Act@Play – Creating Cultures of Respect and Equality within Sporting Clubs

Background
Sport as a setting is a crucial learning place for gendered relations. Sport, particularly in regional/rural areas, can influence and challenge the attitudes and behaviours that allow violence to occur. The Act@Play program is a primary prevention program targeting sporting clubs and associations in the Grampians region. The program aims to increase knowledge of sexism, discrimination and violence against women within a sporting club and enable female-friendly outcomes by fostering communities of respect, safety, inclusion and equal opportunity.

Methods
Funded by Sport and Recreation Victoria, and developed and delivered through a partnership between Women’s Health Grampians (WHG) and Sports Central, the local Regional Sports Assembly, the Act@Play program has been delivered between 2018 and 2021 to sporting clubs and associations in the Central Highlands region of the Grampians in Victoria. Over a six-month period, participating clubs work intensively with WHG and Sports Central to promote gender equality by reorienting internal systems, structures and cultures.

Results
Three local sporting clubs and associations have participated in Act@Play, including Basketball Ballarat, AFL Goldfields and Ballarat City Football Club, with direct involvement from 85 staff and active bystander training reaching 75 participants. Evaluation findings demonstrated positive shifts in bystander action pre and post training, with a 50% increase in the likelihood that participants would ‘speak out against family violence’; a 33% increase in the likelihood participants would ‘take action to address sexist behaviour in the club’; and a 35% increase in the likelihood that participants would ‘take action to address sexist behaviour with family or friends’.

Conclusion
Act@Play represents a novel and necessary primary prevention program in the Grampians that provides targeted support to sporting clubs and associations who are committed to preventing violence against women. The program has demonstrated its ability to create positive and meaningful change within sporting clubs, especially ones that are managed by volunteers.


3 Key Learnings:
1. Sporting clubs are an important setting to help change the attitudes, beliefs and behaviours that contribute to gender-based violence.

2. With the current narrative and dialogue around women in sport, the time to make change happen is now. Regional sporting clubs and associations are perfectly positioned to create positive outcomes around equality, respect,and inclusion that will benefit the club and the whole community.

3. Sporting clubs have an important opportunity to engage men and boys in prevention work.