The National Community Rugby Facilities Strategy presents 10 Key Recommendations for Australian Rugby including short, medium and long term strategies.
A summary of these key recommendations are outlined below.
Short term strategies
- Development of Facilities Planning Resources which provide guidance, education and tools for clubs, schools and state/territory unions to enhance their facility management.
- Implementation of a Communication Strategy including various methods of communicating with clubs and schools about relevant and current facility information as included in the Facility Planning Resources.
- Development of National Facilities Standards outlining benchmarks with respect to facilities used for national, state, regional and local competitions.
- Provide funding to support the Professional Development of relevant State Union staff to attend grant writing, facilities development, and/or facilities planning workshops.
- Implementation of an Integrated Mapping Tool (e.g. Geographical Information System) which maps demographic and participation data, school and club facility locations, facility data, and other related information to support facility planning and management.
- Development of an integrated National Rugby Facilities Database which is incorporated with the MRA (MyRugbyAdmin) with the ability to store relevant community rugby facility data for clubs, schools and unions, and provide a holistic picture of facility infrastructure nationally. Australian Rugby stakeholders would have the ability to regularly update and utilise local facility data.
Medium term strategies
- Appointment of a Facility Coordinator responsible for managing various aspects of rugby facility planning nationally, including the provision of advice, support and guidance to state/territory unions, clubs and schools on strategic facilities planning, including developing facility plans, assessment of projects, identifying facilities grant funding opportunities, establishing mutually beneficial partnerships and negotiating with key stakeholders, seeking capital to improve facilities, and continual development of resources.
- Development of annual State/Territory Union Strategic Facilities Plans by State/Territory Unions in conjunction with the appointed Facility Coordinator.
- Development of Criteria for Prioritising Facility Investment which supports the ARU, State/Territory Unions, clubs and schools to determine where facility investment occurs.
Long term strategies
- Establish an Australian Rugby Facility Fund Scheme which provides the Rugby community with an opportunity to access funds (loans/grants/subsidies) to support upgrades, replacements and improvements to their facilities and/or provide financial assistance towards applications for local, state and/or national government facility grants.
It is anticipated that the recommended short-term strategies will be implemented from 2011/2012, followed by implementation of medium-term strategies in 2013/2014 and long-term strategies from 2015.
Further detailed information is available in the National Community Rugby Facilities Strategy.