Sports Development Zone (28th October 2014)

As above.

Evan Whyte (AU Officer) reported: there was the first AUC meeting last week. They discussed unsuccessful funding applications, and whether to allocate them funds. Most were successful. He is working on whether the space allocation at the Bunfight could be done better. The link between intramural and competitive sports is being developed although there have been some issues which are now resolved.

They are considering relocating certain groups to different bands, and making a pool users group.

Focus Sports is where extra training and funding is allocated to selected sports. This year, the sport selection was expanded from 5 sports to 10, and made more professional in its approach. 

Jack Beckett (AU club development officer) is looking into how it is going. 

 They won: Katie Lightowler is looking into doing some form of celebratory event in the next 2 weeks. Possible locations include the Concourse. 

Christie Matthews is absent and new in the post, so Evan Whyte reported for him. 

Evan has met with the sports accessibility officer (Rohit Haldania) and he is looking at the disability sport strategy, and has ideas about how to get this started in January. His main interest is in ethnic minorities and the barriers they face at getting into sport, and how to change this. The starting point is looking at how many ethnic minority students there are currently playing as a measurable standard. Then we need to develop what our view is to time allocation to these groups. Evan Whyte was advised to hold a focus group to develop plans on this. 

First Aid is happening on 15/11. We are running one central course, and leaving it to clubs as to how they subsidise this. 

This is one area SUSU as a whole has been looking at. Katie Lightowler has been looking at how to access WSA as the sport zone, and has spoken to Matt Plant about it. Found out that in previous years where you could buy gym membership there, and this would also give Sport and Wellbeing membership.

Some areas of this still need looking at further.

Jamie Wilson and Katie Lightowler drafted a copy and it is being picked up this week- targeting physiotherapy and injury rehabilitation, and also the cost of sport. Megan Downing suggested  it might be worth widening it to cover the participation access to have one streamlined survey. It was recommended that travel was also included as a barier to participation in sport.

From Jamie Wilson (IM officer): Netball has had massive increase, and the rugby referee course had 1 person take it up. There have been a few teething problems with referees in some areas but these are being ironed out. They had the first Intra Mural Committee meeting: they need a blanket approach to how it is marketed and how the links between IM and AU happen. Netball have started a development squad in IM who will look to start to play for BUCS. Last year had no hockey teams and now they have 7.

Can players be invited to BUCS from IM teams? Football do, by inviting them to their pre-season training. Players take the invitation, and often play for both AU and IM. It might be worth looking at creating a collegiate style system which feeds into BUCS teams and to try and encourage the players to play for both especially in lower leagues although time constraints may be an issue. Try and encourage them to run like an AU club although one of the barriers to plaqying for AU teams is how many opportunities there are to play, and the higher pressurepressure.Cost is also an issue- IM teams membership costs £5 plus Sport and Wellbeing membership, when it is £50+ for AU clubs. It was suggested leagues need to be more graded. .

Continue and encourage IM varsity, and use that to create ties and push it, and from there build on it.

Spent £186018.29. Increased from £170k. Weighting funding to the start of the year, and now have £23k in second round and £13k in second round.

Evan Whyte asked what the committee budget was: last year up to £15/person and publicity.

Previously, the AUC could allocate up to £1k during their meetings. If everything has to come back up to Sport Zone it takes time and delays application. It is mostly competition entry fees that cost over £1k.  

It could be that they have £500 straight up, and then keep tabs on which clubs.

It was decided that decisions would be made by the AUC without a limit, as the AUC appropriate to approve as have the most knowledge of the area. The decisions would be round robin'd. 

Capital funding requests will be taken to AUC committee for insight first.

BOAT: Katie to take application to president to clarify, and then do a round robin on it.

SUB-AQUA: equipment maintenance: 50% allocated.

SAILING: dinghy maintenance: no quotes or links. Is this for repairing damage through season, or pre-season fixing? Not enough detail to allocate funding.

Could Sport Zone allocate maintenance money and not have it as an application for funding? KL to discuss with finance re the ruling on retrospective funding.

Sport Zone Committee, with Team Southampton AU, Team Southampton IM, and Team Southampton Recreational as it currently seems like we are battling a bit with S&W.

Potentially have Team Southampton Recreational sub-committee. as an open group, but then their voice may be lost a bit. They could have an officer with a working group and then have reps/ officers seen as ambassadors, as this is less formal than a committee. Reps would be open positions, rather than confine them, as recreational users tend to be quite spread without a closed allocation. Could have reps for each ‘issue’ such as women, disability, ethnic minorities, and then feed back into IM and AUC as to how they can help.

How to elect? Campus wide elections compared to keeping within the AU- open meeting with anyone who can access and gauge people’s ideas, and slowly build it. Can encompass within the student leader review and then E&D stuff can be brought together. KL and MD to collaborate, KL to come up with a plan with it streamlined with equal representation.

KL had meeting with Portsmouth last Friday. The date for Varisty is set as 15/3/14. Next meeting in a couple weeks looking at which sports will be participating.

KL would like to do a big charity event linked with varsity, such as a cycle ride between Southampton and Portsmouth… Looking at how much planning and the expenses relating to road blocks. If any other ideas are forthcoming please let them know.

Sport Development Zone is missing a Student Groups Sports Rep, covering groups like Chess, Bridge and the Assassins Guild. Have groups been asked their views on this? CM to ask the groups on this.