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Position

The Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries recognises that sport and recreation volunteers are the backbone of the industry and an enormous source of social capital. Organisations must support and recognise volunteers so they feel valued and are able to fulfill the position they have been given.

Purpose

Nationally, community sport and recreation relies on 2.3 million volunteers who contribute more than 180 million hours to running sport and recreation. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, in Western Australia during 2010 there were 235,000 sport and recreation volunteers. Volunteers that create and sustain these organisations make a vital contribution to the needs of the community and without them the sport and recreation industry will simply not be able to exist.

Key factors

The following factors are considered key to assist in the recruitment and retention of volunteers within the sport and recreation industry. These are:

• Volunteers who are offered some form of development opportunity are more capable of fulfilling their duties successfully, confidently and more efficiently, which will in turn benefit their organisations
• Engaging and up-skilling new and young volunteers is important to work towards creating a sustainable community sport and recreation environments. Learning and development are vital components of a good volunteer management program.
•  Providing learning and development opportunities for volunteers is a part of good risk management practices.
• Recognition plays a vital role in the retention of volunteers.

Implementation

The Department supports the recruitment, retention and recognition of volunteers within the sport and recreation industry by:

• Supporting community sport and active recreation clubs across WA to develop and implement volunteer management practices.
• Promoting a focus on sport and recreation organisations delivering learning and development opportunities to their volunteers.
• Delivering necessary learning and development opportunities to the sport and recreation industry.
• Hosting annual opportunities to recognise the significant contribution volunteers make to the Western Australian community.

Contacts

Team Leader – Organisational Sustainability
Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries – Sport and Recreation
Telephone 61 8 6552 7300

References         

Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2012). Volunteers in Sport, Australia.

Useful websites

• Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries - Volunteers
• Every Club Hub
  
• Volunteering WA Website
• Australian Sports Commission — Volunteers

Endorsed

01 February 2015

Review

01 February 2017