The Allan Labor Government is helping more women and girls get involved in the sports they love, delivering grants for community sport clubs to provide more and better opportunities for engagement.
Member for Eastern Victoria Tom McIntosh today announced that Bairnsdale Football Netball Club would be one of 119 successful recipients of the 2023-24 Change Our Game Community Activation Grants Program.
The program delivers grants of up to $10,000 to community sport and recreation clubs to help inspire women and girls to take part – including new women’s programs, hosting a women’s round as well as opportunities for club leadership roles.
Grant recipients include the Bairnsdale Football Netball Club which will deliver a new professional development course for board positions, which will allow the club to make sure women and girls are included in the culture of the club.
The Bairnsdale FNC hopes to improve female representation within sporting governance, at a community, league, and regional level.
The program will also support Female Football Gippsland to hold two consecutive AFL gather rounds in Gippsland for 23 women and girls' teams - taking place at one location across two days with around 480 participants.
Other recipients in Eastern Victoria include the Longford Cricket Club, which will receive $5,000 toward women’s recruitment, training, retention and promotion, along with the Portsea Surf Life Saving Club, and Sorrento Cricket Club who have also been gifted grants.
Through the Fair Access Policy Roadmap, launched in August 2022, and the Community Activation Grants Program, the Labor Government is helping community sporting organisations achieve more equitable access and increase the number of women and girls actively taking part in their club.
Since 2018, more than $2.9 million in funding has been provided to 580 community sport and recreation clubs as part of the Labor Government’s $18.8 million commitment to the Office for Women in Sport and Recreation and Change Our Game initiative.
For more information, visit changeourgame.vic.gov.au
Quote attributable to Member for Eastern Victoria Tom McIntosh
“We’re funding multiple clubs across Gippsland, so we can continue to boost women’s participation in every aspect of community sport, whether that’s playing, coaching, or governance.”
Quote attributable to Bairnsdale Football Netball Club President Michael Mann
“This grant will be used to support, educate, and raise awareness within our club and wider community in relation to equality of inclusion and leadership of females in AFL and community sport.”
