AUCKLAND EXPECTS THAT WE WILL CONTINUE TO HAVE ACCESS TO EXCITING AND INNOVATIVE OPPORTUNITIES TO PARTICIPATE AND ACHIEVE IN RECREATION AND SPORT.

KO TE ARO WHAKAARO O TĀMAKI MAKAURAU TĒRĀ, TE ĀHEI TONU KI TE KUHU KI ĒTAHI MAHI AUAHA, MAHI ONGAONGA HOKI, KI TE MAHI TUTUKI NOA I NGĀ MAHI Ā RE-HIA ME NGĀ HĀKINAKINA.

Strategic Direction 5

331_ Auckland’s unique environment and diverse population provide many opportunities for leisure activities, and the lifestyle choices available make Auckland increasingly attractive as an international city. Thousands^* of special interest clubs and community organisations reflect our range of recreational experiences.

*The Charities Commission register holds a comprehensive database of community charities and incorporated societies in Auckland and New Zealand.

332_ Taking part in recreation, sport and outdoor activities is a notable feature of Auckland’s lifestyle. Aucklanders flock to the beaches at weekends, tramp in the Waitākere and Hunua Ranges, and swim, boat and fish in the harbours. We frequent the city’s walkways and parks, whether to improve our fitness, walk our dogs or stroll and picnic with friends, family and whānau. We congregate at grounds across Auckland to watch or participate in sport. Our temperate climate and natural setting is ideal for year-round outdoor activities, on land and on water. Easy access to the outdoors is an important part of our culture and part of Auckland’s appeal. We will sustain this as Auckland grows, and ensure we optimise the recreational opportunities on offer.

333_ We participate in organised events and team sports, including social indoor sports that can be played whatever the weather, and a variety of informal activities. As we have less free time, recreation that we can enjoy at any time, at little cost and close to home, is growing in popularity.

334_ Our involvement in recreation and sport promotes the well-being of our communities, by improving our physical and psychological health. Although participation rates remain steady, a large proportion of our community is becoming more sedentary, which is resulting in poor health and obesity (see Chapter 1: Auckland’s People). New ways to encourage us to be more active are required.

335_ More than 4,219 parks cover 83,164 hectares or 16.6% of Auckland’s land area. Thriving private sector recreational and sport facilities include private fitness centres, indoor sports centres and a network of school recreation facilities. As our population grows and changes in composition, we need to ensure that the range and type of facilities available support changing preferences in recreational activities.

336_ Our coastlines, harbours and rivers provide an ideal environment for a wide range of water sports, including swimming, surfing, sailing, waka ama, dragon boating, kite activities, kayaking and windsurfing. Continuing to participate in these activities and retaining access to our waterways will be balanced with the need to protect and manage them (see Chapter 7: Auckland’s Environment, and Chapter 12: Auckland’s Physical and Social Infrastructure).

337_ There is a close link between recreational activities and their potential contribution to the economy. For example, recreational horse riding can lead to career and financial opportunities that benefit the individual and the community. We will build on the economic opportunities that our sporting culture offers.

338_ Involvement in recreation and sport builds relationships within and across communities. Participation in early childhood experiences which develop skills and confidence, encourages us to participate as adults. Active movement programmes for babies and toddlers can effect a lifelong love of active recreation and a healthy lifestyle (see Chapter 1: Auckland’s People).

339_ Children and young people’s skills can be nurtured by extending their experiences. Promoting play opportunities is vital for physical and mental development. Thousands of children and young people already participate in sport through schools and clubs. However, school sports teams and sporting clubs currently operate in parallel ways: a focus on providing programmes that collaborate between schools and the sports sector will provide more flexible opportunities for children and young people.

Directive 5.1

Encourage all Aucklanders, particularly children and young people, to participate in recreation and sport.

Find Your Field of Dreams Foundation

Find Your Field of Dreams Foundation, founded by Sir John Walker, is a charitable trust that encourages young people of Manukau to pursue a more active lifestyle through physical recreation and sport. This lifestyle leads to fitter and healthier individuals. The Foundation stems from a vision to create positive change by giving every young person the opportunity to participate in an active, healthy lifestyle. Programmes are delivered throughout Manukau through partnerships between the Auckland Council, NGOs, central government agencies, and business. Community Swim, a ground-breaking initiative of the Foundation, provides free swimming lessons to students in years 3 to 5 in Manukau, in partnership with the Foundation and Manukau Leisure Services. In the 2009/2010 financial year, the programme provided 72,000 free lessons to more than 10,200 students from 70 Manukau schools.

340_ The range of recreational activities for young people is expanding. For example, 21 new sports were introduced in secondary schools from 2000 to 2009. However, participation rates decrease markedly after young people leave secondary school, so we need to find ways to maintain their interest. E-games are popular, and could be used to encourage young people to remain active.

Directive 5.2

Enable Auckland’s diverse communities to participate in recreation and sport by promoting opportunities that meet their needs.

341_ Lifelong participation in recreation and sport starts with children and continues through to older adults. Children learn fundamental skills which are carried through into ongoing participation and high performance. Providing a variety of opportunities for participation at all ages is central to planning for the future.

342_ As the majority of our activity is undertaken with friends and family, we need good access to local recreation areas. Recreation and sport will be promoted as fun, accessible and affordable.

343_ Active lifestyle programmes for older people provide opportunities for social interaction and help break down social isolation. The “Never Too Old” programme is a successful gym-based programme for older people which helps participants maintain an active and independent lifestyle. Such programmes will be encouraged, and made easily available and affordable. Innovative inter-generational programmes will meet the needs of younger and older people.

344_ Persons with disabilities participate in a wide range of recreational and sporting activities at all levels, from beginners through to elite standard. We will ensure that disabled people can engage in programmes which are inclusive: we will remove barriers to their participation. Recreation facilities will be accessible, and all people will feel welcome and included (see Chapter 1: Auckland’s People).

345_ Auckland’s population is becoming increasingly diverse. Preferences for and participation rates in recreational activities are changing: our preferences depend on our gender, background and age.

346_ Enabling the participation of our diverse communities in recreation and sport needs to be made a priority. Different ways of engaging with people, for example through technology and social networking, must be considered. People participate in less formal activities, more suited to their lifestyles; for example, meeting in groups to cycle, walk, kayak, play touch rugby, go tramping or horse riding. Recreation is a great way for different ethnicities or social groups, disabled people, and older people to be less isolated and to build relationships within their communities.

The Halberg Trust

The Halberg Trust is a not-for-profit organisation with a vision: “That we have a society where all New Zealanders are given an equal opportunity to be involved in sport and recreation, and where we take pride in honouring sport excellence.” The Trust achieves this vision by providing opportunities for young persons with a disability to participate in active recreation and sport alongside their non-disabled friends, and by hosting the annual Westpac Halberg Awards, New Zealand’s pre-eminent event to honour sporting excellence. With funds raised from the Halberg Awards and wide community and corporate support, the Trust is able to open doors and remove barriers for persons with disabilities in sports clubs, facilities, schools and the wider community. The Trust works with a range of organisations to achieve this.

347_ We need to encourage our ethnic communities to participate in existing sporting codes, as well as support sports which our new migrants enjoy, such as badminton, table tennis, tai chi and soccer. Ethnic communities, migrants and refugees often face barriers that prevent them from participating in organised sport: a lack of understanding about the New Zealand style of playing sport, the different sports codes’ expectations of players (club membership and commitment to the season’s playing schedules), transport barriers, financial constraints, and socio-cultural barriers (language, religious and cultural differences and restrictions). We will develop new approaches to encourage their participation.

Connect2sport: Supporting Diverse Communities

Connect2sport represents a 3-year partnership project to connect people from diverse ethnic backgrounds to the sports of football and badminton. The project aims to get more people participating and volunteering in these sports. Connect2sport will also build the capacity within Auckland Football and Auckland Badminton to better engage with diverse communities. Connect2sport will initially focus on Mt Roskill, then learnings from the project will be extended to other regions, sports and age groups. The project represents a multi-agency partnership between Sport and Recreation New Zealand (Sport NZ), the Auckland Council, Sport Auckland, Auckland Football Federation, and Auckland Badminton Association.

348_ The range of recreational activities for Aucklanders is expanding to include: indoor social sports (indoor soccer, cricket and netball), water sports (dragon boating, waka ama and water polo), and new pursuits (lacrosse, disc golf, Pilates, Latin-inspired dance-fitness programmes and kilikiti/Samoan cricket). The traditional kapa haka is enjoying a revival. We need to work with the arts sector to increase opportunities which benefit both healthy lifestyles and the performing arts (see Chapter 3: Auckland’s Arts and Culture).

349_ Our marine environment, regional and local parks, and Department of Conservation sites offer an abundance of public open space. There are physical and mental health benefits to having open space in the form of our natural environment, dedicated sports fields, parks and other areas where we can simply sit or walk in peace (see Chapter 10: Urban Auckland). Recognizing the value of this open space is the first step towards protecting, promoting and improving access to it.

350_ Quality public open space is a critical component for healthy lifestyles in an urban environment (See Chapter 10: Urban Auckland). By thinking differently, we can protect and expand on the use of public space. For example, the use of new technologies, such as artificial turf, can improve the usability of sports grounds. Street connectivity is a key design feature to promote and encourage physical activity. It creates linkages between our parks and reserves.

351_ Higher residential and commercial density neighbourhoods encourage walking and cycling through features such as connected street networks with public amenities such as parks, wide footpaths, street lighting, attractive street furniture, street trees and traffic calming (see Chapter 10: Urban Auckland).

352_ Access to public open space will be maintained and improved as Auckland grows, so that recreation remains an easy option. Networks of walkways, cycleways and bridleways can link our public open spaces. The regional cycling network provides an opportunity for a transformational shift to connect schools, tertiary facilities, public transport centres and key community infrastructure. Bridleways provide opportunities for recreational horse riding in our rural areas. Auckland will strengthen the integrated planning and management of our outdoor public spaces to develop walking, cycling and bridleway networks (see Chapter 13: Auckland’s Transport).

353_ Social infrastructure and transport needs must be integrated in any redevelopment or new development. This includes the way we design our neighbourhoods and streets, and the creation of community hubs where facilities are provided close to transport connections. We will need to balance the provision of local recreation and sports facilities with those provided regionally (see Chapter 12: Auckland’s Physical and Social Infrastructure).

Directive 5.3

Ensure recreation and sport facilities keep up with the needs of a growing population.

354_ Auckland’s growing population and increasing diversity requires community infrastructure (parks, sports grounds, swimming pools) to meet a wide range of needs. There is an increasing shortage of sports fields and facilities: collaboration with schools could ease this situation and address the duplication of sporting competitions (see also Chapter 12: Auckland’s Physical and Social Infrastructure).

355_ A better co-ordinated, Auckland-wide approach to facility development and funding requires partnerships between the public and private sectors. It also requires planning that clusters recreational facilities with other amenities such as libraries, town centres, and transport facilities, to provide localised and accessible activities within community hubs.

356_ The current collaboration between Regional Sports Organisations is an example of clubs and sporting codes working together and building on opportunities through public/private investments to provide multi-sport facilities. A partnership approach to planning and funding between local and central government, non-governmental organisations and the voluntary sector will help to provide the best facilities for Auckland through collaborative investment opportunities.

Directive 5.4

Actively collaborate and partner to maximise joint resources and build the capability of recreation and sport organisations.

357_ The value that Aucklanders place on recreation and sport activities is reflected in the sector’s contribution to Auckland’s economy: a high level of public and private investment delivers facilities, programmes, and services.

358_ The market value of recreation and sport arises from industries that produce goods for the sector, the incomes of people working in the sector, the investment by central government in sports education in schools, and Auckland Council’s expenditure on new recreation and sport facilities. Volunteers make a significant contribution which, if given a market value, would amount to just over $170 million.³¹ Volunteers contributed 12 million hours to recreation and sport in 2007/08, involving an estimated 22.2% of Aucklanders. This equates to thousands of Aucklanders assisting as coaches, trainers, referees, umpires, parent helpers and committee members and secretaries. These volunteers develop new skills and confidence, and can build the capacity of recreation and sport organisations. Volunteering also creates networks within and between communities, resulting in greater interaction and stronger, more cohesive communities. In addition, volunteer skill development often leads to economic benefits, as volunteers move into paid or governance roles, either within the recreation and sport sector or in other sectors of the economy.

Directive 5.5

Support volunteers to contribute to the capability of the recreation and sport sector.

359_ Employment is either in a recreation and sport-related industry or a specific occupation in the sector. This represents 2.5% of all people employed in Auckland:

• just under 12,000 people are employed in the sector, including guides and teachers, coaches and instructors, officials and administrators
• just over 8,000 people work in recreation and sport occupations.

360_ Overall, recreation and sport contributes 2.4% to Auckland’s GDP (including volunteer services) and contributes to our prosperity and quality of life (see Chapter 6: Auckland’s Economy).

361_ For example, the equine sector industries generate an estimated annual $54.3 million of direct GDP³² to the Auckland economy. There are over 600 industries related to the equine industry supply chain, including tourism, business, transport, logistics and associated retail services. Auckland is internationally known as a gateway for equine exports: this involves a range of associated facilities and infrastructure, which contributes to Auckland’s economy.

362_ The recreational marine industry is another major contributor to our economy, with 60% of New Zealand’s marine companies based in Auckland and contributing $149 million to Auckland’s GDP. Recreational boating, including kayaking, sailing and power boating, is expected to continue as a contributor to the Auckland economy.

Directive 5.6

Grow the contribution the recreation and sport sector makes to Auckland’s prosperity.

363_ The sporting success of Aucklanders at national and international events helps create a shared sense of identity and pride. International sporting events unite us and grow New Zealand’s reputation for sporting excellence. This helps to attract high-profile sporting events to New Zealand, with flow-on economic benefits. We will build on our strengths to attract sporting events of international standing to Auckland.

The Millennium Institute of Sport and Health

The Millennium Institute of Sport and Health in Albany, Auckland, provides world-class services, health sciences research and education in high-performance sport, exercise science, community sport, physical activity and community health. The Institute is a sporting complex developed and operated in partnership with AUT University, philanthropic donors, central government and charitable funding agencies. The aquatics centre hosts international swimming and water polo events, and is the only facility of its type in New Zealand. It is a significant strategic asset for Auckland and plays an important role in meeting local physical activity, sport, and health demands. It is seen as a word-class centre of excellence and also provides programmes for children and young people on water safety instruction, and offers a health and fitness club, school holiday programmes and school activity programmes.

364_ Our achievements at international events create a healthy image for our goods, services and expertise overseas. Supporting our high-performance athletes to attain sporting excellence enhances our reputation and puts us on the world stage, which attracts sports events to Auckland. Support for our high-performing athletes through coaching and training programmes venues and facilities that use the latest international research, will accelerate their development. The sport and exercise science research institution on the University of Auckland’s Tamaki Innovation Campus is engaged in ground-breaking research which benefits our high-performing athletes, has economic spin-offs, and enhances our international reputation.

Directive 5.7

Promote Auckland’s recreational and sporting culture and encourage and nurture sporting talent and excellence.