FOOTBALL (SOCCER) DEVELOPMENT PLAN · • Phase 5 Final Report – the final report was developed following consideration of feedback from key stakeholders and conduct of a forum

CITY OF GREATER DANDENONG

FOOTBALL (SOCCER) DEVELOPMENT PLAN

June 2011

CGD Football (Soccer) Development Plan June 2011 Page 1

Table of Contents

1. INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................................... 2

1.1 Project Purpose .................................................................................................................... 2 1.2 Planning Process .................................................................................................................. 2 1.3 Acknowledgements .............................................................................................................. 2

2. PLANNING CONTEXT ............................................................................................................................ 3 2.1 Background Report Review .................................................................................................. 3

Principles ....................................................................................................................................................... 3 2.1.1 Principles For Provision Of Sports Facilities ........................................................................ 3 2.2 Literature Review ................................................................................................................. 4 2.3 Demographic Review ........................................................................................................... 6

Cultural Diversity ................................................................................................................... 7 Other Characteristics............................................................................................................. 8

2.4 Strategic Directions for Soccer……………………………………………………………………………8

2.5 Potential Implications .......................................................................................................... 12 3. EXISTING FACILITY PROVISION ....................................................................................................... 13

3.1 CGD Facility Summary ........................................................................................................ 13 3.2 Other Regional And Synthetic Facilities .............................................................................. 14

4. INITIAL CONSULTATION ............................................................................................................ ………. 4.1 Participation Trend .............................................................................................................. 17 4.2 CGD Club Data ................................................................................................................... 18 4.3 CGD Club Characteristics ................................................................................................... 20 4.4 CGD Clubs: Number of Teams (2009): ............................................................................... 22 4.5 Issues and Facilities: ........................................................................................................... 23 4.6 Key Issues ........................................................................................................................... 24

5. STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK ................................................................................................................ 28 5.1 Vision .................................................................................................................................. 28 5.2 Principles ............................................................................................................................. 28 5.3 Objectives ........................................................................................................................... 28

6. REGIONAL / SUB REGIONAL FACILITIES ........................................................................................ 29 6.1 Role ..................................................................................................................................... 29 6.2 Demand ............................................................................................................................... 29 6.3 Scope Of Facilities .............................................................................................................. 33 6.4 Regional Facility Management Models ............................................................................... 33 6.5 Funding And Partnership Opportunities .............................................................................. 35

7. RECOMMENDATION SUMMARY ....................................................................................................... 37 7.1 Recommendations Summary .............................................................................................. 37


City of Greater Dandenong Football (Soccer) Development Plan

1. INTRODUCTION Football (Soccer) is increasingly recognised as an emerging sport throughout Victoria andAustralia, especially juniors and females. The provision of appropriate resources and facilities to cater for the current and anticipated growth of the sport is a growing concern for manyCouncils. The City of Greater Dandenong (CGD) wishes to develop a plan for the appropriatesupport, current provision and future development of soccer within the municipality.

1.1 Project Purpose

The overall purpose of this plan is to provide a strategic direction for the future provision of football (soccer) in the CGD. More specific objectives for CGD include: Provide strategic direction on the likely future facility and infrastructure requirements to

service football (soccer) needs within the municipality; Provide direction on possible locations for the provision of sub regional facilities including

synthetic surfaces to service the needs of the football (soccer) community; Identify issues, needs and roles in supporting the development and operation of

sustainable clubs in CGD; Provide opportunities for bringing together more community cohesion through involvement

in this popular and growing sport; and Identify potential funding options or partnerships.

1.2 Planning Process

The planning process employed for this project includes the following key phases: Phase 1 Planning Context – incorporating a review of background information, site

familiarisation and identification of key stakeholders; • Phase 2 Initial Research – incorporating meetings or interviews with key stakeholders,

analysis of existing consultation and data on the participation and provision of soccer facilities;

• Phase 3 Identification of Issues and Opportunities – summary of initial findings, research results and preliminary directions;

• Phase 4 Draft Report –The Draft Report was circulated to key stakeholders for comment and feedback; and

• Phase 5 Final Report – the final report was developed following consideration of feedback from key stakeholders and conduct of a forum / workshop with soccer club representatives.

1.3 Acknowledgements

This report acknowledges the input and direction provided throughout this project by the Project Steering Committee, specifically: • City of Greater Dandenong Sport and Leisure Staff and relevant staff from City

Improvement, Operations, Urban Design and Open Space; • Football Federation Victoria – Maria Berry; and • Sport and Recreation Victoria – Bill Kontoulis.


2. PLANNING CONTEXT The following section provides an overview of the planning context and relevant background data specific to the City of Greater Dandenong.

2.1 Background Report Review

Principles Council is committed to the provision of quality leisure and recreation opportunities and recognises the value of accessibility and participation to enhance the quality of life for the individual and the community. Sporting facilities are recognised for providing a range of social, health and recreation benefits. The following principles are taken from the Leisure Strategy’s Facility Planning Principles and modified to more specifically guide the provision of sports facilities for the City of Greater Dandenong. Other key strategies that guide the directions for sports facilities are the Open Space Strategy (broad open space principles and park development standards) and the Access and Inclusion Strategy (seven principles of universal design).

2.1.1 Principles for Provision of Sports Facilities

Multi-use and Consolidation:

Council will emphasise maximum benefits through the provision of sports facilities and services that are flexible and provide for multiple users. Wherever possible these facilities shall be provided together in centralised locations.

Accessibility:

Council aims to meet a diverse range of community needs through the provision of sports facilities including those needs relating to age, gender, ability, interest and culture. Locations and accessibility of sports facilities will consider geographic and physical access needs of the community.

Community based provision:

Council’s primary objective is to provide sports facilities and services for its local communities before consideration of commercial ventures that may influence the provision of sport and leisure facilities.

Health and Wellbeing:

Sport and leisure facilities are important community meeting places that promote healthy lifestyles, social connectedness and wellbeing outcomes.

Participation:

Sports facilities and opportunities will maximise participation of the community in a range of sport and leisure activities that are organised, non organised, traditional and non traditional in nature.

Financial Viability:

Consideration of the provision of sports facilities will include financial performance and impacts on both Council and the community. Effective and responsive management of these facilities is essential.

Partnerships:

Council will work closely with other providers and stakeholders of sports facilities to ensure quality outcomes for residents.

Sustainability:

Responsible economic, social and environmental practices will be a priority for the ongoing provision of sports facilities.


2.2 Literature Review

City of Greater Dandenong Council Plan 2009 - 2013

The Plan is based on what Council understands to be most important to people’s lives, their hopes and aspirations and what kind of Greater Dandenong is desired for the future.

Strategic objectives:

• A city PLANNED for the FUTURE • A THRIVING and CREATIVE city • A HEALTHY COMMUNITY and ENVIRONMENT • A city of RESPECT

Open Space Strategy 2008, City of Greater Dandenong

Broad principles for the open space network:

• Accessibility • Diversity • Functionality • Amenity • Design • Sustainability

• Park Development Standards and Park Provision Goals aim to ensure that all parks and reserves are appropriate for the level of activity and sports undertaken. Generally many reserves do not meet the Park Development Standards, and will need to be upgraded.

• The Strategy notes, population growth will effectively result in a decline in open space provision, including sports reserves over the next 10 years. Lower levels of access to sports open space will occur in Dandenong North, Springvale and Springvale South on a per capita basis.

Leisure Strategy 2003 - Reviewed and updated 2008, City of Greater Dandenong

Vision for Leisure: To provide a diverse range of exceptionally designed, functional, quality, passive and active recreational facilities and opportunities that are accessible to all members of the community and that improve the community’s perception of itself and engender pride in our city.

Four Key Strategic Directions 1. Increased community participation, engagement and pride. 2. Enhanced community health and well being. 3. Increasingly well designed multi – purpose facilities. 4. Notable Sporting Venues worthy of ‘Second City’ status.

Facility Planning Principles ensure effective management of Council assets.

State of Sport Report 2004 – 2006, City of Greater Dandenong

The State of Sport Report provides statistical details, including participation rates and trends regarding eighteen main organised sporting opportunities available within the CGD, from a local, state and national perspective. It also outlines Council’s role in supporting sport in line with key Council directions.

Sports Plan 2004 – 2007, City of Greater Dandenong

The Sports Plan provides direction for the daily operation of Council’s Leisure and Sports Planning Team. The Plan aims to build on the existing Leisure Strategy and defines Council’s role in relation to the provision of sport; enabling people to play sport, relying on other key stakeholders to perform certain roles, while providing infrastructure and support to stakeholders.

Sports Facility Plan – 2011, City of Greater Dandenong

The Sports Facility Plan provides recommendations on the needs of Sport in the CGD particularly the need to create multi – use and flexible spaces and provide facilities for males and females. The Plan provides direction on the development of a range of standards of facilities to allow some facilities to cater for higher standards of competition while enabling others to be more flexible in providing for multiple sports and general community access. The plan outlines a capital improvement program to upgrade 33 reserves to cater for the sport and recreation needs and to provide environments that are responsive and welcoming to all people.


Access and Inclusion Strategy 2004 – 2008, City of Greater Dandenong

Objectives of the Strategy

• Greater community participation and engagement. • Provision of quality accessible facilities and services. • Greater access to the decision making process. • Promoting rights and respecting diversity.

Universal design concepts ensure user friendly and environmentally sustainable buildings and facilities:

• Equitable Use; • Flexibility in use; • Simple and intuitive use; • Perceptible information;

• Tolerance for error; • Low physical effort; and • Size and space for approach and use.

Municipal Public Health Plan 2006 – 2009, City of Greater Dandenong

The Municipal Public Health Plan is concerned with improving health and wellbeing of the community. Specifically, the strategy seeks to create environments which support health and strengthen communities, while facilitating and supporting local agencies to impact the health status of the community as a whole. The Plan identifies people at risk of health inequalities, suggests key action areas (of which physical activity is one), while expecting the function of Council to include influencing positive outcomes by taking a role in the provision of services, facilities and infrastructure.

Master Plans

The following urban and park master plans have been prepared over recent years to guide design and development of facilities and infrastructure.

• Revitalising Central Dandenong Urban Master Plan 2007, VicUrban and City of Greater Dandenong • Tatterson Park Master Plan 2006, CM Context • Dandenong Park Precinct Master Plan 2005, City of Greater Dandenong / Aspect Melbourne

The CALD Youth Inclusion Project

A major response to the ‘Connections for at Risk Young People’ report in November 2007, which focused on issues associated with disengaged refugee young people in the City of Greater Dandenong. The project involves the development of a comprehensive planning, governance and partnership approach to bring together key stakeholders to marshal resources and develop a coordinated response to issues impacting on disengaged young people in the municipality. It also provides immediate support for an initiative using sport and recreation as a community engagement tool to involve these young people in the process and as an entry point to broader community participation.

The Statement of Intent for Young People and Youth Strategy 2009 - 2012 (final draft)

The Strategy identified a range of principles for working with young people that reflect important factors such as quality service delivery with clear and measurable outcomes, partnership with young people, involvement of young people in civic life in creative and imaginative ways, safety of and respect for young people, celebration of the contribution that young people make to the community, etc.

Review of Council’s Cultural Diversity Plan (July 2009) (final draft)

The Plan incorporates the following strategic intentions:

• Responding to and building our culturally diverse community; • Celebrating our cultural diversity; and • Promoting community participation, social inclusion and equity.


The Rights of Passage: Experiences of Australian-Sudanese young people (2008), prepared by the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission

The Report raised a number of issues and recommendations about participation of young Sudanese people in community life in the City of Greater Dandenong. Concerns about discrimination are to be addressed within a human rights framework and include consideration of the following outcomes:

• Public space and safety; • Provision of inter-cultural community programs; • Promotion of “Play by the Rules”, an interactive web-based resource; and • Provision of low cost youth recreation spaces close to public transport.

2.3 Demographic Review

The following demographic review has been sourced from the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2006 Census data.

Population The population of the City of Greater Dandenong (CGD) at the time of the 2006 Census was identified as 125,520 persons, an increase of 1.4% from 2001. This growth rate is lower than that of the Melbourne Statistical Division (MSD), which increased by 7% over the same period. The table below displays the small increase in population, along with the shift in age group proportions from 2001 till 2006, demonstrating the decline in the 0 to 54 year old age brackets and the increase in population proportion aged 55 plus.

The diversity within the City of Greater Dandenong suggests that the Football (Soccer)Development Plan needs to strive for facilities that are:

Increasing in capacity and quality to provide for a growing population.

Equipped to provide opportunities for people who don’t currently participate in sport.

Responsive to the various needs of people from culturally diverse backgrounds.

Flexible in responding to the needs of an ageing community where levels of disability and decreased mobility may increase.


Population Characteristics: City of Greater Dandenong

Age Group 2001 2006 2030 Projection

Number % of Population



0 - 4 yrs 7,860 6.3% 7,829 6.2% 8,237 4.8%

5 - 14 yrs 16,168 13.0% 15,969 12.7% 16,835 9.8%

15 – 24 yrs 18,781 15.2% 17,794 14.2% 22,505 13.1%

25 – 64 yrs 65,790 53.1% 66,569 53% 87,574 50.9%

65 + yrs 15,366 12.4% 17,361 13.8% 36,895 21.4%

Total 123,965 125,520 172,046

In comparison to the Melbourne Statistical Division (MSD), population in the City of Greater Dandenong (CGD) currently has:

• Similar population percentages in the 0 - 34 age brackets; • Smaller percentage of population aged 35 - 44 years; and • Larger percentage of population in the 55 – 84 year old age brackets. A more current estimate of total population figure for CGD in 2010 is 138,000 and a population of 154,000 by 2020. Population projections, as shown above, estimate that the population may reach over 170,000 by 2030, assuming that 18,000 new dwellings are constructed by this time. With this increase, it is expected that:

• The number of people aged over 75 years will double by the same time; and • The number of children and young people is likely to rise, due to the growing numbers of

people being of child-bearing age expected to occupy many of the new dwellings.

Cultural Diversity The municipality is the most culturally diverse locality within Victoria and the second within Australia. Of significance are the following characteristics:

• Over half the population (56%) were born overseas, compared to only 31% within the MSD;

• A large proportion of residents (80.5%) were either born overseas or had parents born overseas;

• Residents originate from 156 different birthplaces, with major birthplaces including: Vietnam, Cambodia, China, Italy, Greece, India, Sri Lanka and Bosnia;

• Over half the population (59%) speak languages other than English in their homes, which is much higher compared with only 27.9% in the MSD;

• The more widely spoken languages include: Vietnamese (11.1%), Khmer (4.4%), Cantonese (3.9%) and Greek (3.3%);

• Almost 15% of the population has limited English proficiency, compared to a low 4% within the MSD; and

• Highest rates of unemployment were experienced by residents from Sudan (39%) and Afghanistan (20%).

Over the past three years, an average of 2,600 recently arrived migrants have settled in the City of Greater Dandenong. A large proportion are humanitarian immigrants from countries including Sudan, Afghanistan, Ethiopia and Iraq. Several of these communities have more than doubled in number during the past five years. However this immigration pattern is changing and in 2008 / 2009 the top 5 birthplaces of new settlers in CGD was India ( 25.7%), Sri Lanka (12%), Afghanistan (9.1%), China (7.4%) and Vietnam (6.6%).


Other Characteristics • The individual median weekly income of $343 is significantly lower compared to the MSD

individual median income of $481. • Sixteen percent (16%) of young people in the municipality left school before completing

year eleven, compared to 11% in the MSD. • Fifteen percent (15.1%) of 20 – 24 year olds were either unemployed or not enrolled in

education, the second highest level of youth disengagement within metropolitan Melbourne.

• The municipality recorded the highest unemployment rate, at 7.3% in 2008 (Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations,.

• Fifty two percent (52%) of households had internet access, significantly lower than MSD (66%).

• One quarter of older people (65+) with a disability live alone, including approximately 40% of those born in Australia.

Implementation of the Soccer plan will assist Council in addressing these emerging population change issues, in particular related to provision of field sports and associated facilities.

2.4 Strategic Directions for Football (Soccer) 2.4.1 Football Federation Victoria (FFV): Key FFV documents reviewed include: • Football Federation Victoria: Executive Summary of Strategic Directions 2008-2011; • FFA National Football Development Plan (2007); • Eastern Region Soccer Strategy, October 2007 (Encompassing the Cities of Maroondah,

Whitehorse, Monash, Manningham, Boroondara and Knox); • Soccer Strategy, May 2009 ( Encompassing the City of Casey and Shires of Yarra Ranges

and Cardinia); • FFV Core Values Document; and. • FFV Small-Sided Games, 2008, Guidelines for Victorian Clubs. The FFV Strategic Directions (2008-2011) document highlights a number of key initiatives, these have direct implications for the future of football (soccer) provision in the Dandenong region. Key initiatives include: • Launch competition ready Zone clubs for the pinnacle Victorian Summer league (that is,

establish a new summer competition consisting of representative teams from 12 zones across the State. Hence access to year-round facilities/venues will become paramount);

• Provide a clear and consistently implemented Victorian Football Pathway and Programs (players, coaches, referees, volunteers);

• Continue to develop Small Sided Games (SSG) state-wide for ages 5-10 years (impacting on field use, sizes and provision of junior football competition);

• Decentralising resources to strengthen delivery of football across Victoria (including the possible establishment of at least 12 regional soccer hubs across the State);

• Develop a state-wide facility planning and development strategy; • In partnership with FFA, develop and implement priority initiatives of the National Football

Development Plan; and • Strengthen and formalise strategic partnerships including the development of regional /

sub regional facilities including facilities for 5 a side adult competition venues.

A number of partnership opportunities have been identified which could be further explored with CGD & FFV including: • Promotion of volunteer training courses and club information sessions; • Prioritising opportunities for capital funding from Minor facility grants eg. SWGP for

improvements such as ground lighting, pavilion and change room upgrades; and • Development of sub regional venues including facilities for hosting elite competition, 5 a


side competition, synthetic and grass surfaces which are openly accessible to local clubs and teams.

The National Development Plan recognises deficiencies in the availability of facilities to service growing participation in football (soccer). FFV offers advice in planning for new facilities, including funding options, although direct funding support is not provided. FFV will continue to support and promote the development of Futsal. This could lead to increasing demand for appropriate facilities. 2.4.2 Eastern Region Soccer Strategy, October 2007, encompasses the Cities of Maroondah, Whitehorse, Monash, Manningham, Boroondara and Knox identifies a number of key findings which will be relevant to this project, including: • Registrations across all Leagues in the eastern region show a 37% increase since 2000,

with the growth occurring from within the junior sectors. Senior men’s registrations have remained relatively stable with declines in some Leagues. The most significant increase in soccer participation is occurring amongst juniors and women, although participation by males overall is higher than females;

• Participation in soccer clubs has increased by 73% from 2003 to 2006 across the eastern region;

• Facility constraints (i.e. undersupply of facilities and access to playing fields to cater for demand) are a significant factor that impact on clubs’ ability to cater for demand;

• The report recommends establishment of additional soccer pitches in 5 of the 6 municipalities (not stated for Boroondara), although actual number of pitches required is not specified;

• Specifically this includes the need to upgrade facilities to meet basic expectations, achieve maximum use, cater for females or meet FFV standards. There is a need for more facilities, the need for facilities to be available for pre-season use and to cater for women players;

• Larger facilities are more efficient and sustainable to manage / operate than smaller facilities;

• Analysis of the facility ratings clearly indicates the absence of Class A standard facilities; • Councils will work towards bringing lower standard facilities to Class C level (according to

the FFV Grounds and Facilities Criteria) as the minimum level of soccer facility provision by the Council on Council owned land, as finances allow and space is available;

• Any improvements to develop higher standard facilities (than Class C level) to be funded through partnerships with clubs and State government; with State government and FFV to contribute significantly to Class A facilities and regional facility developments;

• It is appropriate for Class D level facilities to be provided at schools; • It is appropriate to consider undersized areas for soccer pitches where it means that

additional playing surfaces can be achieved – to cater for junior participation and training; • At least one synthetic pitch to be provided in each municipality; to be accessible to all

clubs through a centralised management model; • Futsal, indoor soccer and 5-a-side should be provided for through specific facilities /

provision at existing facilities / conversion of disused facilities (such as tennis courts), and demand will be monitored for future planning and provision;

• Identify potential future site/s (existing or new) for a regional facility development – to ensure that the opportunity for provision is preserved in future planning, as it is considered that the demand demonstrated for soccer is adequate to support such facility development.

• Any new Class A facilities developed should be ‘neutral’, by not being occupied specifically by one club, to be managed through a centralised model; and

• Any precinct / regional-type development should comprise multiple pitches and should consider the inclusion of a Class A ground and an artificial pitch.

•


2.4.3 Bayside and Kingston Regional Soccer Strategy (2008) identified a number of recommendations which are relevant to the City of Greater Dandenong:

• There has been a massive growth in Soccer participation by 39% in Bayside and 54% in Kingston from 2004 to 2007 principally in the areas of junior development, junior boys and women;

• Bayside has 3 clubs with over 700 members each; • Poor provision of change rooms / facilities has limited the attraction to females; • Many school facilities are underutilised; • A synthetic surface complex / regional facility is desirable and a site has been identified in

conjunction with FFV to meet FFV Class A and B standards for higher level competition; • A hierarchy of facility provision will be developed based on competition needs and capacity

of venue; • School facilities to be developed for FFV Class D standards suitable for junior competition

and training unless there are multiple pitches that can be developed for senior competition. • Facilities need to be well designed to meet cultural and gender differences; • Lighting to be considered to optimise the use of existing grounds and Council to take

greater responsibility for installation and maintenance; and • Council to take a greater involvement in Soccer development and providing resources for

club development and planning to include developing welcoming environments for women, CALD groups and people with disabilities.

2.4.4 Casey, Cardinia & Yarra Ranges Soccer Strategy (2009) identified a number of findings

which are relevant to the City of Greater Dandenong:

• There is evidence of massive and sustained (over the last three years) soccer participation growth in the region: o The majority of the growth has occurred in junior development programs (106%

increase), junior participation (55% increase) as well as senior membership growth (64%); and

o Significant growth is occurring in female participation at all levels. The level of growth will continue to drive a high level of demand for soccer facilities.

• The population of the region is expected to grow by around 158,637 people from 2006 to 2021. The majority of growth will occur in the City of Casey and Cardinia Shire (99.9%);

• Additional facilities (playing fields and support infrastructure) are required in each LGA; • Development of Casey Fields as a regional soccer facility has the capacity to service the

City of Casey, Southern Zone and western portion of Cardinia Shire; • Regional facilities should be developed as Regional Centres of Excellence, housing FFV

decentralisation and function as soccer hubs; • Audit existing support amenities (i.e. pavilions and change rooms) in order to identify,

scope and prioritise improvement requirements to meet minimum FFV Class C facility standards; and

• Priorities for pavilion upgrades should concentrate on those venues that are likely to establish synthetic surfaces.

2.4.5 Street Soccer has become a program with a base in Dandenong for the development of

a support program for homeless and / or unemployed people. A program conducted by ‘The Big Issue Australia Limited’ (TBI), a not for profit organisation, street soccer seeks to provide ways to assist homeless and / or unemployed people to participate in society as independently as possible. The program is based in Mills Reserve and attracts a regular group of over 30 people who participate in a non-competitive activity on Wednesday afternoons and is directed at improving the individual’s physical and psychological lifestyle and well being.

Street Soccer involves males and females of all ages and ability levels playing in mixed teams of 4 players plus 4 substitute players for two (2) seven minute halves. This variant


of pitch has a unique small pitch size (22m x 16m) which is not used for any other viariants of football (soccer). The benefit of Mills Reserve is the availability of the new synthetic facility and also a nearby indoor facility if the weather is inclement. The program runs for 12 months of the year and can offer support to individuals who wish to progress to state, national or international level. The Homeless World Cup was held in Melbourne in 2008. Provision for Street Soccer should be considered with any future development of synthetic facilities in CGD.

2.4.6 Private Football (Soccer) Academies have emerged in Melbourne to offer professional

coaching and develop junior players at the elite level. Academies are expensive relative to club membership and intensive and sometimes claim to use European or South American training methods and can cost more than $1000 per participant per annum. The role of private coaching academies needs to be seen in context. There is a national coaching accreditation scheme for football (soccer) operated by the national body Football Federation Australia (FFA). FFV runs the nationally accredited courses in Victoria and has both made courses easier to attend and has implemented incentives for clubs to use accredited coaches. However, it is not compulsory for clubs to use only accredited coaches, although most clubs try to encourage their coaches to do such courses. To have a team in the FFV competition clubs must meet minimum standards, including being not for profit incorporated associations, comply with FFV and FFA rules and all participants being members having the right to vote. FFV provides players with a talent development pathway system through the Victorian Champions league (a spring/summer representative team system spread across Victoria), State representative teams and National Training Centre (NTC) programs for both boys and girls. These pathways lead into the national system, including the Australian Institute of Sport and the national teams.

Private academies are not part of this system. Some claim academies offer players links with overseas clubs. However, the actuality of such links varies significantly between genuine and tenuous. FFA / FFV do not accredit any academies and will focus resources on building up club expertise and establishing a system for accrediting clubs as approved curriculum providers. The FFA / FFV are likely to move towards a system where professional coaches are licensed to provide parents with a quality assurance of coaching standards. A number of professional coaches have European, South American or Asian licences and any private hiring of public open space by academies would need to entail proof of coaching accreditation / licences and relevant insurances.

Academies have marketed themselves in coaching players to give them opportunities to play at the elite national or international competition levels. A number of academies have aligned with local clubs and are using facilities in CGD. Whilst CGD has a role to play in supporting the development of soccer and participation of young people there needs to be an understanding that more support should be directed to those not for profit organisations and community clubs that provide for local participation and to a lesser extent the private academies that aim to train elite players and / or are private


companies. Private academies aim to develop skill of players and certainly have a positive role to play in this area. Council needs to clarify with these academies to ensure it is clear who is hiring the venues i.e. whether it is a club that has hired the coach to support normal club training and competition or whether it is the private academy who is hiring facilities for private coaching separate from the club. Private academies should therefore be considered as a commercial organisation and be treated as such in their use of Council facilities. Private academies are a legitimate service provider and their role in the development and use of any new synthetic facilities needs to be considered. The FFV is working towards a policy position in relation to private academies to give local government further direction in this matter.

2.5 Potential Implications

A summary of potential implications that may be relevant to this project include: • Consideration of the City’s multi cultural communities, to ensure adequate access to open

space and recreation services and facilities; • Provision of a hierarchy of open space areas and facilities that cater for the unique

communities; • A range of both organised / active sporting facilities (i.e. playing fields, sports courts) and

unstructured open space and facilities to cater for the high percentage of young people; • Open space and recreational facilities that are accessible to young people, i.e. close to

public transport, safe pedestrian and bicycle access; • Greater demand for open spaces to cater for a range of ages and interests; • A range of flexible sport and recreation opportunities to suit the needs of residents with

limited recreation time; • Planning and provision of accessible recreation opportunities to cater for the ageing

population; and • Access / availability of additional open space to provide for additional soccer facilities. Other potential implications from a review of the demographic data may include: • The total proportion of residents born overseas and the total from NESB within the City is

much higher than the MSD; • There is also a higher than average proportion of residents from NESB and in 2008/09 with

over 2/3rds of the new settlers from India, Sri Lanka and China; and • These communities traditionally participate in a range of sports and activities, particularly

Cricket in summer and soccer in winter.


3. EXISTING FACILITY PROVISION The following section provides an overview of the scope of current facility provision. Data has been sourced from the Sports Facilities Plan 2011 as well as officer input.

3.1 CGD Facility Summary

LGA # of

Clubs

Total Reg. Playe

rs 2010

# of Team

s

Current # of

Venues

Current # of

Pitches

Existing Proposals/Plans for

Additional Fields Comment

City of Greater Dandenong

24 1897* 109 14 27

There are no adopted plans for additional

pitches. However there are potential sites to increase pitches at Greaves Reserve,

Tatterson Park, Ross Reserve, Warner Reserve and Mills

Reserve. Vic Urban has also proposed a

temporary facility in central Dandenong.

At the beginning of the 2010 season most pitches were in a good condition having been converted to warm season grasses however the performance of a number of pitches has failed with the current wet winter season. A number of grounds have been recently closed particularly those grounds without sub surface drainage. A number of pavilions / change facilities need improving and ground lighting is below required standards.

* The total registered players figure was established from FFV and Bayside League data which was substantially lower than the player numbers provided by the soccer clubs. Analysis of the table reveals: • Current facility (pitch) provision represents 1 pitch for every 70 registered players; • Based on the 2010 population (est. 138,000 people), this represents 1 pitch for every

5,111 people. This is a lower pitch to population ratio than the unofficial green field site ‘benchmark’ figure of 1 pitch for every 3,500 people; and

• Having regard to anticipated future population levels (154,000 people by 2020) and no current planned additional pitch provision, this would represent a provision ratio of 1 pitch for every 5,703 people.

As the nature of football (soccer) participation develops it is expected that clubs will be looking for sites that have more than 1 or 2 pitches to host their competitions and training. Such sites are easier to set up and administer particularly by volunteer clubs rather than dispersing their resources over multiple sites. A number of additional school facilities may be available for use however these are usually single pitch facilities with poor or no lighting or change rooms and would only offer a short term solution to the need for additional pitches. There may also be an opportunity to reallocate under utilised grounds previously used for AFL football and create two football (soccer) pitches. Such opportunities need to be considered in conjunction with the need to create larger multi pitch sites.


Eastern Region Soccer Strategy By comparison, the Eastern Region Soccer Strategy indicated that there were a total of 108 pitches for a total population of 788,090 people (2001), this represents a ratio of 1 pitch for every 7,297 people. When compared to registered players, this represented provision of 1 pitch for every 74 players. These rates represent a lower level of provision of soccer facilities than that which is currently available in the CGD. The table below provides a summary of the level of facility provision in the neighbouring Councils compared to CGD. (NB: Provision figures have been taken from the Eastern Region Soccer Strategy 2007, Bayside / Kingston Soccer Strategy 2008 and Casey / Yarra Ranges / Cardinia Strategy 2009).

LGA Population # of

Pitches Pitch to

Pop’n. Ratio

# of registered

players Pitch to player ratio

Eastern Region Total* 788,290 108 1:7,297 7992 = 1:74 players Bayside/ Kingston Total 219288 53 1:4,137 4662 = 1:87 players Casey / Cardinia / Yarra Ranges Total*

425,244 43 1: 9,889 3652

= 1:85 players

Frankston 128,576 30 1:4285 2200 =1:73 players Dandenong 138,000 27 1: 5,111 1897 = 1: 70 players * 2006 Population.

The table confirms that the current level of provision in CGD is below the ideal ‘benchmark’ provision of one pitch for every 3,500 of population. However, CGD has a higher ratio of pitches to population than the Eastern and Outer Eastern Councils and a lower number of registered players per pitch. On the surface this would indicate that CGD has a reasonable supply of pitches than most neighbouring Councils with the exemption of Frankston, Bayside and Kingston. However, to achieve the ideal ‘benchmark’ level of provision i.e. 1 pitch to 3500 people, Greater Dandenong would need to provide an additional 12 pitches to provide the ideal number of pitches for the current population.

3.2 Other Regional and Synthetic Facilities

The following section provides an overview of the availability of facilities in neighbouring LGA’s that may attract participants from Greater Dandenong (i.e. regional facilities). The table also identifies current and planned provision of synthetic surfaces.


3.2.1 Neighbouring LGA’s

Neighbouring LGA

Major Regional Soccer Facility

Existing Synthetic Facility

Planned Synthetic

Development Comment

Frankston City Council

No regional football (soccer) facilities provided.

No existing facilities Nothing planned.

The City’s 2002 Sports Facilities Strategy did not recommend development of a regional facility. However this strategy is being reviewed at present and Frankston is experiencing greater demand for soccer facilities.

Casey City Council

No major regional football (soccer) facilities provided

No facility at present

Plan has been endorsed for a regional synthetic soccer facility at Casey Fields.

The soccer strategy 2009 has recommended the development of a regional facility at Casey Fields. Council is waiting on funding from the Federal Government for construction of 4 synthetic soccer pitches and a premier turf pitch at Casey Fields.

Knox City Council

Sub regional facility nearing completion at High Street Road

1 full size synthetic pitch and 9 small sided synthetic pitches.

Provision made for future expansion of sub regional facility.

Significant funds have been received from Federal, State and Knox Council for a regional sporting facility including up to 4 soccer pitches with at least 2 being synthetic.

Monash City Council


No existing facilities Nothing planned. Evidence of growing demand for soccer pitches.

Bayside City Council


No existing facilities

Clubs to negotiate access to Kingston Heath facility

Has two very large clubs which have grown from the junior small sided games program.

Kingston City Council

Sub regional facility constructed at the Kingston Heath Reserve

Kingston Heath Facility has two FIFA approved synthetic surfaces plus natural grass surfaces suitable for premier league games and improved change room facilities

No further plans for the two synthetic pitches at Kingston Heath Reserve

This facility can be seen as a model for municipal development where the facilities are made available to any club that is required to play on Class A or B facilities. This multi use facility saves Council from providing multiple venues, at a higher standard, used by single clubs. A management model includes representation from Clubs, FFV and Bayside Councils. Summer use of the facility is also available to FFV and other clubs outside of Kingston for preseason training, and special competitions / tournaments, etc

• Based on the research and consultation with neighbouring LGA’s, there are sub-regional facilities including multiple synthetic pitches in Knox with provision for further expansion (Eastern Region) and Kingston with two synthetic pitches and 2 turf pitches (South Eastern Region) and Casey has plans for up to four synthetic pitches (Southern Region).

• The synthetic pitches in neighbouring LGA’s may attract some participation from Dandenong clubs however, access may be constrained due to the existing high levels of demand from existing clubs in those LGA’s particularly in the winter season. The most significant impact on CGD clubs will be on the development of a summer competition and for pre season games, training and carnivals where clubs from CGD may be attracted to these regional facilities due to limited access to facilities in CGD.

• The FFV has not made any decision as yet on the long term location of their summer competition for the Southern Region which includes the Cities of Casey and Greater Dandenong. Such a decision will be influenced by the availability and location of suitable regional / sub regional facilities.

• The location of the planned regional / sub regional facilities are shown on the following plan.



4. INITIAL CONSULTATION The initial consultation has included review of club participation data and trends, meetings and or telephone interviews with a number of key stakeholders as well as workshops with relevant officers at Dandenong Council and FFV. These meetings have been used to help clarify key objectives and desired outcomes for the project and are reflected in the key Issues outlined in section 4.6. The following section provides a summary of the key findings, trends, comments, issues and results from the respective research.

4.1 Participation Trends

The following section provides a summary of key football (soccer) participation trends in the City of Greater Dandenong. The table below summarises total club membership trends for CGD based on the FFV plus other available data.

Total registered players – City of Greater Dandenong

2008 2009 2010

Jnr Dev. Jnr Snr Jnr Dev. Jnr Snr Jnr Dev. Jnr Snr

291 600 698 350 741 749 282 742 873

Total 1581 Total 1840 Total 1897 Analysis of the table reveals: • Total registered players have increased from 1581 participants in 2008 to 1897 in 2010,

representing an increase of approximately 20%; • Junior development programs have remained stable from 291 participants in 2008 to 282

in 2010; • Junior players have increased from 600 participants in 2008 to 742 in 2010, an increase of

approximately 23%; • Senior players have increased from 698 participants in 2008 to 873 in 2010, an increase of

approximately 25%; and • It needs to be noted that the above statistics are for registered players only and most clubs

have large numbers of supporters / social members. It is estimated that by including the non playing club members the total club membership would be approximately double the playing membership.


4.2 CGD Club Data

There are a total of 25 outdoor football (soccer) clubs across the CGD which is the highest number of clubs in any Victorian municipality. There are a number of additional ‘social’ clubs that currently use facilities but have not registered to participate in an organised competition as yet due in part to the costs and processes involved in entering a competition or difficulty in obtaining suitable facilities. The following section provides a summary of key results. Club Membership:

Club Name Juniors Seniors

Reserve / # pitches 2008* 2009 2010 2008* 2009 2010

Afghanistan Community Club

15 15 Mills Reserve

1 pitch

Cleeland United Soccer Club

2 3 14 12 W J Turner Reserve

1 pitch

Cuscatian Sporting Social Club / S.E. Wolves

24 24 Heather Hill Secondary College

1 pitch

Dandenong City Soccer Club

202 136 48 60 Police Paddocks Reserve

3 pitches

Dandenong Inter / Warriors Soccer Club

28 30 30

Lois Twohig Reserve

2 pitches

Dandenong Sparrows Sporting Club

2 54 49 Fotheringham Reserve 1 pitch

(Merged with Casey Club in 2011)

Dandenong Thunder Soccer Club

103 107 27 49 George Andrews Reserve

8 teams, FFV Premier League

Harrisfield Hurricans Soccer Club

31 2 25 28 Heather Hill Sec. College

1 pitch

Heatherton United SC

82 55 38 44 Bosnia & Hertzegovina Centre

Community social club facility

Victorian Punjabi Federation

15 15 W J Turner Reserve

1 pitch

Keysborough Soccer Club

98 123 38 64 Coomoora Reserve

3 pitches

Lyndale United Soccer Club

59 34 36 42 Lyndale Sec. College

2 pitches

Noble Park Soccer Club

81 57 41 47 Norman Luth Reserve

2 pitches


Club Name Juniors Seniors

Reserve / # pitches 2008* 2009 2010 2008* 2009 2010

Noble Park United Soccer Club

2 3 45 43 Parkfield Reserve

1 pitch

Old Haileybury SC

18 24 Haileybury College, Keysborough

School facility

Old Meltonians 4 34 New Club - school facility?

Parkmore SC 27 1 38 34 White Eagles Stadium, Keysborough – community social club facility

South Eastern Piranahs FC

81 113 Fotheringham Reserve

1 pitch

South Springvale Soccer Club

60 58 82 65 Warner Reserve

2 pitches

Southern Stars Football Club

67 109 37 36 Ross Reserve 2 pitches

(Moved to Kingston in 2011)

Springvale City Vales Soccer Club

11 21 32 49 Ross Reserve

2 pitches

Springvale White Eagles SC

139 118 22 29 White Eagles Stadium, Keysborough – community social club facility

Springvale United Soccer Club

15 15 Chandler Sec. College

1 pitch

Sandown Lions (formerly Superstars SC)

15 15 Ross Reserve

2 pitches

White Star Dandenong Soccer Club

44 51 66 50 Greaves Reserve

2 pitches

TOTAL 891 1091 1038 698 749 873

• 2008 club figures were unavailable • Junior players (including junior development / SSF) have increased by approximately

17% since 2008. • Senior players have increased by approximately 25% since 2008.

With information supplied by FFV and Bayside League the above table illustrates a particular characteristic of football (soccer) provision in CGD where there is a larger number of smaller clubs with 11 clubs having less than 50 players and 10 clubs without junior teams. There are also a number of clubs that operate on their own community social club or school pitches. In comparing the number and size of clubs with neighbouring municipalities the sport in CGD is more fragmented and segregated into smaller mono cultural clubs. CGD has the highest number of clubs of any municipality in Victoria. The larger number of smaller clubs may be less sustainable in terms of building strength through community participation. Larger clubs are better able to support multi level participation and community cohesion. Many clubs have limited


administrative or volunteer structures or physical capacity to expand given the current venue capacities. The largest Club in Greater Dandenong has less than 200 players which contrasts with clubs in Bayside and neighbouring Councils which have experienced recent rapid growth in their junior membership and have achieved club sizes of over 700 players. Across Melbourne there are 21 clubs with over 400 registered players.

4.3 CGD Club Characteristics

This table displays the characteristics of CGD clubs: Standard of competition

Elite ( Premier League) 1 club 0 clubs 1

Development ( Division 1 or 2) 9 clubs 2 clubs 11

Community 4 clubs 4 clubs 8

Social 5 clubs 0 clubs 5

Total 19 6 25

Smaller / Mono cultural -------Larger / multi cultural Total

The above information indicates the segregated nature of the sport in CGD and presents some challenges in the development of the sport and the aim of FFV to have larger multi cultural clubs available for participants to choose from, particularly represented at the elite and development levels. Such fragmentation of clubs makes the task of locating and sharing facilities such as synthetic pitches more difficult and a stronger case for Council to take an active role in the management and programming of use of future shared synthetic facilities. The predominance of smaller 1 and 2 pitch sites in Greater Dandenong offer limited opportunities for expansion due to the limits in the number of teams per pitch allowed to maintain the grass surface. However, this can be supplemented by a larger / sub regional facility, with provision for 4 pitches (including synthetic) which are centrally managed and available to all clubs in CGD. The data supplied by FFV also demonstrates that compared to football (soccer) participation data for Victoria, CGD has a lower participation rate by juniors with participation by juniors in CGD Clubs of 62% compared with 78% average for Victoria. In particular participation by junior female participation is substantially lower in CGD representing 8% participation compared with the average of 14% for Victoria. This is also evident in CGD clubs which have a lower percentage of junior teams participating in small sided games fixtures. On the other hand participation by senior males is higher in CGD with participation at 35% compared with 18% for Victoria. The lower participation of juniors and females in Greater Dandenong may also be influenced by the lack of volunteers to administer the junior competition and also the design of the change facilities which do not adequately cater for female players. The above data illustrates that Council and FFV need to partner in efforts to foster the development of larger multicultural clubs to improve participation by under represented groups and promote community cohesion. There is a case that whilst smaller mono cultural clubs have their need particularly at the social and community level the emphasis should be to encourage the growth and development of larger multi cultural clubs. This has been undertaken very successfully by a number of clubs by being more welcoming and encouraging greater participation by juniors and particularly females from all cultural groups.


Given the above data it is estimated that the largest growth in future club participation will be in junior and female football (soccer). The reasons for the expected membership changes are:

• Increasing popularity of women’s and girls football (soccer); • Improving links and pathways between junior and senior clubs; • Stated intentions by a number of clubs to develop junior participation; • Some Clubs have improved junior participation rates through the development of Small

Sided Games fixtures; • Population growth; • Making additional teams and standards of competition available; • Development of new shared facilities; • Club training and development programs; • Opportunity for social interaction and community participation; and • Increasing popularity of football (soccer) on the whole.


4.4 CGD Clubs: Number of Teams (2009)

Club Name Junior Male Junior Female

Senior Male Senior Female

Other e.g. Roo Ball

Total

Afghanistan Community Club 1 1

Cleeland United Soccer Club 1 1

Cuscatian Sporting Social Club - S.E. Wolves

1 1 2

Dandenong City Soccer Club 10 1 3 1 15

Dandenong Inter/Warriors Soccer Club

2 2

Dandenong Sparrows Sporting Club

2 1 3

Dandenong Thunder Soccer Club

6 2 8

Harrisfield Hurricans Soccer Club

3 2 5

Heatherton United SC 3 1 2 6

Kalgidhar Sports Club 1 1

Keysborough Soccer Club 5 2 7

Lyndale United Soccer Club 3 2 5

Noble Park Soccer Club 3 1 2 1 7

Noble Park United Soccer Club

2 2

Old Haileybury SC 1 1

Parkmore SC 1 2 3

South Eastern Piranhas FC 7 7

South Springvale Soccer Club 3 3 2 8

Southern Stars Football Club 2 1 2 5

Springvale City Vales Soccer Club

3 3

Springvale United Soccer Club 1 1

Springvale White Eagles SC 7 1 2 10

Superstars SC 1

White Star Dandenong Soccer Club.

2 3 5

Total 55 5 43 6 109


4.5 Issues and Facilities

The top-three issues in relation to club requirements have been identified below. Key issues are also summarised in the table below:

Operational Area Key Issues

Support Buildings e.g. Pavilion / Clubroom

Lack of facilities for females Improve facilities e.g. unisex change rooms which are more welcoming to women, girls

and young boys and designed to enable simultaneous playing of male / female matches. Fencing can protect pitch ( elite competition) but can also limit pitches on Cricket grounds Vandalism issues eg. graffiti Improve Canteen Facilities Lack of storage space ( big issue especially where clubs share facilities). Lack of Disabled toilets. Lack of Officials rooms / First Aid rooms

Playing Field / Pitches

Lack of alternative all weather synthetic pitches / training areas with lighting Install and/or upgrade lighting to maximise use of training facilities Impact of water restrictions has limited use of pitches Performance issues of some existing grass pitch facilities particularly those with no sub

surface drainage has resulted in some ground closures. Consider establishing subregional / competition / training facility that is accessible to all

clubs and can accommodate higher standards of competition. Lack of an outdoor adult ‘5 a side facility’ Shared use (with cricket) can impact on ground availability (pre-season) and limit the

number of pitches within existing fencing of cricket grounds. Car parking issues.

Club Development e.g. Training, Management,

Recruitment, Volunteers etc.

Development of Club forums / support for clubs Training of coaches and other volunteers Volunteer recruitment Recruitment of coaches and players Lack all weather surfaces for training. Assist with the development of club Business Plans. Development of junior programs. Development of female teams

Other issues e.g. competition structure, athlete

pathways, FFV support etc.

Increase funding opportunities (access to government funding and club contributions). Encourage larger multi cultural clubs which offer athlete pathways. Athlete pathways are constrained due to lack of facilities. Improved facility requirements imposed by FFV. Provide opportunities for small sided games / 5 a side competitions Encourage clubs to take up training and development opportunities.

Indicative Use of Synthetic Facilities: • Because of the limited capacity of existing venues the majority of Clubs are highly likely to

use a centrally managed synthetic facility for training and matches if available. Priorities for Football (Soccer): • Improve amenities for females and support infrastructure; • Promoting junior and female participation / teams; • Increasing promotion and awareness of existing clubs and facilities; • Development of new synthetic facilities available for use by all clubs; • Provision of club training and development support; and • Improve performance of existing grass pitches through better drainage / lighting.


Other Comments:

• Develop a single site with provision for multiple synthetic and grass pitches to cater for growing demand including funding contributions from a number of partners;

• Build multi-purpose club rooms; • Consider shared use of synthetic facilities; • Promote football (soccer); and • Facilitate improved coordination of resources between clubs in Greater Dandenong.

4.6 Key Issues

In summary the key issues identified in CGD are:

Key Issues Discussion/Evidence

1. FFV Competition Structure • FFV has established a new Victorian summer competition (commencing with juniors) with representative teams drawn from 12 zones across the State.

• Year round access to high standard facilities will be required.

2. FFV Decentralisation • FFA National Football Development Plan desire to establish Regional Centres of Excellence.

• FFV desire to decentralise delivery of football (support and programming) across Victoria.

3. Club Development and Support

• Research identified a strong need for improved (local) club development support and training. Key areas of need include:

• Recruitment and training of coaches. • Recruitment and training of volunteers. • Club sustainability planning (particularly associated with managing massive

participation growth). • Club management support. • Administrative and resource assistance. • Funding assistance including individual financial assistance eg. Sports

Without Borders (SWB) that provides assistance to new migrants to participate in sport. Club can be a social engagement tool for diverse communities, especially newly arrived migrants. Funding available from FFV to deliver new programs aimed at social inclusion.

• Facility development.

4. Facility Standards • Drought impacts and water restrictions have had significant impacts on the availability and access of natural turf pitches.

• Many reserves have poor lighting which also limits the areas suitable for training.

• The majority of facilities meet minimum FFV recommended facility standards. • Hierarchy of facilities means not all facilities need to meet Class A or B level. • Many pavilions and support infrastructure are inadequate, e.g. lacking female

change rooms, referee rooms, storage, etc. • Many school based pitches do not meet facility standards because of lack of

change rooms, lighting, etc. • Reasonable facilities assist club sustainability eg. Social club / canteen will

help clubs service the needs of members, create a welcoming atmosphere and assist in raising funds.



5. Futsal / Outdoor ‘5 a side’ / Street Soccer / Private Academies

• There is currently 1 regional venue catering for indoor soccer (Futsal) in CGD (Springers Indoor Sports Centre).

• Anecdotal evidence suggests participation is increasing. However, there is no overt evidence to suggest that the existing facilities are unable to cope with additional demand.

• Futsal across Victoria is provided at a combination of Council owned and Private owned facilities.

• Some tennis facilities have been converted to synthetic grass and are being used for futsal.

• There are no venues catering for outdoor adult ‘5 a side’ competitions however there is evidence that this facility would well compliment a Sub Regional Facility model.

• Street Soccer has become a popular social and physical outlet for supporting homeless and / or unemployed people in CGD.

• Private academies aim to develop elite players and can be considered potential users of any upgraded or synthetic facilities.

6. Participation Increases • There is evidence of sustained soccer participation growth in Dandenong of 20% from 2008 to 2010.

• The majority of the growth has occurred in junior participation (23% increase) as well as senior membership growth (25%). Junior development growth has been stable during this time.

• The level of growth will continue to drive a high level of demand for soccer facilities particularly from junior and female participation. There is evidence to suggest that the existing level of facility provision is inadequate to cope with existing levels of demand. Hence there is demand for additional facilities.

• Many clubs have strategies to increase junior development participation through small sided games to increase membership in 2011 and beyond.

7. Population Growth • The population of the City is expected to grow by around 16,000 people from 2009 to 2020.

• Population growth is expected to be a significant driver of demand for local soccer facilities.

• Impact of Dandenong Revitalisation Project. • Dandenong has the highest level of Cultural Diversity in Victoria with sport

and particularly soccer being proposed as a vehicle to delivering support and assistance to people from overseas countries.

• Dandenong has a large number of smaller mono cultural soccer clubs. • The development of larger multicultural soccer clubs is seen as a goal by

FFV.

8. Synthetic Surfaces • Synthetic surfaces are increasingly accepted by the soccer community and provide a range of acknowledged benefits, including:

o Capacity to cope with extremely high usage loads, i.e. durability, o Water use sustainability, o High quality consistent playing surface, and o Low maintenance.

• Potential weaknesses of synthetic surfaces include: o High capital cost (establishment and replacement). o Repair can be costly and agreements are required to identify

responsibility for undertaking maintenance / repairs / replacement. o Security and management issues need to be considered.



o Generally not designed for multi-sport use. o Not suitable for community informal use (whereas turf surfaces

contribute to the overall open space network). o Require additional support infrastructure, e.g. fencing and lighting.

• There is currently one synthetic playing field in CGD at Mills Reserve. (Designed for Hockey and is unlikely to be used competitively for soccer because of the amount of use by Hockey and the ground is not FIFA approved for football games)

• The Eastern Region Soccer Strategy recommended the installation of at least one synthetic pitch in each of the six participating LGA’s. Knox, Kingston, Yarra Ranges and Casey Councils have also committed funds to develop synthetic soccer facilities.

• Provision of synthetic surfaces can reduce overall levels of demand for playing fields due to their capacity to cater for higher volumes of use.

• Provision of synthetic surfaces in Dandenong has the capacity to assist in catering for increasing demand for additional playing fields. (FFV advise that provision of 1 synthetic surface can accommodate loads that would normally require up to 3 turf surfaces, assuming professional management and programming of the synthetic surface).

9. Regional Facilities

• There are regional / sub regional synthetic facilities currently operating or under construction or planned in Knox, Kingston, Yarra Ranges and Casey.

• Regional facilities should be developed as Regional Centres of Excellence, housing FFV decentralisation and function as soccer hubs for south eastern Melbourne.

• Whilst development (and improvement) of local facilities is considered a high priority the development of a sub regional facility shared by a number of clubs would also provide year round access to additional pitches. FFV suggest that there be 4 pitches provided at a sub regional facility with two being synthetic and one being a premier natural grass pitch suitable to higher levels of competition.

• FFV have also supported including a specialised outdoor adult ‘5 a side facility’ in a regional facility provision and are prepared to look at partnership opportunities in the provision and management of such.

10. Facility Provision Ratios & Planned Provision

• Refer to discussions outlined in supporting documentation. • The current ratio of field provision per registered player in Dandenong is on

par with neighbouring LGA’s. • There is evidence of demand for additional pitches in CGD based on

anticipated growth of junior and female participation and population growth. The current level of provision is 1 pitch for every 5111 people and 68 registered players.

• Having regard to anticipated future population levels (154,000 people by 2020) and no additional planned facility provision, this would represent a provision ratio of 1 pitch for every 5703 people (i.e. total of 27 pitches).

• Therefore the existing level of pitch provision in CGD is similar to the level which has previously been identified as insufficient in the Eastern Region, Bayside / Kingston, Casey and Yarra Ranges.

• Whilst it is difficult to agree on a standard industry benchmark for ratios of provision, figures of 1 pitch for every 3,500 people are commonly used in planning green field sites.



11. Improve Existing Facilities • Improvements to existing built facilities are required, in particular provision of additional change rooms to accommodate female and additional junior teams, umpires, first aid, and storage.

• Provision of adequate sports lighting is also considered an issue to increase the capacity of existing grass pitches for training and meet recommended illumination requirements.

• Provision of subsurface drainage to grass pitches where appropriate to improve performance and capacity of existing grounds.

4.7 Club Consultation A forum was held on 18 May 2011 to invite comment from Soccer Clubs on the key issues that the clubs wanted Council assistance with 14 club representatives attending representing 10 soccer clubs. Brief presentations were given by Council and FFV representatives on the key issues in the draft Football (Soccer) Plan. This was followed with an opportunity for clubs to identify their key issues in small group workshop format. All the suggestions, recommendations and comments of the soccer club representatives were recorded and these have been attached as Appendix 1. In summary, the main issues were about improvements required to facilities including lighting, drainage, car parking and pavilions so that clubs could expand junior and female participation. In one instance a club was willing to commit funding to improvements but was having difficulties with getting approvals. There was also a comment about the need for greater support to clubs that wanted to attract juniors and females and were welcoming to all cultures. Provision of additional pitches was also supported as was the concept of a soccer hub including synthetic pitches shared by a number of clubs. Location and management of a “Soccer Hub” would be important issues to resolve. Clubs were requested to complete a feedback sheet which was also sent to clubs that did not attend the forum. Three feedback sheets were received and gave support to the following key issues:

a) Improvements are required to sports pavilions to be more welcoming to junior / female players; b) Improved ground lighting and / or drainage to grounds would allow additional use; and c) More pitches are needed for future demand including synthetic pitches / soccer hub.

Clubs wanted to see Council give further direction in relation to the above issues and two clubs suggested that Council not support the provision of good facilities for new clubs as this made it difficult for existing clubs to grow and attract new members. Financial support from Council to match club contributions for facility improvements and club development assistance with volunteers / staff to coordinate and support new junior teams was also requested.


5. STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK Having regard to the key issues that have been identified in this report, the following vision,principles and key objectives have been developed to guide CGD in responding to demand forfootball (soccer) participation.

5.1 Vision

In consideration to CGD’s corporate objectives, FFV’s strategic directions and the key issues that have been identified in this project, the following vision for football (soccer) in CGD is proposed: Through the provision of an appropriate range of core facilities and support infrastructure, the CGD will support a high level of participation in football (soccer) particularly from young people / females and facilitate athlete pathways, development of the sport and elite representation.

5.2 Principles

Achieving the vision will be guided by the following core principles: • Local government has a responsibility to provide core levels of infrastructure to support

participation in a range of sport, recreation and leisure activities; • Preference will be given to servicing the needs of local communities within CGD; • A core focus for CGD will be catering for grass roots levels of the sport, including juniors,

women and maximum participation; • The benefits of regional and high standard facilities (e.g. synthetic surfaces) are

recognised and will be pursued where appropriate; • Professionally managed synthetic surfaces will be used to help cater for high levels of

demand for playing fields; • Facility development will be driven by a desire for maximum use, including shared use by a

number of clubs, activities or groups where appropriate; • Individual projects and facility developments will consider financial sustainability, including

operational costs; • Opportunities for funding and development partnerships will be explored for all major

projects; and • FFV and CGD will explore partnership and collaboration opportunities as appropriate to

support the development of football (soccer).

5.3 Objectives

Key high-level objectives for football (soccer) in the CGD include: • Council will provide an appropriate range of facilities to meet community needs (as

outlined in this report and accompanying documents); • Council will support FFV sports development initiatives in the region, including the

establishment of metropolitan zones and representative teams/competition; • A full range of competition structures and levels will be represented in the CGD (i.e. social

and community to elite level (i.e. Premier League); and • Pursue funding, partnership and collaboration opportunities as appropriate to support

implementation of the recommendations contained in this report.


6. REGIONAL / SUB REGIONAL FACILITIES A key objective is to provide Council with direction on the possible future provision of regional / sub regional facilities.

6.1 Role

“Regional” is being considered within the context of the proposed Eastern and Southern FFV Development Zones as well as sub regional within an individual LGA context. Hence the role of regional facilities is to provide a hub of high quality soccer facilities, including synthetic and turf playing fields, change rooms, lighting and car parking. Regional facilities are intended to cater for mass participation and local community demand as well as the highest level of competition/standard being played in the region or zone, including representative teams. Regional and sub regional facilities should be able to host higher standard matches requiring Class A or B level facilities (as determined by FFV facility standards).

6.2 Demand

Based on the research and consultation with neighbouring LGA’s, there are confirmed plans for the development of regional facilities and synthetic surfaces that would be likely to have some impact on CGD. However, there is also evidence to support the provision of additional pitches in Greater Dandenong and strong emphasis by the sports governing bodies that such a facility should have access to both natural turf and synthetic facilities. Provision for an adult outdoor ‘5 a side facility’ should be considered on the basis of a business case. The regional facility should also have central management so the facility can be shared by many clubs and can accommodate higher levels of competition. Access by private and public transport needs to be good based on higher usage and standards of competition and therefore larger numbers of participants and spectators. Within CGD there are a number of options for the development of a sub regional facility. The following regional plan illustrates the sites of the current or planned regional facilities and also the potential sites in CGD.



The following table lists and scores the CGD site options. Each factor has been scored out of 5 with lower scores being less suitable / poor and higher scores being more suitable / excellent.

Site Size of area

Access by public transport

Est. cost

Existing facilities

Impact on residents

Total Score

Comments

Ross Reserve

4 3 4 4 3 18 Central location. Good access for young people / over 400m walk to train / transport. Bus service would need improving. Develop master plan for the site.

Tatterson Park

4 3 3 3 4 17 Good vehicle and bike path access from new bypass. Bus service would need improving. Current master plan would need revision. Link to Springers Indoor Sports. Population growth area.

Dandenong Stadium site

4 3 2 1 4 14 Flood issues for any site development. Limited access to public transport, higher costs. Prominent site with Freeway access and includes Melbourne Water land.

Police Paddocks

3 1 3 3 4 14 Poor access for young people, isolated location and on State Government land

George Andrews Reserve

1 3 3 4 2 13 Site is too small with access via residential streets. Limited access to public transport.

Purchase new site

4 2 0 1 5 12 Dandenong South / Keysborough location. Greenfield site would have substantially higher development costs – possible links with Frankston CC.

The above table illustrates the following site considerations for a sub regional soccer centre: Ross Reserve is a high priority as a location for a sub regional facility because of the size of the reserve, access to public transport at Noble Park Railway station and access for young people. However there is no public transport along Corrigan Road and Noble Park Railway station is still a long walk from the football (soccer) facilities. The existing football (soccer) facilities can be upgraded and there are options to extend existing pitches or change the use of an existing AFL oval to accommodate more football (soccer) grounds if required. Utilising existing facilities would save on infrastructure costs. The redevelopment of the adjacent Noble Park Pool as a 12 month facility could enable joint management arrangements and assist with provision of Street Soccer. Some of the potential draw backs can be around perceived ‘ownership’ of the site by existing tenants and possible impact on residents in the area. A park master plan is proposed for this site and should take into consideration the recommendations of this report. Tatterson Park is a close second priority for a sub regional facility as the reserve has available space however this would involve converting an AFL oval to achieve 4 football (soccer) pitches. The advantage of having Springers Indoor Sports Centre at this location has the opportunity to cater for both indoor and outdoor football (soccer) at the one site and a potential joint management model. A new pavilion would be required to service the pitches however provision of such is necessary to fully utilise the existing sports facilities. It also has good vehicle and bicycle access being close to the Dingley bypass and is a long walk from bus routes along Springvale and Cheltenham Roads. Tatterson Park would be better serviced with the establishment of the proposed new bus route (Route J in the bus review) to service the existing residential area and the planned development and resulting population growth to occur over the next 10 years. This location would also be quite close to the South Eastern Regional Facility, the


Kingston Heath football (soccer) facility. Development of a new site of approximately 20 acres in an industrial area in South Dandenong or Keysborough should be considered however Greater Dandenong already has a good supply of public open space and fully utilising existing open space needs to be considered as a higher priority. A new location may not have the advantages of public transport than the above sites and would certainly be the most expensive option to purchase and develop the site given the current land prices. The City of Frankston is currently reviewing its provision of football (soccer) facilities having experienced similar growth and this option may present an opportunity for future joint planning and development. Dandenong Stadium site is well located next to the freeway and prominent however, the site is subject to flooding which would make development more difficult and problematic. Site contains land owned by Melbourne Water. Location and access to the site by vehicles is good however public transport would not be as good as some other sites although there is a bus route along Stud Road. Police Paddocks is located on State Government owned land outside the municipal boundary and the location of the existing soccer facilities is isolated and poor from a public transport / access perspective. George Andrews Reserve is too small to accommodate 4 pitches and is located adjacent to residential areas with access through local residential streets. It also has limited access to public transport. Experience has found that developing a regional or synthetic facility at the site of a strong existing club can create significant problems in its use as a regional facility with management and access problems. Accordingly FFV prefers to try to avoid such locations for regional centres. The key reasons for developing a sub regional facility in the CGD are summarised below. • The CGD has opportunities to develop an existing site or to acquire a new site to

accommodate existing demand and future growth for soccer provision. Additional sites could be developed in future depending on growth of the sport and future demand.

• Demand for football (soccer) facilities in CGD is high and predicted to grow (e.g. total club registered players has increased from 1581 members in 2008 to 1897 in 2010, an increase of 20%). Whilst this is not the highest growth rate when compared to neighbouring municipalities there are great opportunities for growth in junior and female participation as evidenced by the lower rates of current participation in CGD and trends experienced by neighbouring municipalities.

• Development of a sub regional facility in CGD has the capacity to service the many smaller mono cultural clubs who have aspirations to play at an elite level in CGD and would required higher standard facilities (Class A or B).

• There are a number of regional and sub regional facilities currently available or being constructed within surrounding Knox, Kingston, Yarra Ranges and Casey Councils and further links with Kingston and Frankston should be explored.

• Regional facilities should be developed as Regional Centres of Excellence, housing FFV decentralisation and function as a football (soccer) hub for the respective football zone, including scope for elite level training and competition use.

• The current ratio of pitch provision (i.e. 1:5111 people) is lower than recommended (i.e. 1:3,500 in green field sites). Development of sub regional facilities (inclusive of synthetic playing fields) has the capacity to reduce demand for the total number of pitches required due to their capacity to accommodate significantly higher usage loads (i.e. FFV advise that 1 synthetic playing field can cater for usage loads that would normally require provision of up to 3 turf surfaces assuming professional management / programming).

• Current football (soccer) pitch provision in CGD is dominated by single or double pitch venues, many shared with summer sports eg. cricket. Development of sub regional facilities at an existing or new site will facilitate year round access to CGD clubs for higher


levels of competition and to facilitate the summer competition, whilst reducing conflicts with other sports and users of Council reserves.

6.3 Scope of Facilities

The scope of facilities at the proposed regional facility development site(s) may vary, reflecting the differences in facility provision priorities for CGD. Council cannot bring every facility up to a premier standard and will have to make priorities for grounds that can be upgraded to a higher standard based on a number of factors including level of use, standard of play, accessibility and opportunities for expansion of existing facilities. Consistent with the aforementioned provision principles, development of sub regional facilities by CGD should initially concentrate on providing a core level of infrastructure required to support individual LGA demand and existing competition standards. Venue development should be planned so as to allow future expansion and development to cater for higher levels of competition and complimentary infrastructure in the future including outdoor 5 a side specialist facilities. Development of facilities beyond the level required to cater for individual LGA demand should only be provided with considerable funding and partnership support by external parties, including FFV, FFA, State and Federal Government or others as appropriate.

6.4 Regional Facility Management Models

The development of regional facilities requires substantial capital investment and professional management in order to maximise usage. Furthermore, synthetic surfaces require specialised management expertise and maintenance in order to ensure longevity, asset function and maximum lifecycle. There are many synthetic surface types, suppliers and manufactures offering different warranties for asset lifecycle. FFV is able to provide specialist advice and expertise in the development of synthetic surfaces, including advice on design and a list of preferred suppliers and products. FFV is able to provide this assistance free of charge to Councils. Inspection and technical testing of synthetic surfaces are required in order to achieve FIFA Certification (thereby allowing these facilities to stage elite level competitions and events). Testing and accreditation of the field is required every three years (i.e. FIFA 1-star standard facility is recommended – this relates to FIFA’s Quality Concept Field accreditation package). Once again, cost for this service should be factored into initial project development and ongoing management. In recognition of the high capital costs associated with synthetic surfaces, asset replacement reserves should form a key component of future management arrangements e.g. a replacement fund would need to be established and set aside so that the surface was able to be replaced at the end of its useful life whether this is a City or Club responsibility. In addition, usage should be on a user pays basis, with fees set having regard to asset establishment, replacement and operational costs as well as Council’s philosophy/policy on subsidising community sport. Support facilities (e.g. pavilion design) should consider opportunities and demand for support infrastructure that may help generate revenue for management of the site e.g. social areas, café, bar, retail etc. Comprehensive and sophisticated booking and management arrangements will be required for each synthetic playing field. There are a number of computer packages and professional leisure facility contract management groups that are experienced in providing these services and associated food, beverage and retail management should these ancillary facilities be provided. A regional facility venue will be capable of accommodating one or two ‘home’ tenants. However, as indicated, these are specialised recreation facilities that require professional management (NB: the level of required capital investment is akin to the development of indoor recreation facilities or aquatic centres).


Therefore, there are three main management options that could be considered by Council: • Management by Council; • Management by professional contractor; or • Management by the State Association (FFV). The summary of the main pros and cons of each option are presented in the table below:

Council Professional Contractor State Association (FFV) Pros • Retains maximum control

of the facility.

• Does not require payment of a management fee or similar.

• Does not require separate contract supervision.

• Allows access to a range of professional leisure management groups.

• Ongoing maintenance can form part of the contract requirements.

• Allows access (through relationship with FIFA) to technical advice and expertise in the management and development of synthetic soccer pitches.

• Allows access to learnings from the Darebin and other facilities.

• Allows a direct relationship with the sports governing body/s.

• Ongoing maintenance can form part of the contract requirements.

• Any profits would be put back into the development of the sport

• Experience in dealing with synthetic pitches and economies of scale in association with management of pitches at Darebin and in future Knox.

Cons

• Likely to requires acquisition of specialist skills and training.

• Requires a dedicated booking system.

• Likely to require employment of additional staff.

• Requires a separate maintenance contract or arrangements.

• Few (if any) existing management groups will have had experience in managing synthetic soccer surfaces/venues.

• Requires payment of a management fee or similar.

• Council will be required to monitor contract compliance and outcomes.

• Limited experience in leisure facility management.

• Likely to require payment of a management fee or similar.

• Council will be required to monitor contract compliance and outcomes.

Development of regional synthetic football (soccer) facilities is gathering momentum in Victoria with Darebin International Sports Centre being the only existing example with others under construction or in the design stages. FFV currently manage the Darebin football (soccer) facilities, including bookings for the three synthetic surfaces under a license agreement with Darebin City Council. Other management models are being developed for facilities in Whittlesea, Knox, Casey and Kingston based on shared use by a number of clubs under a central management structure. Therefore, it is recommended that CGD consider options for either internal management or external professional management of the proposed facilities. An expression of interest process could be pursued, inviting leisure management groups and FFV to submit proposals for the possible future management of the proposed facility. This approach will ensure the capacity of the market is tested and all possible management options explored. The expression of interest process will need to articulate any key assumptions or specific requirements Council may have, including (but not limited to):


• Community access; • Fees and charges; • Hours of use; • Core facilities to be provided; • Community service obligations; • School use; • Permissible uses; • Maintenance responsibilities and asset replacement requirements; • Financial performance indicators and reporting requirements; • Tennant club arrangements; • Competition use and availability; and • Commercial use (including soccer academies or similar), etc.

6.5 Funding and Partnership Opportunities

The development of core facilities to service a range of community sport and recreation participation opportunities, including football (soccer), is generally accepted as a responsibility of local government. Synthetic surfaces will play a critical role in addressing core community needs. The provision of elite standard facilities is consistent with the Leisure Strategy however, would require higher levels of funding from other levels of Government, Clubs and FFV and demonstrate significant economic and community benefit. There are a number of Federal and State government funding programs that support the development of sporting infrastructure. In Victoria, the most likely source of funding will be via the Department of Planning and Community Development (Sport and Recreation Victoria) community facilities funding program. In particular the “Major Facility Funding Program”, which offers grants of up to $500,000 for projects of this nature. Further State Government funding is also likely to be available through a program known as the Sustainable Sportsground Program (previously the Drought Relief for Community Sport funding program and the Synthetic Surfaces Program), which will provide funding over the next two years for strategically placed and targeted sustainable playing and training surfaces in key regional and metropolitan locations to allow regional sporting competitions to continue regardless of water availability and to provide long term, sustainable reductions in potable water use by community sporting facilities. The Federal Government Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government has established a new funding program for Local Government. It is likely that funding will be available for community infrastructure projects and it is therefore recommended that Council consult with its appropriate Federal member to explore possible funding opportunities associated with strategic proposals. Significant Federal funding has been received by various Councils including CGD for Sport, Recreation and Aquatic projects of regional significance. Both DPCD (Strengthening the World Game program) and FFV currently offer minor facility funding programs to football (soccer) clubs and Councils and every effort should be made to maximise use of these funds to upgrade facilities at existing football (soccer) venues particularly for pavilion and ground lighting upgrades. FFV has indicated that should CGD support the development of a sub regional facility that FFV would consider both investing in the facility and participating in the management of the facility particularly if it included an adult outdoor ‘5 a side facility’. A five a side facility should be fully funded from external sources eg. FFV would expect to pay capital costs for the 5 a side centre which is estimated to cost between $1.1M and $1.5M. FFV have indicated they would prepare a business case / feasibility study for Council to consider. Opportunities should also be considered for private capital investment into these facilities from Businesses, Clubs, Academies or Schools wishing to use the new facility. At a new green field site the net costs of a sub regional soccer facility involving the construction


of 4 pitches (including 2 synthetic pitches), adult outdoor 5 a side facility, Class A change rooms and amenities, lighting, car parking, landscaping and consultancy fees would be in the vicinity of $6 - $7 million (excluding land costs) including grants and contributions from other funding partners of $3m. Costs would be less if an existing soccer / sporting facility could accommodate this scale of development eg. Ross Reserve or Tatterson Park with existing facilities being upgraded. A summary of the indicative costs are listed in the table below:

Expenditure New Green field Site

Ross Reserve Tatterson Park

Land purchase costs ( 20 acres) depending on site and location

Up to $10M Nil Nil

Pavilion Construction / refurbishment $2,500,000

New

$1,800,000 Upgrade

$2,500,000

New

Site preparation works $1,000,000 $ 200,000 $ 700,000

2 synthetic football (soccer) pitches including lighting, drainage, base preparation, fencing, coaches boxes

$1,700,000 $1,700,000 $1,700,000

2 grass pitches including drainage, base preparation, goals, coaches boxes

$ 900,000 $ 100,000 upgrade

$ 100,000

upgrade

Other site works and services eg. Car parking, water supply, car park and road way lighting, power supply, pathways, landscaping.

$1,000,000 $ 400,000 upgrade

$ 500,000

upgrade

Professional fees $ 300,000 $ 200,000 $ 300,000

Contingency (5%) $ 370,000 $ 195,000 $ 265,000

Cost escalation to construction ( 2 years @ 2%) $ 296,000 $ 163,800 $ 210,600

Total estimated project expenditure Up to $18.066M $4,758,800 $6,275,600

Council could apply for grants and contributions from key stakeholders towards the cost of the development of a sub regional soccer facility. City of Kingston recently received $3M from the Federal Government towards the development of the Kingston Heath Reserve Soccer facility and Knox has received significantly more from both State and Federal governments for a regional Basketball / Soccer facility. The indicative figures below are a realistic estimate of what could be expected to be contributed towards a sub regional soccer facility from other funding partners based on existing funding policies.

Income New Green field Site

Ross Reserve Tatterson Park

Federal Government Community Infrastructure Grants $2,000,000 $1,000,000 $1,000,000

State Govt. Community Facility Funding Program – Major Grants

$ 500,000 $ 500,000 $ 500,000

State Govt. Sustainable Sports Ground Grant $ 300,000 $ 300,000 $ 300,000

Club contributions $ 200,000 $ 100,000 $ 200,000

Total Income $3,000,000 $1,900,000 $2,000,000

Total Expenditure Up to $18.066M $4,758,800 $6,275,600

Total estimated project cost / deficit Up to $15.066M $2,858,800 $4,275,600

A sub regional facility development could also be staged over a number of years depending on availability of funding from other partners.

Draft Soccer Development Plan June 2010 Page 37

7. RECOMMENDATION SUMMARY

The following section provides a summary of the key recommendations for CGD which have been identified as a result of the research and consultation. Recommendation numbers are used for referencing purposes only and do not suggest order of importance. Priority ratings have been applied using the following implementation schedule:

• High = Completed within 0-3 years. • Medium = 3-6 years. • Low = 6-10 years.

7.1 Recommendations Summary

Key Issues Discussion/Evidence Recommendations Priority

H, M, L

Implications & Indicative Capital Cost1

1. FFV Competition Structure

• FFV has established a Victorian summer competition with representative teams drawn from 12 zones across the State (initially commencing with juniors).

• The proposed Sub Regional Facility (see Rec. # 9) to be available as a home base for representative teams.

• H • Refer to Rec. # 9.

• Year round access to a number of playing fields is likely to be required until the proposed sub regional facility is developed.

• FFV require higher standards of facility provision for grounds that host Premier League and State League Division 1 games i.e. Class A and B grounds.

• The proposed Sub regional facility (Refer to item #9) is likely to be the only venue capable of providing sustainable year round access by CGD clubs to soccer facilities in the City.

• The proposed sub regional facility to be developed to accommodate higher levels of competition by CGD clubs thus alleviating the need to upgrade additional facilities if the home team is elevated into the higher standard of competition.

• H • Within existing operational budgets.

2. FFV Decentralisation

• FFA National Football Development Plan desire to establish Regional Centres of Excellence.

• FFV desire to decentralise delivery of football (support and programming) across Victoria.

• The proposed Sub Regional Facility (see Rec. # 9) could be established as a Regional Centre of Excellence and incorporate staff presence from FFV that can service and support CGD clubs and the Southern zone.

• M • FFV operations

1 Indicative costs are provided as a guide only, actual costs may vary significantly pending detailed design and site requirements.



H, M, L


3. Club Development and Support

• The participation in football ( soccer) in CGD suggests a need for improved (local) club development support and training. Key areas of need include:

o Recruitment and training of coaches.

o Recruitment and training of volunteers.

o Club sustainability planning (particularly associated with managing participation growth).

o Supporting junior and female participation.

o Club management support.

o Administrative and resource assistance.

o Funding assistance eg. programs aimed at social inclusion for newly arrived migrants.

o Facility development.

• FFV to update their Club Development Manual/Kit and distribute/promote to clubs in CGD.

• H • FFV operations

• FFV explore options to increase operational resources to support club development in CGD in particular through the proposed Sub Regional Centre when established.

• M • FFV operations

• FFV to pro–actively promote its New Club start up information and club accreditation program to clubs and interested groups in CGD.

• H • Officer collaboration between all project partners.

• These meetings should also be used to monitor soccer trends, club needs and inform annual priorities, explore partnership/collaboration opportunities and monitor ongoing management of soccer in the CGD.

• H • Officer collaboration between all project partners.

• CGD to work with FFV to support new migrants to participate in sport through the “Sport without Borders” and FFV Vic Health funded programs for newly arrived migrants.

• H • Development funding of $10,000 per annum to match external grants

4. Facility Standards • Drought impacts and water restrictions have had significant impacts on the quality and availability of turf surfaces in the municipality. The sports grounds have responded well to the introduction of warm season grasses however the last two wet winters has resulted in a number of grounds being closed, particularly for training. With increasing numbers participating the growth in use will increase pressure on ground surfaces and can lead to decline in quality through overuse.

• The majority of facilities meet FFV’s recommended minimum facility standards (Class C or D).

• Many pavilions and support infrastructure do not meet FFV preferred facility standards which include 4 change rooms for higher level matches (including unisex change rooms suitable for women and girl

CGD should continue to proactively implement water sustainability measures at Council managed reserves and include such measures in any new playing field developments.

Ongoing • Case by case.

• FFV Class C standard facilities are considered a desirable minimum standard for Council facility provision. Class D level is considered adequate at shared use school venues. Anything above Class C, should only be provided with considerable club (or other external) funding input.

• New pavilion developments should consider opportunities and demand for provision of at least 4 change rooms, in order to cater for male and

Ongoing • Average costs for new basic pavilions to meet Class C standards are approximately $660,000 (based on 200m2 @ $3300 / m2, including 4 change rooms).

• Capital costs to be



H, M, L


players), match official rooms and 1 first aid room or appropriate lighting standards for safe training, etc.

female participants simultaneously.

•

included in Sports Facilities Plan

5.

Futsal /

Outdoor ‘5 a side’ facility / Street Soccer / Private Academies

• There is currently 1 venue catering for indoor soccer (Futsal) in the CGD eg. Springers Indoor Sports Centre.

• Anecdotal evidence suggests participation is increasing for futsal. However, there is no overt evidence to suggest that the existing facilities are unable to cope with additional demand.

• Futsal is provided across Victoria at a combination of Council owned and Private owned facilities.

• There are no venues catering for outdoor ‘5 a side’ competitions however there is evidence that such facility would compliment a Sub Regional Facility model subject to a business case assessment.

• Street Soccer has become a popular social and physical outlet for supporting homeless and / or unemployed people in CGD.

• Private academies aim to develop elite players and have established links with local clubs and can be considered potential users of any upgraded or synthetic facilities.

• Council should monitor ongoing demand for Futsal facilities, however it is currently the responsibility of either the private sector or Council facility contact managers to respond to potential increases in demand for access to facilities and competitions.

Ongoing • Monitoring and advocacy role only.

• There may be opportunities to use underutilised (if there are any) outdoor hockey, tennis or netball courts for Futsal or outdoor 5 a side competitions if required.

• M • Case by case.

• FFV should liaise with CGD in their plans to promote and plan for the development of Futsal and outdoor ‘5 a side’ facility, however it is acknowledged that facility provision is not a core responsibility of Council.

• FFV will undertake a business case for a partnership with CGD for an outdoor 5 a side facility preferably linked with a Sub Regional Facility.

• H

• H

• FFV.

• FFV

• CGD should integrate street soccer into any future synthetic facility developments.

• H • Case by Case

• CGD should engage with private academies as potential users of any upgraded / new synthetic facilities on a commercial basis and subject to priority for use by community clubs.

• FFV to prepare a policy to guide Local Government on management of Private academies.

• H

• H

• Case by Case

• FFV



H, M, L


6.

Participation Increases

• There is evidence of sustained football (soccer) participation growth in the CGD of 20% from 2008 to 2010.

The majority of the growth has occurred in junior participation (23% increase) as well as senior membership growth (25%).

Junior development growth has been stable however a number of clubs have indicated an aim of increasing this growth in the next year and onwards.

• The level of growth will continue to drive a high level of demand for football (soccer) facilities. The existing scope of facility provision in CGD is inadequate to cope with existing levels of demand.

• There are opportunities to establish new or additional playing fields in CGD to cater for future demand.

• Additional facilities (change rooms, lighting and support infrastructure) are required in CGD.

• A new sub regional facility in the CGD will play a critical role in catering for the long-term demand for soccer in the City with year round access and shared by a number of clubs.

• Furthermore, due to limitations on available open space for football (soccer) fields, synthetic surfaces will also play a critical role in meeting the demand load for football (soccer) in the future. (Refer to item # 8 and 9).

• H • Refer to item # 8 and 9.

7.

Population Growth

• The population of the City is expected to grow by around 16,000 people from 2010 to 2020, particularly with housing developments in Keysborough South.

• The current pitch to population provision ratio is approximately 1 pitch for every 5111 people, which is below the ideal ‘benchmark’ level for green field sites of 1 pitch for every 3,500 people.

• Additional facilities (playing fields and support infrastructure) are required (Refer to items 8 (Synthetic Surfaces), 9 (Sub Regional Facilities) and 4 (Facility Standard) for direction on improving facility and playing field provision in CGD.

• H • (Refer to # 8, 9 and 4 for direction on improving facility and playing field provision in CGD.



H, M, L


8. Synthetic Surfaces

• Synthetic surfaces are increasingly accepted by the football (soccer) community and provide a range of acknowledged benefits, including:

Capacity to cope with extremely high usage loads, i.e. durability,

Water use sustainability,

High quality consistent playing surface, and

Lower maintenance.

• Potential weaknesses of synthetic surfaces include:

High capital cost (establishment and replacement).

Repair can be costly.

Security and management issues need to be considered.

Generally not suitable for multi-sport use.

Not suitable for community informal use (whereas turf surfaces contribute to the overall open space network).

Require additional support infrastructure, e.g. fencing and lighting.

• There are currently synthetic football (soccer) fields constructed, under construction or planned in Casey, Knox, Yarra Ranges and Kingston .

• The Eastern Region Soccer Strategy recommended the installation of at least one synthetic pitch in each of the six participating LGA’s.

• Provision of synthetic surfaces in each LGA has the capacity to assist in catering for increasing demand for additional playing fields. (FFV advise that provision of 1 synthetic surface can accommodate loads that would normally require up to 3 turf surfaces, assuming professional management / programming of the synthetic surface).

• Given the difficulty in providing additional soccer pitches at existing sites in the CGD, synthetic surfaces will play a critical role is catering for current and future demand.

• Investigate the development of a 4 pitch site including 2 with synthetic surface and 1 premier grade turf pitch at an existing reserve (to be confirmed) or a new green field site.

• Demand for development of additional synthetic surfaces at this location or other locations should be subject to a detailed feasibility / business case.

• H • Development costs will depend on the preferred option selected,

9. Sub Regional Facilities

• Demand for football (soccer) facilities in CGD is high and expected to grow with junior and female participation.

• Development of a sub regional facility in CGD will assist in meeting the current and future needs of the CGD.

• Development of Casey Fields has the capacity to service the City of

• Investigate the development of an existing reserve or acquire additional land in the CGD for the development of a Sub Regional Sports Facility to service the City including two synthetic football (soccer) pitches and one premier natural turf pitch,

• H • Sub Regional facility, $3 – 4.5 million at an existing reserve.

• Costs could be considerably more if



H, M, L


Casey, Southern Zone and development of the regional facility in Knox has the ability to service the Eastern zone.

• Stakeholder feedback suggested improvement of local facilities is considered a high priority eg. Pavilions and lighting.

• Experience from the Eastern Region, Bayside / Kingston and Casey / Yarra Ranges Soccer Strategies confirmed that it is difficult to get cross-border commitment and funding support for regional facilities by other LGA partners. Therefore, it is more likely that the CGD, State & Federal Governments and FFV will be the main funding and development partners for each respective project.

provision for another turf pitch and associated change rooms, lighting and car parking.

• Consideration also to be given to a ‘5 a side’ facility in conjunction with the Sub Regional Facility and invite FFV to prepare a business case for a partnership approach to such facility provision.

developing a new green field site.

• The final cost will depend on the site chosen and contribution from other partners.

10 Facility Provision Ratios & Planned Provision

• Refer to discussions outlined in supporting documentation.

• The current ratio of field provision in CGD is below the ideal benchmark .

• There is evidence of sustained growth in football (soccer) participation and demand for additional pitches in CGD. The current level of provision in CGD equates to 1 pitch for every 5111 people or 68 registered players.

• Having regard to anticipated future population levels (154,000 people by 2020) and (no existing) planned facility provision this would represent a provision ratio of 1 pitch for every 5,703 people (i.e. total of 27 pitches).

• Whilst it is difficult to agree on a standard industry benchmark for ratios of provision, figures of 1 pitch for every 3,500 people are commonly used in green field sites.

• If this standard was to be applied in CGD an additional 12 pitches would need to be provided.

• Review current planning for future open space acquisition and investigate opportunities for the immediate and long term provision of an additional facility.

• H • Within existing operational budgets.

• CGD has limited opportunities to develop new soccer pitches on existing reserves, hence the introduction of synthetic surfaces will play a critical role in catering for increasing demand loads.

• Depending on the development option selected for a sub regional multi pitch sports facility the provision of additional playing surfaces is supported. Investigation of a Sub Regional Facility including 4 pitches, including two synthetic pitches, Change rooms, lighting and car parking should occur as a high priority.

• Such a facility should be centrally located and be provided with a higher standard of facilities i.e. Class A or B and be shared by a number of clubs with central management by CGD, FFV or a professional contractor.

• H-L • Refer to recommendation 9 above.



H, M, L


11. Improve Existing Facilities

• Stakeholder feedback indicated that improving existing facilities was also considered a key priority in CGD

• The standard and condition of playing surfaces has suffered as a result of the drought, water restrictions and over-use.

• At the beginning of the 2010 season most pitches were in a good condition having been converted to warm season grasses however the performance of a number of pitches has failed with the current wet winter season. A number of grounds were subsequently closed particularly those grounds without sub surface drainage.

• The provision of appropriate change rooms is a key issue.

• Provision of adequate sports lighting is also a priority to enable use of grounds for training.

• Priorities for pavilion upgrades should concentrate on those venues that have multiple pitches are rated as premier sites and / or are likely to establish synthetic surfaces in order to provide an equitable distribution of training and competition venues across the City.

• CGD to work with local clubs to seek capital funding from Clubs, DPCD and FFV for minor facility and lighting improvements and improvements to sub surface drainage to grass pitches.

• H

• H

• Capital Funding to be incorporated in Sports Facilities Plan.

• Capital funds to be made available to match Club / DPCD and /or FFV funding.


APPENDIX 1

ISSUES RASIED BY CLUBS AT SOCCER FORUM ON 18 MAY 2011

Table 1. 1. Focus on clubs with womens teams / junior teams 2. Lights – charge policy, costs per club, uniform levels 3. Improved facilities will increase / stabilise teams 4. Facilities for womens teams 5. Storage 6. Available training times 7. Clubs can’t expand 8. Coaches don’t want to be at poor facilities 9. Improved facilities will attract people / players 10. Pitch quality – dual pitches / cricket pitches / scheduling 11. Safety for juniors 12. Social spaces 13. Volunteer recruitment and retention 14. Coaches want money 15. Engaging parents in club 16. Enough referees – club people – club referee training / support 17. Support CALD communities – recruitment / same team / understanding club structure / transport / SSG 18. Nets

Table 2 1. Training facilities – lights and grounds for training (balls hitting residents fences) 2. Car parking – insufficient and inadequate ( poor surface) 3. FFV – fines because facilities not up to standard and games called off 4. Ground Lighting – needs improvements 5. Permits – hard to get permits to improve facilities/ lights. (Clubs have money for improvements but cannot get approvals) 6. Mergers – possible but due to poor facilities cannot accommodate more teams. 7. Safety issues – access to ground / surfaces 8. Better communication – planning facility improvements 9. Mono cultural clubs have difficulty attracting multicultural players 10. More support / better facilities for multicultural clubs with juniors and womens teams 11. Improved facilities will encourage girls teams and junior teams 12. Soccer Hub – cost of hire is a concern / clubs need home base – social facilities.


Table 3 1. Physical barriers to increasing capacity in CGD 2. No.1 issue – standard of soccer pitch 3. Floodlights for training 4. Sufficient sealed car parking 5. Sheltered spectator facilities 6. Establish synthetic pitches in CGD 7. Ways to give stability to clubs – increase tenure ( 5 -10 years licence) 8. Increase sports club forums – SEDA to speak at forums 9. Increase connections to SEDA / volunteers 10. “Game On” event too late for clubs entering teams ( look at earlier date) 11. Grant writing workshops for CGD clubs

Table 4 1. Develop funding / improvement partnerships with clubs – long term use of facility with financial commitment of club 2. Wider use of facilities for both community, cultural and sport purposes – helps break down barriers between community groups / generations / Council departments 3. Mini comp. tournament amongst co – tenants 4. Potential to develop spaces as small sided pitches with lights – encourage junior participants 5. Australian National Sikh Sport and Cultural Comp. each year (3 teams) – to be held in Vic. 2013. 6. Knox all nations comp 7. Need to be located where our players are 8. To develop female participation need better facilities – Parents would not be comfortable with current facilities 9. Need more facilities across summer use 10. Soccer Hub would be useful but location and accessibility important

- would be good for across summer season use - need to think about how club would gain income (canteen)

Documents

FOOTBALL (SOCCER) DEVELOPMENT PLAN · • Phase 5 Final Report – the final report was developed following consideration of feedback from key stakeholders and conduct of a forum