Women and girls across the nation will find it easier and more enjoyable to play sport and be active, with the Albanese Government offering $55 million in grants to over 120 recipients.
The grants represent the participation stream of funding, the first to be announced from the Albanese Government’s $200 million Play Our Way program.
The participation grants will fund a wide variety of activity programs, and new or modified equipment suitable for women and girls, across a range of sports with recipients representing local government, community, not-for-profit, and sporting organisations.
More than 660 applications for funding were received. Funding is being offered to initiatives nationwide, with a focus on women and girls who face additional barriers to participation. This includes women and girls who have a Disability, are First Nations people or are from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse communities.
The successful projects will remove barriers to women playing sport, reducing discrimination and promoting equality.
There is a second phase of Play Our Way, facility grants, still to be decided.
Each application for Play Our Way was thoroughly assessed and reviewed in accordance with the published Grant Opportunity Guidelines.
The Department of Health and Aged Care will publish the full list of grant recipients once it has formalised funding arrangements.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Sport, Anika Wells:
“Play Our way is the single biggest package for women’s sport participation and facilities ever and these 120 projects will create greater opportunities for women and girls to enjoy being physically active.
“The huge response to this grant opportunity, and the range of great project ideas, show that Australian communities want to be more supportive of women and girls.
“These projects will address the fact that too many girls drop out of sport and never come back as women.
“I am confident the successful projects will have a major impact by signalling that every person has the right to enjoy sport, at every level.”
Attributable to Minister for Women, Katy Gallagher:
“The recent Olympic and Paralympic Games and last year’s Women’s World Cup clearly showed how much the Australian community backs women’s sport.
“We are putting money on the table to ensure women and girls’ sporting clubs have the facilities they need and deserve.
“This grant funding will make an enormous difference in the lives of women and girls who might otherwise miss out on being able to play the sport they love.”