Councillors voted to adopt the Sport and Recreation Strategic Plan which provides a road map for planning and developing sport and recreation facilities across the Tamworth region during the next 10 years and more.

A specialist consultant helped develop the plan after carrying out a facility audit, undertaking extensive consultation with user groups and the wider community through an online survey, holding workshops and conducting interviews.

A further opportunity for the community to have their say was provided through the public exhibition of the draft plan before the final version of the plan was put together. The plan adopted tonight includes actions with a timeframe of immediate (2020-2022), short (2023-2027), medium (2028-2031), longer (2032-2042) and ongoing.

The plan’s top priority action is the continued development of the Northern Inland Centre of Sporting Excellence. The next priority is for the Council to offer a “balanced variety of regional-level sport and recreation facilities across the region” to provide for local participants and attract tournaments, events and visitors from outside the region.

The Council report noted that of the 122 actions only eight are currently funded. All other actions will need to be considered in future operational budgets. More than 35 different sports from Barraba to Nundle and Somerton to Bendemeer have been identified in the plan along with facilities ranging from sporting fields to indoor courts and swimming pools to a gliding launch space.