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Parks,
Recreation and Sport Committee
09 December
2014
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Sustainability
of Sport Fora - Update
File No.: CP2014/28484
Purpose
1. This report
provides an update for noting by the Parks, Recreation and Sport Committee on the
Sustainability of Sport Fora project.
Executive
Summary
2. In September
2013 Council adopted the Auckland Sport and Recreation Strategic Action Plan
(ASRSAP) which sets out a prioritised work programme against four key areas:
participation, infrastructure, excellence in sport and recreation, and sport
and recreation sector development. ASRSAP is a joint council, sport and
recreation sector strategy.
3. Council is the
lead agency on a number of key initiatives. ASRSAP action 6.4 requires council
to look at innovative ways to “address inequities including access to
facilities, funding and differing participation costs for different activities,
codes and population groups.” (ASRSAP page 35).
4. To undertake
this work, the Parks Recreation and Sport Committee signalled an interest in
understanding how the current community sport and recreation delivery system
works across Auckland and potential impacts to the success or failure of the
system.
5. The committee
resolved at the March 4 2014 meeting to consider a brief that would “further
investigate working with the Auckland sport and
recreation sector aimed at identifying issues concerning the long term
financial viability of community sport and recreation together with options to mitigate
such issues.” (PAR/2014/13)
6. The proposed approach reported at the June 10 2014 committee meeting
involved the formation of a joint governing body/local board Sustainability of
Sport and Recreation Panel and the delivery of a series of fora to hear
directly from grass roots sport and recreation groups throughout the Auckland
region.
7. Five
fora have been held over November and December 2014 and the sixth and final
forum will occur in February 2015.
8. Members
of the Sustainability of Sport Panel will then meet to provide oversight of a
final report on themes and a draft plan of action for consideration and
approval by the Parks Sport and Recreation Committee.
9. The
committee requested this progress report before completion of fora to outline
the approach behind the fora and provide an update on early themes and possible
actions arising from fora to date. Lisa Tocker and members of the Parks Sport
and Recreation department’s Sport and Recreation Partnerships team will make a
short presentation.
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Recommendation/s
That the Parks, Recreation and
Sport Committee:
a) note the early themes resulting
from the Sustainability of Sport Fora to date
b) forward the
Sustainability of Sport Fora progress report and accompanying presentation to
local boards and the Independent Maori Statutory Board.
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Discussion
Overview
10. Five Councillors
were appointed to the Sustainability of Sport Panel including Councillor
Christine Fletcher (Chair), Councillor Calum Penrose (Deputy), Councillor Sir
John Walker, Councillor John Watson, and Councillor Ross Clow. Local board
chairs were invited to confirm or nominate their representative(s) to the
panel.
11. Panel
participation has been high with some local boards appointing multiple members
with other local board and Independent Maori Statutory Board (IMSB) members
attending out of personal interest.
12. Comprehensive
information packs were provided in advance of the fora to all panel members
covering trends and research in sport and recreation relevant to the topic.
This material will be made available to all councillors and local board members
interested in receiving it.
13. An online
mechanism was developed to allow both forum registration and enable written
submissions to be provided and collated prior. Broad promotion of the forum
utilised the Regional Sports Trust network, He Oranga Poutama, Regional Sports
Organisations’ communication channels, as well as directly via Auckland Council
networks (e.g. Parks, Sport and Recreation, Community Leasing and Auckland
Transport department connections). Targeted contact was made where necessary to
broaden the range of sports and recreation activities involved.
14. A series of four
initial fora in the central, south, north and west sectors were organised and
held throughout Auckland. Grass-roots sports and recreation groups
pre-submitted feedback in response to a series of broad questions around
sustainability of sport and recreation and then presented strategic themes,
issues and ideas to the panel.
15. Both the success
and demand for the fora has led to two additional sessions being programmed. A
forum in the south and one in late February at a date/venue to be confirmed.
The February forum will allow the Panel to gain perspectives from existing
multi-sport clubs and major third party/council partnered projects such as (but
not limited to) Warkworth Showgrounds, Metropark, Albany Community Sports
Village, Te Rangi Hiroa, Colin Dale Park, Ngati Otara, Bruce Pulman Park,
Karaka and Waiuku Sports Parks.
16. Representation
so far has been made by clubs or groups from the following sports and
recreation activities: archery, Australian rules football, badminton,
basketball, bowls, croquet, curling, diving, football, gaelic football, golf,
gymnastics, hockey, horse-riding, marching, model flying, netball, off-road racing,
orienteering, outrigger canoeing, racquet sports, rowing, rugby, rugby league,
softball, swimming, squash, tennis, touch, trampolining, volleyball, waka ama,
and water sports.
17. High level
themes common across the Fora to date will be covered in a presentation by
staff. The action plan reported to the March 2015 committee will propose areas
where council can review, change, lead, influence, advocate in response to
suggestions. The following themes are therefore provided as reported by
submitters:
a. Genuine thanks
for the opportunity to communicate directly with council in this way
b. Sport and
recreation is seen as critical to communities. Clubs as a mechanism to develop
social interconnectedness, keep people active and healthy, and connect people to
their local places and spaces
c. More multisport
approaches. This was raised as a means of managing affordability, reducing
cost, enhancing the community experience of a multicode offering at a single
community hub and rationalising buildings on open space. (eg Papatoetoe
Multisport) Some view that council could have a key role to drive the necessary
collaboration given provision of land, lease management and facility
maintenance drivers
d. Consolidation and
rationalisation. Groups indicated a willingness to engage with council and
sports organisations in their location to rationalise facilities/assets as a
result of the costs of asset management (over and above multisport approaches)
e. Communication and
collaboration. Many outlined that they have multiple touch points across
council and CCO’s. Given the high voluntary nature of the sector, they seek
both streamlined and improved communication with council
f. Costs of
compliance. The new Health and Safety Act and other legislation has placed
increased burden on grassroots and is causing concern to both boards and
volunteers. Several noted they feel volunteers will walk away under the
pressures. Other compliance areas raised that have increased cost were
attributed to council such as By-laws, licensing and planning
g. Sustainability.
To most meant being able to create some revenue to offset increased costs of
compliance and for some facility and asset maintenance and renewals. The
Reserves Act allows some levels of revenue generation if related to the activity.
Groups seek a more enabling approach to develop social leagues, concessions
approaches, meeting rooms for hire to community etc
h. Advocacy and
influence. Clubs and groups perceive Council can advocate to central government
on their behalf, specifically the Reserves Act and Health and Safety Act
i. Access to
council’s technical expertise. Request that council consider providing groups
with high volunteer numbers access to specialist support such as turf advice,
asset management, farm management, health and safety
j. Comments on the
Proposed Unitary Plan in relation to hours of operation for sports facilities
as a result of lighting and noise
k. View that council
historically supports some codes and not others and a query around when council
will work with the sector to address this as it has implications for the costs
to participate and club sustainability
l. Facility quality
and availability is shown to have a direct impact on sports participation.
Groups identified a growing need for Council support to tackle facility
maintenance and redevelopment pressures especially to accommodate growth in
use. Clear value seen in Council’s facility partnership approach. Significant
capital costs needed to re-develop facilities and assets to improve utilisation
(ie more intense use) that clubs are not in a position to resource
m. Asset utilisation.
In addition to managing growth, some groups noted that thinking needs to be
done by the sector and with council on improved utilisation during low use
hours such as during school hours. Suggestions included improving programming
approaches, pricing as a tool to manage demand, targeting programming for older
adults and joining forces with schools to share assets and multisport
approaches where one asset if used well
n. Access. Guidance
requested on council’s ability to advocate appropriate access to Department of
Conservation, Ministry of Education and Tupuna Maunga O Tamaki Makaurau
Authority land
o. Support for
not-for-profit sector. Real value seen in the continuation of the wider Council
group’s support by way of rates relief, peppercorn rental, water rates relief,
parks maintenance services, facility development loans or grants etc. Club
desire that Council will ‘even the playing field’ for these types of support
across different sport and recreation activities
p. Using council’s
scale. Council to consider additional support, such as clubs joining in on
council insurance schemes, dovetailing in on procurement for goods and services
q. Pockets of
council service were suggested as needing improvement, such as timely
processing of lease agreements and quality of parks contractors in the south.
More generally two-way communication within and with Council is seen as
challenging for sports bodies.
Consideration
Local
Board Views and Implications
18. Local Boards
have participated via their representation on the Panel. Members attending each
forum were provided the opportunity to input their views and make comment on
themes summarised at the conclusion of each forum
19. Local board
panel members will remain involved through to the final report to this
committee in March 2015. All local boards will be sent copies of the final
report and action plan. Progress reports on actions will also be provided via
local board quarterly reports.
Maori
Impact Statement
20. Sport and
recreation contributes to the Health and Wellness focus area within the
Manaakitanga key direction of the Maori Plan. Work to understand the wider
range of challenges and impacts for sport and recreation groups and organisations
is inclusive of Maori sport and recreation organisations.
21. ASRSAP includes
an action to develop a Maori sport and recreation plan. Te Waka Angamua is
leading work on Te Whai Oranga – Maori Sport and Recreation alongside He Oranga
Poutama. A series of hui held over August and September will help guide the
development of Te Whai Oranga which is due to be reported to council later this
year. All groups invited to or attending the hui were also invited to the Fora.
22. The Schedule of
Issues of Significance to Maori includes an outcome around the empowerment and
enabling of Mataawaka organisations (page 22). In the context of the Panel, the
findings of the Panel and the consultation undertaken as part of Te Whai Oranga
can fuse to prioritise work programmes in operations. Opportunities inherent
in a strong and sustainable sport and recreation sector are also aligned with
actions in the outcomes areas of Education, Tamariki and Rangatahi Development,
Health, Economic development and Tourism.
23. The
Sustainability of Sport fora noted several areas impacting Maori sport that
will picked up in the final report. One example of this was need to understand
and reflect on the differing approaches used by Maori or iwi based sport and
recreation groups to the delivery of their activities. That for council to
collaborate, partner and serve this area staff will require a better
understanding of the principles guiding such organisations activities.
General
24. There are no
general items to consider.
Implementation
Issues
25. The final report
and action plan will outline implementation considerations. For the purposes of
this progress report, two factors are noted:
some issues or opportunities raised sit with council across various
departments through processes or improvements. Actions in these areas may be
controlled by council
other
issues and areas of opportunity are under the governance, management or
delegation of external parties, such as central government, NGO’s, Iwi and will
require communication to prepare final recommendations.
Attachments
There are no attachments for
this report.
Signatories
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Authors
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Lisa Tocker - Manager, Recreation Facilities &
Service Delivery Central
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Authorisers
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Ian Maxwell - Manager Parks, Sports & Recreation
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Parks,
Recreation and Sport Committee
09 December
2014
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Sport and Recreation Grant Investment
File No.: CP2014/28418
Purpose
1. This report
provides an update on council sport and recreation funding grants and requests
that the Parks Sport and Recreation Committee endorse a work programme to
review and report back on:
options for
grants to third parties delivering sport and recreation asset based services
future
investment into Aktive (Auckland Sport and Regional Sports Trusts) for the
delivery of priority initiatives from the Auckland Sport and Recreation Strategic
Action Plan.
Executive
Summary
2. Auckland Council funds sport and
recreation in a variety of ways. Council has a primary role in the provision of
sport and recreation assets and infrastructure, however also provides grants to
strategic delivery partners, asset based partnerships and programme funding.
3. The Auckland Sport and
Recreation Strategic Action Plan adopted this year provides the direction and
priorities for future investment into the sport and recreation sector.
4. Legacy funding arrangements have
continued since amalgamation pending the development of the Auckland Sport and
Recreation Strategic Action Plan and the Community Grants Policy.
5. The Community Grants Policy is
being reported for adoption to the Regional Strategy and Policy Committee on 4
December 2014. The proposed policy will provide new mechanisms for funding non
asset based sport and recreation organisations.
6. In the context of recently
endorsed key strategic action plans and policy definitions, this report covers
the following areas:
· third
party asset-based sport and recreation investment
· regional
strategic relationship investment.
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Recommendation/s
That the Parks, Recreation and
Sport Committee endorse the work programmes required to review and report
back on:
a) work with
third party asset based sport and recreation organisations to review the
legacy agreements, investigate future funding options, seek input from Local
Boards and report back to the Parks, Recreation and Sport Committee in 2015
on an investment approach for 2015/2016 and beyond
b) future
investment into Aktive (Auckland Sport and Regional Sports Trusts) for the
delivery of priority initiatives from the Auckland Sport and Recreation
Strategic Action Plan subject to confirmation of funding in the 2015-2025
Long-term Plan.
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Discussion
7. Auckland
Council’s investment into the sport and recreation sector takes place in a
variety of ways. Council has a primary role in provision, there is significant
capital and operating expenditure in the development of Council owned and
partner assets including sports fields, parks infrastructure and aquatic and
leisure centres. Investment into sport and recreation events and major sport
and recreation facilities also occurs primarily through ATEED and RFA
respectively. Council also provides a range of grant funding to support sport
and recreation organisations and activities.
8. Following the
formation of Auckland Council there have been a range of policies, plans and
strategies that have been developed in order to inform future Council
investment into sport and recreation. These include the Auckland Plan, the
Auckland Sport and Recreation Strategic Action Plan (ASARSAP), the Community
Grants Policy (CGP), the development of the Community Facility Network Plan,
the review of the Sports Field Capacity Programme, and a review of sport and
recreation asset based operational funding.
9. The development
of the 2015-2025 Long-term Plan provides an opportunity to achieve an aligned
approach to council’s sport and recreation investment programme to support the
delivery of the Auckland Sport and Recreation Strategic Action Plan.
Community Grants Policy
10. The Community Grants Policy (CGP)
is being reported to the Regional Strategy and Policy Committee on the 4
December 2014 for adoption.
11. The purpose of the CGP is to guide the allocation of local, multi-board and regional grants to
groups and organisations delivering projects, activities and services that
benefit Aucklanders.
12. The proposed CGP
covers grants for community development, arts and culture, events, sport and
recreation, environment and heritage and includes:
· a
local component (21 local grants programmes and a “multi-board’ grants
programme, governed by local boards and aligned with local board plans), and
· a
regional component (six regional grants programmes aligned to strategic
directions in the Auckland Plan, with governing body decision-making). This
includes a regional sport and recreation grants programme (see attached
Schedule).
13. Council
inherited a number of legacy funding arrangements; these have continued to be
rolled over on an annual basis, pending the development of ASARSAP and CGP and
subject to meeting key performance measures and alignment with the Auckland
Plan.
14. Legacy funding
budgets for programme delivery targeting young people have continued for Find
Your Field Of Dreams (FYFOD) for $299,145, In2iT $64,994 and Youthtown $76,770.
15. These budgets
will transfer to the Regional Sport and Recreation Fund as outlined in
the proposed Community Grants Policy.
16. Grants
can still continue to these organisations however from 2015/2016 they will need
to apply for their grants under the new contestable regional grants programme
(governed by this committee). The committee can consider all possible
recipients of funding and either a) choose to continue these grants as they
are, b) continue the grants, but amend the outcomes they are seeking from these
organisations to better align with the outcomes and priorities for the new
fund, c) reduce or increase the grant (within available budget), and/or d)
allocate some/all of the funding to other organisations.
17. All
funding organisations have been informed of the annual “roll over” of funding
to date and the pending new grants policy and approach, and were invited to
submit feedback on the draft policy during consultation period.
18. Whilst the CGP
proposes a number of grants to be out of scope including:
· recurring
grants to third parties to deliver asset-based or core services via
‘outsourced’ or partnership delivery models (sport and recreation facility
operational grants therefore out of scope)
· grants
provided as part of a broader strategic relationship with key partner
organisations operating regionally. Aktive (formerly Auckland Sport) service
grants to RST’s and were deemed out of scope, however the CGP has within the
policy narrative, reference for the need grants to key agencies such as
Citizens Advice Bureaux and Aktive as a means of delivering against various
strategic action plans.
Auckland
Sport and Recreation Strategic Action Plan (ASARSAP)
19. ASARSAP is one
of Council’s core strategies and the guiding strategy for the Sport and
Recreation Sector. It was developed after extensive consultation by, and with,
the sport and recreation sector and formally adopted by Auckland Council in
September 2013.
20. ASARSAP is
aligned with and supports the strategic outcomes of the Auckland Plan. It
consists of 62 key initiatives across four priority areas: Participation,
Infrastructure, Excellence in Recreation and Sport and Sector Development. The
major stakeholders in the sport and recreation sector are identified as having
lead and supporting roles across each initiative and Auckland Council is
identified as having a significant role in participation, infrastructure and
sector development.
21. The proposed
new Regional Sport and Recreation Grants programme in the CGP is an important
tool for implementing some of the ASARSAP goals and has been purposely designed
to deliver on the regional outcomes.
Asset-based sport and recreation grants
22. In 2010 a
range of legacy sport and recreation funding relationships transferred to
Auckland Council, with most allocated recurrently on a non-contestable basis to
support asset-based services (network provision) or strategic partnerships
(programmes). Pending the development of the new CGP and the development of
ASARSAP these arrangements have been annually renewed on one year contracts for
the last four financial years, on similar terms and conditions. Table 1
below provides a summary of these grants which are out of scope for the CGP.
Table 1: Third party asset based
sport and recreation grant budgets - legacy
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Organisation
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Budget
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Category
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Amount of funding (p/a)
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Auckland Netball Centre
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Governing Body
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sports facility
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$157,805
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Papatoetoe Sports Trust
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Otara-Papatoetoe
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sports facility
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$103,769
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Manukau Tennis Centre
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Otara-Papatoetoe
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sports facility
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$35,164
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Te Puru Recreation Centre
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Franklin
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recreation centre
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$341,110
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Avondale College Stadium
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Whau
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recreation centre
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$17,060
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ASB Stadium
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Orakei
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recreation centre
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$80,000
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Tamaki Recreation Centre
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Maungakiekie-Tamaki
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recreation centre
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$104,824
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Waiheke Recreation Centre
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Waiheke
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recreation centre
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$76,002
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Hato Petera College
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Kaipatiki
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sports field
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$30,126
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Sovereign Stadium
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Upper Harbour
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sports facility
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$58,994
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Dacre
Park
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Devonport-Takapuna
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sports field
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$18,473
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23. The
operational funding support for these asset based organisations, recognises the
importance of these assets to support the network of community facilities in
Auckland. Ongoing funding decisions for these organisations needs to be
informed by the Community Facility Network Plan (CFNP) and sports facility
plans.
24. Although these
grants are for a fixed term, they are designated to support the operating costs
of specific asset based organisations and this creates an expectation of
ongoing funding. These legacy arrangements do not enable council to readily
reflect shifts in need or demand within a network, and are not necessarily
consistent with council’s support for equivalent facilities elsewhere in the
region. Current budgets are not sufficient to provide comparable support to all
facilities.
25. Parks, Sport
and Recreation recently commissioned a review of the sport and recreation
grants to understand the support and outcomes being achieved.
26. The review
recognised the importance of the alignment of the Recreation Centres (ASB
Stadium, Tamaki Recreation Centre, Waiheke Recreation Centre, Avondale College
and Te Puru Recreation Centre) with the Auckland Council’s Aquatic and Leisure
Network as described in the Community Facility Network Plan. All these
facilities are recognised in the network plan and without these facilities
there could be a gap in provision. Furthermore it recommended benchmarking each
centres business model and reviewing expenses, efficiencies and effectiveness
against Auckland Leisure’s facilities. A number of recreation centres are
identified in the network plan to be investigated further to assess the provision
against community needs.
27. The review
acknowledged that the sports field based grants (Hato Petera College and Dacre
Park ) contributed to the outcomes supported by the Council’s Sports Field
Capacity Development Programme and recommended to continue to fund for these in
2014/2015 until the Council’s Sports Field Capacity Development Programme
Review is completed and current and projected capacity shortfalls are
identified.
28. The review recommended that for the two grants to sports specific
facilities, Manukau Tennis Centre and Auckland Netball Centre, further
investigation into the inequities in sport be undertaken and consider a
possible regional contestable funding and the role the Regional Sports
Organisations (Netball Northern Zone, Auckland and Northern Tennis etc) could
play in funding allocation decisions. This is consistent with an initiative
identified in ASARSAP.
29. Funding for
the Papatoetoe Sports Centre was established in 2009 by the Manukau City
Council as seed funding on a sliding scale for five years with the final
payment of $100,000 in 2014/2015.
Regional Strategic Relationship
30. The legacy
grants to the Regional Sports Trusts (RST’s) , now the Auckland Sport Group,
and trading as Aktive, are part of a broader strategic relationship with key
partner organisations operating regionally and are out of scope of the CGP.
31. Aktive are a
key strategic partner responsible for the delivery of the ASARSAP. Staff are
working closely with Aktive and the RST’s on the implementation of ASARSAP and
ensuring roles and responsibilities are clear across the sector.
32. To ensure
continued momentum and future planning staff recommend endorsing continued
strategic investment in Aktive (Auckland Sport Group) to deliver on priority
initiatives identified in ASARSAP, through a three year funding agreement, with
annual reporting and review, subject to confirmation of funding in the
2015-2025 Long Term Plan.
Consideration
Local
Board Views and Implications
33. The third party asset based
grants for sport and recreation organisations are regularly reported and
discussed with the relevant local board. Staff will continue to seek input from
the local board and update them on the sport and recreation review including
recommendations for 2015/2016 and beyond.
Maori
Impact Statement
34. The Maori Plan supports the use
of sport and recreation to support Health and Wellness. The Health and Wellness
area falls under the Key Direction of Manaakitanga – Improve the Quality of
Life. The Sport and Recreation Strategic Action Plan identifies as a key
initiative: Partner with regional Maori sports organisations to identify
opportunities to increase participation by Maori in recreation and sport
activities, including programmes in Te Reo, Maori settings and cultural
activities.
35. In addition to key guiding
documents such as the Maori Plan and Schedule of Issues of Significance, work
to develop Te Whai Oranga – The Maori Sport and Recreation plan will be used to
guide review processes in the context of this work programme.
Implementation
Issues
36. Staff will continue to manage and
monitor the existing funding relationships and reporting requirements.
Attachments
There are no attachments for
this report.
Signatories
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Authors
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Sharon Rimmer - Manager Recreation Partnerships
Programmes and Funding
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Authorisers
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Ian Maxwell - Manager Parks, Sports & Recreation
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