Clubs gain expert view

Sporting and recreational clubs had the chance to pick up some tips about improving governance and organisation at a free workshop on Thursday.

Presented by consultant Kim Buttfield, the workshop aimed to teach participants about the seven traits community and sporting clubs should aspire to.

Held at the Manjimup Town Hall and hosted by the f Manjimup Shire Council, the session was provided and co-ordinated free of charge to participants by the South West Sports Development Federation, thanks to sponsorship by the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries.

Mrs Buttfield said the workshop was practical and aimed to encourage clubs and groups to reflect on current practices and to find ways they could improve.

“I finish the workshops off with a session called the good, the bad and the ugly, so I share some stories of some clubs that are doing it well and clubs that maybe haven’t done it well,” Mrs Buttfield said. “Hopefully we can learn from that and particularly for volunteers, everyone is doing this as a volunteer so it’s really important that we provide them with as much support as we can.

“At the end of it I challenge everyone with one or two actions that they are going to take away, so hopefully out of the piles of stuff that we cover, they’ll pick out one or two things.”

DLGSCI regional officer Jo Gibellini thanked the council for hosting the event.

“It was an awesome opportunity for sporting clubs and everyone in this area to attend this interactive workshop,” she said.

Bridgetown Basketball Association treasurer Wendy Palmer attended the workshop and said it was great to get some expert guidance in areas where they needed to improve as well as identifying areas they were strong in already.

“Kim was an engaging speaker with interesting case studies and practical advice that we can start using immediately,” she said.