver targeted education and support.
The ORS expanded the STARCLUB Field Officer program to a team of nine STARCLUB Field Officers working with 30 regional councils.
The Northern Territory (NT) Department of Sport and Recreation adapted the STARCLUB program to encourage continuous improvement of NT clubs and associations.
Similarly, a bespoke version of STARCLUB has been released by the SA Department for Communities and Social Inclusion (DCSI) for their stakeholders.
ORS has expanded STARCLUB to include an audit and recognition process which can be used to promote the clubs governance and management achievements in their community.

Support for coaches and officials:

The State Coaching and Officiating Centre continued to enhance the capability of SA’s coaches and officials where they:

delivered 26 coach education courses to 420 participants in metro and regional SA, including the new and improved Essentials for Coaching Children course
delivered the Coach Development Program for 27 sub-elite coaches from 15 sports, aimed to improve their general coaching skills
enhanced and expanded the Coloured Shirt Program for new officials
provided professional development and networking opportunities to the coaching and officiating development personnel from the State Sporting Organisations through the State Coaching and Officiating Network (SCON)
hosted two Elite Coaching Seminars (in Adelaide and Pt Augusta) providing coaches at all levels in the sport system to hear from and question some of Australia’s highest profile coaches.

Inclusion

The ORS works with sport and recreation organisations to promote the benefits of diversity and inclusion across the sector. Apart from advocacy and education for diversity and inclusion in sport generally, the ORS tailors specific initiatives that address the needs of targeted population groups. Highlights of the inclusion program are:

ORS hosted the 2016 Diversity Conference where more than 200 delegates were inspired by key note speaker Stan Grant on the challenges and opportunities for indigenous inclusion and heard from a range of speakers from both the sport and commercial sector on the moral and business case for inclusion.
Dr Emma Sherry of the Centre for Sport and Social Impact Latrobe University delivered a workshop to 50 senior sports administrators on the strategic imperative of having a whole-of-organisation approach to diversity and inclusion.
A number of tools and resources have been developed and shared with sport and active recreation organisations to break down perceptions that including people with a disability is too hard. Resources have been promoted through a range of mediums including at face to face workshops, through the ORS website and social media.
I-Net, an inclusion network brought together 30 state, local and non-government organisations working in disability, culturally and linguistically diverse and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (ATSI) communities regularly.
The ORS Women in Sport program focuses on building the leadership capacity and aspirations of women working in sport. In 2015-16 the program included:
- ‘Steer your Career’ leadership workshop
- an advocacy video featuring five prominent CEOs discussing the challenges and benefits of gender diversity
- a female focused talent identification and coach development initiative across all SASI program sports
- a Women in Sport Network breakfast celebrated our SA National League coaches
- ten women graduated from the intensive ‘Developing Women in Sport Leaders’ program
The ORS hosted the series Empowering Sport to Reflect Community in August 2015. The series sought to encourage and support sport organisations to nominate access and inclusion as a priority area in their strategic plan, embed inclusive practice in their operational approach and prioritise actions that remove barriers to participation in their activity.

In addition the ORS provided funding to support the development of opportunities for people with a disability to participate and excel including:

$185 000 to six state-sporting-organisations-for-people-with-a-disability to provide leadership, policies and services for their members, clubs and associations
$780 000 for 31 disability-specific projects through the ORS grant programs
20 sporting scholarships to elite athletes with a disability, through the South Australian Sports Institute, and five SASI athletes selected to represent Australia at the 2016 Rio Paralympics.

More Information

Sport Vouchers

VACSWIM

STARCLUB