Regional Sport and Recreation

Mr HUGHES (Giles) (14:48): My question is to the Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing. How is the government supporting participation in sport and recreation in regional areas?

The Hon. K.A. HILDYARD (Reynell—Minister for Child Protection, Minister for Women and the Prevention of Domestic and Family Violence, Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing) (14:49): I thank the member very much for the question. I acknowledge his support for clubs in his community, and his fierce advocacy for the important role sport and recreation has within it. The Malinauskas government's Connected and Active Communities Program is designed to help activate movement, play and community connectedness in South Australian regions. Following success in two initial regional communities, I am really pleased to advise the house that we are expanding the program to more regional locations.

The Connected and Active Communities Program mobilises the strengths of South Australian communities through a partnership approach, to establish and foster relationships that grow local capacity to develop and to deliver impactful physical activity initiatives, including and especially for those who are not currently engaged in organised sport or in other physical activity.

With knowledge of the physical, mental and emotional health and wellbeing benefits of being involved in sport, the state government has committed funding for the next three years across four regions for the Connected and Active Communities Program to partner with regional communities and co-design the actions that contribute to sustainable solutions that heighten that physical activity participation and better connect communities.

Following the successful programs throughout 2023 in the Limestone Coast and the Port Lincoln areas, we are now proudly expanding this program to the Riverland and to the Whyalla regions. Within the project, locally employed Connected and Active Communities project officers have been selected to lead a range of initiatives, including:

increasing the number and the capacity of diverse leaders within the sporting community;

club health checks to better understand the needs of a particular club;

facility coordination to maximise local people's access to facilities;

raising mental health awareness in clubs and making clubs a safe space for mental health conversations;

exploring volunteerism and making it easier for people who want to get involved in sport and recreation to find those ways that they can help;

celebrating sport being at the heart of communities through working with sport and recreation communities to be inclusive and welcoming;

enhancing performance pathways through providing development opportunities for athletes, coaches and officials;

increasing physical activity opportunities through community events; and

supporting active lives through addressing barriers to participation and lifelong engagement.

It is alarming that according to AusPlay, only 23 per cent of children aged zero to 14 participate three or more times per week in sport or physical activity. We want to turn that around, and that is one of the many aims of the Connected and Active Communities Program. As part of that aim, we want to increase the number of eligible young people in our regions claiming the state government's funded $100 sports voucher.

People in regional communities understand their own needs better than anyone else. As part of the Connected and Active Communities Program, we have visited the regions, listened to what people have had to say, and have captured their expertise to lead sustained cultural change through the Connected and Active Communities Program. We have seen some incredibly positive outcomes in the Limestone Coast and Eyre Peninsula, and we are really excited for the expansion into the Riverland and Whyalla.