Review of the Registered Clubs Industry in NSW - Clubs NSW

3 Understanding the social contributions of the registered
clubs industry
whether clubs make a negative difference in NSW by comparing data on total
gambling expenditure, the incidence of problem gambling and gaming machine
expenditure in NSW and other states.
IPART found that the clubs industry appears to play a role in contributing to higher
levels of participation in two sports (golf and lawn bowls) in NSW, and in providing
a broader range of facilities than are available in other states. In addition, registered
clubs provide some services that might otherwise be provided by government or by
the private sector. Furthermore, while the clubs industry is a significant contributor
to the operation of gaming machines in NSW, the evidence does not show that this
leads to a higher incidence of problem gambling in this state, compared with states
where the operation of gaming machines is on a significantly lower scale. IPART’s
view is that, on balance, clubs make a positive contribution to the community that is
sufficient to justify the level of support the industry receives from government.
3.3.1 Do registered clubs make a positive difference in NSW?
Anecdotal evidence from IPART’s roundtable discussions indicated that the
registered clubs industry in NSW makes a more significant contribution to the
provision of sporting facilities in this state than clubs in other states. Specifically, one
participant 51 commented that clubs in Victoria focus on contributing to the provision
of facilities related to their core purpose (for example, football) but do not assist with
the provision of other sporting infrastructure, such as bowling greens and golf
courses.
In Australia, sporting infrastructure is typically provided through a combination of
funding sources:
government funding at a federal, state and local government level
private enterprise (for example, commercially-operated fitness centres and golf
courses)
amateur sporting clubs and, in the case of NSW, registered clubs.
Ideally, IPART would have liked to examine the sources of funding for sporting
facilities by state to establish the relative contribution made by the clubs industry in
NSW. However, data with this level of disaggregation are not currently available.
Therefore, IPART held discussions with national and state peak bodies and obtained
what data it could to help it understand whether clubs make a positive difference in
NSW. In particular, IPART compared the incidence of bowling and golf clubs, the
rates of participation in sporting and physical activities, the rates of RSL club
membership, and golf clubs’ contributions to charity revenues in NSW with that in
other states where clubs have historically been much less significant. IPART found
that clubs in NSW have a small positive impact on the rates of participation in
sporting and physical activities, and make more significant contributions to charity,
51 Moama Bowling Club, Wagga Wagga roundtable, 14 September 2007, p 7.
54 IPART Review of the Registered Clubs Industry in NSW