Netball Victoria has reported positive outcomes across key areas at its Annual General Meeting on Sunday 28 May.
Participation figures were particularly pleasing after a period of uncertainty, with a strong return to netball evidenced by over 103,000 Netball Victoria members taking to courts across the state.
The organisation also continued leading in the workforce space, developing coaches, umpires and bench officials, and seeing over 2,300 individuals achieve accreditation throughout the year.
The Melbourne Vixens played an important role in promoting and enhancing the sport of netball throughout Victoria, achieving $7.2 million in QI media value and over 38 million total social media reach.
Support for affiliates grew including the development of a suite of resources to assist in implementing the 11 new Child Safety Standards, delivery of the Affiliate Pivot Program to over 80 associations, and further training and support for the ongoing rollout of Netball Connect, which saw significant uptake of the live scoring function to reduce administrative workload.
Netball Victoria made great progress in various diversity and inclusion initiatives, including achieving a silver ranking in the Pride in Sport Index, delivering a new policy for the inclusion of transgender and gender diverse people in community netball, and officially opening the renamed Ingles Family Sensory Room at John Cain Arena – the world’s first KultureCity-certified sensory inclusive space for netball.
In partnership with RACV and Game On Recycling, the organisation also launched the Netball Exchange, a sustainability initiative providing an opportunity for community members to donate or upgrade their used netballs, supporting communities in need and preventing additional landfill.
With support from the Victorian Government’s Positive Start Initiative, Netball Victoria created the Positive Netball Program in 2022. Tailored programs were delivered for free to over 9,000 students from government and low fee-paying schools, teaching the skills and history of our game in a safe and fun environment.
In 2022 Netball Victoria launched its inaugural Youth Advisory Committee, which represents young members’ views, values and ideas on topics including inclusive uniforms, increasing male participation and LGBT+ representation in our sport, and contributed to the development of key materials including child safety resources and the organisation’s 2023-2026 Strategic Plan.
Support for community netball infrastructure continued in 2022 with over $126 million in state and federal government funding committed to projects across the state. Netball Victoria continued to work in partnership with government at all levels to deliver funding for facilities that support the growth of our game, including securing funding for over 40 projects in metro and regional areas, and facilitating the Country Football Netball Program which supported the delivery of nine netball infrastructure projects in regional Victoria.
The organisation’s latest figures demonstrate strong growth and success across all areas – including participation, development, commercial and high performance – generating a moderate breakeven result overall.
“To continue investing in our game at all levels, from grassroots to the elite, we need to drive growth and ensure we strengthen our position of financial stability. We’re really pleased to report figures that show we’re doing that,” said Netball Victoria CEO Andrea Pearman.
“We look forward to building on these achievements in 2023 and beyond, and continuing to work with our valued partners and community members across the state to deliver on the exciting potential of our game.”
Sunday’s AGM saw three Board director positions voted on. Incumbent Board President Carol Cathcart was re-elected to the Board, and Andrea Booth joined the Board as an elected director for the first time.
The final vacated position will remain as a casual vacancy under Rule 19.2 (d) of the Netball Victoria constitution.
The AGM also marked the end of Gayle Lambert’s time on the Netball Victoria Board. Having served on the Board as an elected director since 2014, Gayle leaves behind a legacy of passionate service and outstanding dedication to our game.
Netball Victoria offers heartfelt thanks to Gayle for her service and recognises her tireless work over many years to grow and promote our sport across the state.
