Crawford Report on Facilities: Summary By ISFM

crawford report: facilitiesisfm summaryprepared by chris green and peter holmes à court10.01.10

webcast: slideshare.net/peterhaccontact/comments: [email protected]

- facility auditing for sporting codes

- specialised business advice for sporting organisations

- strategic planning for infrastructure projects

International Sports and Facilities Management helps organisations in the sports and leisure industries understand their assets and manage them better through a number of processes we have been using - and improving - for more than 20 years.

While the emotions associated with sport are important, it is essential to manage the boring stuff: know exactly what the assets are, manage and maintain them, monetise as appropriate, and never forget the service to the community.

Sports will always be about encouraging participation at all levels and brilliance at the elite level. We help organisations devote their energy to the sport, and not on the boring stuff.

Thanks to our founder, Graeme Watson, we have been doing this for 20 years and have worked in every state in Australia, across NZ and Asia and for virtually every major sporting body and many Clubs and Government entities.

Peter Holmes à Court acquired the business in 2007 and Chris Green became CEO 2008.

isfm does:

the crawford report was released to the public on november 17 and will be formally “replied to” by the federal government in february 2010

the crawford report was released to the public on november 17 and will be formally “replied to” by the federal government in february 2010

the crawford report is not about cutting funding for fringe sports or olympic medal counts

the report includes transformational recommendations for sporting organisations across the country

summary 1: mass participation in all sport should be a focus of all levels of government in the future (as opposed to elite sports/winning gold medals)

but the infrastructure and facilities are not able to support current levels of grassroots participation, let alone the next generation of participants

crawford report: isfm summary

summary 2: “in order to meet the needs of the community, it is critical to know what they really are

“funding facilities without an assessment of need is unlikely to provide optimal outcomes”

source: crawford report, 17.11.2009


summary 3: the panel recommends facilities become multi-sport and community focused to decrease the chances of them being financial sinkholes for LGA’s

they need to have facilities such as meeting rooms, classrooms, function facilities, canteens etc for non-sport use

they should also cater for emerging sports


summary 4: “community sport underpins elite sport by deepening the talent pool [and] also directly contributes to the social agenda”



the Federal Govt create a $1b pool of funds over 4 years ($250m per year) for facilities at local level

LGA’s apply to a central resource to upgrade facilities, preference given for LGA’s that match dollar-for-dollar

this should be on top of any existing plans to upgrade/refit current facilities efficient buildings

key financing recommendation

need to drive social outcomes insufficient, ill-maintained facilities insufficient information demographics changing high demarcation and privatisation of facilities government tiers not well co-ordinated rural communities hardest hit environment changes hurting facilities

crawford report: the issues

audit and understand the facilities understand the demographics use available technology to drive better decisions better co-ordination btn Gov’t and LGAs unlock ‘private’ facilities smarter planning through multi-use design ‘green’ current assets invest in infrastructure

crawford report: the ideas

there is little to no data on participation at grassroots levels across all sports, and little to no data on facilities nationwide

understanding what is there

there is little to no data on participation at grassroots levels across all sports

little to no data on facilities nationwide

making decisions on where to invest money is impossible without an audit that captures what the facilities offer and who is using them

understanding who is there

demographics are rapidly changing in australia but no-one is reflecting this in planning for new sports that might emerge

One example is the influx of Asian immigrants - the dominant sports in the countries they come from are table tennis and badminton, but facilities aren’t available for these sports

understand the demographics

government needs to be able to ‘unlock’ the facilities inside schools, universities and defence force sites for use on weekends by sports clubs due to excess demand for facilities around the country - and the majority of these sites being dormant on weekends

using what we have better

the federal government should mandate schools upgrade/repair/create sports facilities at schools as part of their current and future stimulus funding to schools

Schools would be mandated to include indoor sporting facilities in school halls.


the panel recommends facilities become multi-sport and community focused to decrease the chances of them being financial sinkholes for LGA’s

they need to have facilities like meeting rooms, class rooms, function facilities, canteens etc for non-sport use, and should also cater for the emerging sports


Local Govt (LGA’s) carry most of the burden for funding (original and on-going) for local sporting facilities with Federal and State Govt’s having an ad-hoc input, mainly around large stadia

Federal Govt needs to be involved in assisting LGA’s by funding them directly

helping local government

rural communities particularly badly off both with facilities in poor state of repair and demographic changes

sport is more often important in the country than it is in the city due to the social nature of sport in country towns

helping rural communities

“in order to meet the needs of the community, it is critical to know what they really are. Funding facilities without an assessment of need is unlikely to provide optimal outcomes.”

understanding the assets


“It is clear than an evidence base is required to: identify current and future needs, including consideration of changing population demographics determine the location and standard of our current stock of facilities determine to what extent existing facilities (including those under-utilised in schools, universities and defence installments) are able to meet current and future demand enable planning to address future community needs”

understanding the assets


“a web-based geographic information system (GIS)... a national infrastructure database and blueprint, which would logically be held and maintained by the Australian Government

“this database would be a compilation of local databases connected through web-based technologies”

we can use technology to do this


huge importance on future design to be as ‘green’ as possible, artificial turf, water tanks, recyled water, solar power, energy-efficient buildings etc

urgent greening and sustaining

sports must use what they have much better prepare for the future now money available if sporting organisations gather the data on their assets and focus on participation and community engagement

crawford report: isfm conclusion

Peter Holmes à Court, Executive Chairman, is also a director of Viocorp International, Australia’s leading internet video technology company, a director of Queensland Rail and the Barangaroo Delivery Authority, and since 2006 he has been the co-owner with Russell Crowe of the South Sydney Rabbitohs. Peter was Executive Chairman of the Club from mid-2006 to mid-2008. Previously Peter was CEO of the Australian Agricultural company, and prior to that Peter founded and ran Back Row Productions, an international producer of theatrical productions, producing more than 20 different productions in 300 cities and 20 countries. Peter warmed the bench for the Oxford Blues rugby union team and today rides a bike and does the odd triathlon, both slowly. Graeme Watson, Founder and Director Facility & Business Master Planning, Graeme has in excess of 40 years experience in the sports and entertainment industry as a qualified architect, strategic business and financial planner. Establishing ISFM some 20 years ago, Graeme has worked with the majority of sporting codes to assist them in restructuring and building their businesses to ensure long-term financial well being. A significant part of Graeme’s work today is devoted to the master planning of facilities and businesses which satisfy long-term objectives and optimise financial returns of clients. Recognised by his peers as a leader in the industry, Graeme’s early involvement in the sports industry included representing Australia, as well as Victoria, Western Australia, and New South Wales, in cricket during the 1960’s and 1970’s. In addition, Graeme played Australian Rules Football for Melbourne during the 1960s which included 1964, Melbourne’s premiership year.Chris Green, CEO, has extensive experience in the sports and entertainment industry, beginning with CMA in Dallas (a division of Host Communications), and implementing Sears’ sponsorship of collegiate sport. On returning to Australia in 1999, Chris was appointed Marketing Manager for Athletics Australia, the governing body for track and field, in the lead up to the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. Following the success of the Games, Chris became General Manager (Marketing) of the horse racing industry, overseeing 26 tracks and 500 race meetings per annum. He held this position from 2001 until 2004.Following this, Chris was General Manager (Strategy) for DSEG, a sports marketing consulting business which has become a leader in the delivery of negotiation and advisory services. During 2007, Chris joined Peter Holmes à Court at White Bull Holdings and provides specialist advice to the sports industry through ISFM.

isfm execs:

more peter hac presentations: www.slideshare.net/peterhaccontact and comments: [email protected]

additional resources:

A summary ISFM’s work on the redevelopment of Redfern Oval and adjacent commercial properties in conjunction with the major stakeholders including the City of Sydney Council, South Sydney Rabbitohs, South Sydney Leagues Club, and property developers Trivest. The completed project, and the adjoining park is considered a benchmark in community and elite sports integration.

Viocorp developed this site to create a broadcast model for the track cycling masters championship. The model demonstrated how high quality multi-camera coverage, produced efficiently (i.e., cheaply) could create multiple new revenue streams (organiser, participants, sponsors, syndication) and enable a small participation sport to reach its geographically diverse fan base.

www.cyclingmasters.tv

www.isfm.com.au/projects_redfernoval.html