Play Well Logo
Play Well Logo

Key Messages

Overview

  • Over the past 12 months, the Australian Sports Commission (ASC) has led the facilitation and development of the country's first co-designed and sector-owned Sport Participation Strategy – Play Well (the Strategy).
  • With a vision of ‘everyone has a place in sport’ the Strategy is a roadmap to guide sustainable success of Australia’s sport participation system in the leadup to the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games and beyond.
  • Through this collaborative process, the ASC has played a key leadership role in bringing the community sport sector together to reimagine the way we participate in sport. Key stakeholders from across Government, states and territories, national sporting organisations and the public were involved in the consultation and development of the Strategy.
  • Our vision will be achieved by creating safe, welcoming, inclusive and fun sporting experiences with six priority areas identified:
    • Empowering People and Organisations
    • Driving Lifelong Involvement
    • Activating Places and Spaces
    • Building Connections
    • Equitable Access and
    • Transforming Culture.
  • The Play Well Strategy has been developed with a participant’s experience at its core surrounded by the People, Places, Partners and Programs in which sporting experiences are delivered.
  • The Play Well Strategy ecosystem is then overlayed with the six identified priority areas supported by the four strategy enablers of:
    • Diversity and Inclusion
    • Technology and Digital
    • Yarning and
    • Data and Measurement.
  • The Strategy’s commitment to Play Well complements the National High Performance 2032+ Sport Strategy’s call  to Win Well, and forms a key pillar of the National Sport Plan  led by the Department of Health and Aged Care’s Office for Sport.
  • To support the Strategy’s launch on 23 November 2023, and with support of the Australian Government, the ASC opened the next round of our Participation Grant Program, with$10.3 million in funding available.
  • The Play Well Strategy is supported via a digital presence in the newly created playwell.gov.au website.

Strategy Development

  • Following the successful launch of Australia’s High Performance 2032+ Sport Strategy in 2022, the ASC brought together key stakeholders from across Australia to design and develop the nation’s first National Sport Participation Strategy.
  • The Strategy has been designed to ensure a cohesive and impactful participation sector and brings together the key elements of the sport ecosystem that underpin our sporting experiences – our people, programs, places and partners.
  • The aim of the Strategy is to transform the way participation is connected, delivered and supported in Australia.
  • The Strategy has been designed to achieve the following objectives:
    • Foster collaboration and alignment amongst stakeholders that support the delivery of sport participation
    • Redefine the delivery of sport participation in Australia
    • Support the sport system to ensure participation reflects the contemporary Australian society, and
    • Clarify the roles and responsibilities of key stakeholders and partners within the sport participation system.
  • A 17-member Project Steering Group (PSG) was established to oversee the development of the Strategy. The PSG is made up of a diverse cross-section of individuals from national sporting organisations, government, community organisations and research, bringing a unique blend of professional and lived experience.
  • The development of the Strategy has been a collaborative process across the sport sector with the ASC  holding workshops in every State and Territory. The workshops were designed and hosted in partnership with State and Territory Governments. Additional sessions were also held with national participation leads, key community and advisory groups. A sector wide survey also received over 6,500 responses.

Implementation

  • The ASC will play a key role in driving the implementation of each Horizon identified in the Strategy, and already delivers programs that improve sport participation outcomes that will enhance the success of the Strategy.
  • The Play Well Strategy Leadership Group and priority area working groups will facilitate a deliberately collaborative approach to bring the Strategy to life.
  • The Play Well Strategy Leadership Group will provide leadership and oversight of the Strategy’s delivery with a focus on collaboration, refinement and improvement being crucial in ensuring successful execution of the Strategy.
  • Priority area working groups will be formed to advise on and support delivery of the priority activities. Expressions of Interest for these groups will open in December 2023.

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