Council adopted the document, which from July 1 this year will be a requirement for all Victorian councils.
Among a range of actions points in the plan is to encourage more women and girls to take on leadership positions in associations and clubs, while also supporting come-and-try days that target women, girls and gender-diverse groups.
Nine years ago, an inquiry into women and girls in sport and active recreation started the ball rolling on this campaign, and the 2020 Gender Equality Act added further weight to the requirement for the establishment of fair access policies.
Campaspe’s policy was adopted by council after a short discussion at its February meeting, further developing the work of council’s Gender Equality and Action Group that was formed in November last year.
Council has worked with the Office for Women in Sport and Recreation, in partnership with Sport and Recreation Victoria and VicHealth.
A Fair Access Roadshow saw information on the new policy delivered via 14 workshops to councils from September last year.
The Campaspe policy has been written to not only support the removal of known barriers for inclusion but also to ensure the boxes for future funding applications are ticked.
To be eligible for future grants from the Community Sport Infrastructure Fund from the Victorian Government, all councils must have a policy in place by July.
Cr Colleen Gates said the process had identified that although some barriers were physical (lack of change rooms and availability of teams), others were around attitude and culture.
“This policy will align us with state government funding requirements,” she said.
Cr Paul Jarman said the policy was a crucial topic related to where communities are moving.
“It will make sure the organisations we touch in relation to sport and recreation have a culture of inclusion,” he said.
“It is something that is relevant to many parts of the community.”
The council plan will prioritise women’s, girls’ and gender-diverse applications for community grants and community equipment grants.
It also has put a 12-month time frame on clubs and associations developing their own policies and practices to align with the council policy.
