Australia's National Local Government Newspaper Online

Facilities information planned for the internet

The management and development of sporting facilities is a major activity in Local Government but all too often the wheel is reinvented because there is insufficient exchange of information about sporting facility management and development.

The need to exchange information has been recognised by the Standing Committee on Sport and Recreation (SCORS) and its standing subcommittee, the Australasian Facilities Committee (AFC).

This subcommittee was established in 1996 to replace the Australian Sport and Recreation Facilities Advisory Committee (AUSFAC). It had been in existence since 1991 when SCORS identified the need for a national sports facilities advisory service that would limit duplication and share expertise, information and resources.

In cooperation with other authorities, AUSFAC was responsible for the development and publication of several resources which were in great demand within the Australian sporting industry. One such publication was Datasport.

This featured case studies on particular sports facilities and addressed issues such as disabled athlete training, hockey surfaces, child care facilities, financial viability of swimming pools, management of joint use facilities and so on.

One of the key strategies set by SCORS for the AFC was, within available resources, to disseminate information, utilising cost effective information channels. This involved greater use of the Internet rather than a reactivated Datasport magazine.

As a result of this decision, AFC has been working with the National Sport Information Centre of the Australian Sports Commission to develop an Internet site for Australian sporting facilities information.

The site, to be launched later this year, will include standards for sporting facilities, dimensions of playing fields and facilities, facility legislation, case studies and examples of best practice in facility design and management, the latest publications and articles on facilities, statistical resources relating to sports participation and funding sources, guidelines and applications.

This Internet site will in fact become a gateway for Australians seeking sporting facility information. It is also planned to incorporate into the site a database of national and international standard sporting facilities.

This will be able to be added to with information on facilities at all levels of government. The site will also have the provision for Internet listservs which allow individuals involved in facility design, development and management to share ideas and experiences.

It is clear that new technology, and the Internet in particular, presents exciting opportunities for the sharing of information on sporting facilities both nationally and internationally.

The sporting facilities Internet site will play a key role in making facilities information more widely available. This initiative sits well with the recommendations of the report of the House of Representatives Inquiry into the funding of community sport and recreational facilities 'Rethinking the Funding of Community Sporting and Recreational Facilities: A Sporting Chance (1997)'.

It recommended that the AFC assemble and publish information on the planning, design and management of sporting facilities and disseminate the information as widely as possible.

To obtain further information about this project contact Nerida Clarke, ASC Director Information Services on (02) 6214 1204.

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