Regional Community Sports Infrastructure Fund in Australia

Deadline: 17-Mar-2025

The Regional Community Sports Infrastructure Fund (the Fund) is a Victorian Government competitive investment program, open to Local Government Authorities in rural and regional Victoria and Alpine Resorts Victoria, to deliver new and upgraded community sports infrastructure.

The Fund will also ensure facilities are accessible and participation initiatives are organised to welcome more people with disability to community sport and active recreation through the All-Abilities stream.

The Fund promotes partnerships between the Victorian Government, Local Government Authorities, Alpine Resorts Victoria, Regional Sports Assemblies, sporting clubs and associations, schools, educational institutions, community organisations and disability service providers.

The Fund aims to increase and promote opportunities so Victorians can participate in ways that suit them and is targeted towards individuals and communities who participate less.

Streams

Indoor Stadiums and Aquatic Facilities: The Indoor Stadiums and Aquatic Facilities stream supports new or redeveloped multi-sport indoor courts and indoor and outdoor aquatic leisure facilities. The stream accepts applications for significant upgrades to strategically important new and redeveloped infrastructure.
Community Facilities: The Community Facilities stream supports the development of a broad range of new or redevelopment of existing community sport and active recreation infrastructure.
Women and Girls Facilities:The Women and Girls Facilities stream supports the development of new and/or redevelopment of existing infrastructure that enables more women and girls to participate in sport and active recreation.
Planning: The Planning stream supports a range of specific facility and strategic planning projects that contribute to infrastructure readiness and/or the long-term direction of facility and open space. These projects are independent, consultative and improve sport and active recreation coordination to meet demand.
All Abilities Infrastructure: The All Abilities Infrastructure stream provides support to deliver accessible and universally designed sport and active recreation infrastructure that directly improves access and participation opportunities for regional Victorians with disability. The stream also supports the development of sustainable programs at the funded facilities to create new pathways for participation.
All Abilities Participation Initiatives: Initiatives should endeavour to:
- create opportunities for long-term and sustainable participation initiatives
- support new and additional activities for people with disability (not replacing existing funding or programs)
- provide entry level participation opportunities including social and unstructured sport and recreation opportunities
- use co-design of initiatives to ensure programs meet the needs and interests of people with disability
- support partnership approaches with organisations including but not limited to local disability service providers, Regional Sport Assemblies, State Sport and Active Recreation Bodies, State Sporting Associations with experience in all abilities programs and Local Area Networks who support people with NDIS plans to be better connected with local sport and recreation communities

Funding Information

Indoor Stadiums and Aquatic Facilities: Up to $5 million for Indoor Stadium or Indoor Aquatic Facilities or Up to $3 million for Outdoor Aquatic Facilities
Community Facilities: Up to $1 million
Women and Girls Facilities: Up to $1 million
Planning: Up to $40,000
All Abilities Infrastructure: Up to $1 million
All Abilities Participation: Up to $50,000 per Participation Initiative Request

Eligible Projects

Priority will be given to projects that:
- provide the strongest participation outcomes for groups that participate less in community sport and active recreation including women and girls, people with disability, Aboriginal Victorians, culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities, people from LGBTIQA+ communities, and economically disadvantaged communities
- are supported by complementary initiatives, policies and practices that demonstrate a sustained commitment to gender equality and broader inclusion
- support communities experiencing socioeconomic disadvantage. In particular, projects that support suburbs and towns within the 2 most disadvantaged deciles in Victoria
- support communities in areas of need that have experienced natural disasters (for example, flood, bushfires and drought) or communities experiencing strong population growth or significant change in circumstances (for example, economic challenges)
- demonstrate multi-use, shared and integrated facilities including those on school land that can ensure long-term community access.

Outcomes

The Fund reflects the Victorian Government’s commitment to securing the many benefits of participating in sport and active recreation. This includes supporting Victorians, particularly those individuals and communities who participate less, to achieve better health, wellbeing, social, and economic outcomes through the construction, programming and activation of community sport and active recreation infrastructure.
The Fund will invest in projects in rural and regional Victoria that can demonstrate commitment to the following outcomes:
- provides additional participation opportunities through the development of multi-use community sport and active recreation infrastructure
- increased participation opportunities for people with disability and other individuals and groups who participate less, including socio-economically disadvantaged communities
- provides equitable and inclusive participation opportunities for women and girls in community sport and active recreation
- increased local economic activity
- ensure Victoria has modern, accessible and welcoming places and spaces for sport and active recreation
- providing new active recreation opportunities through the appropriate design and usage of community sport and active recreation infrastructure.

Eligibility Criteria

Only rural and regional Victorian Local Government Authorities (LGAs) and Alpine Resorts Victoria (ARV) are eligible to apply to the Regional Community Sports Infrastructure Fund (the Fund).
LGAs that do not currently have an acceptable gender equitable access and use policy (or equivalent) in place are not eligible for the Program and need to consult with their SRV representative
LGAs/ARV must discuss potential project/s with their Sport and Recreation Victoria representatives to receive feedback on eligible projects before submitting their application/s.
Regional Sports Assemblies, sport and recreation clubs, sporting associations and leagues, educational institutions, community organisations, disability service providers, businesses and individuals cannot directly apply to the Fund.
Local clubs, committees of management and organisations are advised to contact their LGA or ARV if they wish to express interest, seek support or be involved as a partner in applications to the Fund.
Each individual infrastructure project requires a separate application. Bundled projects will be deemed ineligible.

For more information, visit Sport and Recreation Victoria.