Wyndham has one of the lowest rates of sports participation among Victorian children, a new study reveals.
Only 11 per cent of children under 14 were enrolled in a sports club last year, compared with sports-mad regional and rural areas where up to 45 per cent of children were club members.
The research, jointly conducted by Victoria University, VicHealth, Sport and Recreation Victoria, and Federation University, examined almost 900,000 registrations in football, basketball, bowls, cricket, golf, gymnastics, hockey, netball , soccer, sailing and tennis.
Greater Dandenong ranked bottom of all local government areas at 7.1 per cent participation.
Victoria University’s Rochelle Eime said poor planning and a lack of facilities in urban growth areas were contributing to the low participation rates.
“It’s important that planners consider sport and recreation needs of these growth areas before developers start dividing up house and land packages,” Associate Professor Eime said.
Wyndham council’s sport development portfolio-holder Peter Maynard said the municipality had 32 open space facilities, with about 34 more to be developed.
He said the council was also in the process of developing a Wyndham Sport Strategy to help plan for sporting infrastructure.
“As the community continues to grow, this strategy will help council identify how we can make sport more accessible for all residents and maximise participation,” he said.
Acknowledging the city’s lower rate of participation in sport, Cr Maynard said the numbers could be attributed to a number of things.
“One reason is the long commutes to and from work that many Wyndham residents have to deal with. This makes it more difficult for parents to volunteer time to help organise sport opportunities for their children,” he said.
“A growing number of Wyndham’s residents also come from cultural backgrounds where it’s more common for them to participate in sport outside an organised club setting.
“We often see these communities choosing to take part in sport informally alongside family and friends.”
A spokesman for Sports Minister John Eren said the state government invested heavily in sports clubs across the state, including the $26 million Supporting Victorian Sport and Recreation Program, $100 million Community Sports Infrastructure Fund and $4.6 million Sporting Club Grants Program.
“To help Victorians be as healthy as they can be, we’re getting on with opening more doors for people to get involved in grassroots sport and recreation,” he said.
With Sumeyya Ilanbey
