Good Sports® reaching all corners of the country

Badminton NZ, Golf NZ, NZ Rugby, Swimming NZ, Nuku Ora, Sport Gisborne-Tairawhiti, Sport Hawkes Bay, Sport Otago and Sport Taranaki are all on board with Good Sports, which is being expanded nationally by Aktive and Sport NZ.  

Aktive and Sport NZ will work closely with the nine organisations to implement Good Sports and develop strategies to better engage and support parents.  Good Sports is well aligned with Sport NZ’s Balance is Better philosophy and is being used as part of Sport NZ’s national parent approach.  

Aktive Chief Executive Jennah Wootten says Balance is Better and Good Sports are a natural fit and Aktive is excited to see more organisations adopting the programme.  

“Many of the issues in children’s sport stem from adult involvement, including poor sideline behaviour, overuse injuries, burnout and disaffection with sport. Good Sports focuses on raising adults’ awareness about their behaviours and how these impact youth sport experiences, and what parents can do differently. 

“We’re proud to have something that Aktive developed for Tāmaki Makaurau now available to support change across Aotearoa. Together with Sport NZ, our team is looking forward to working with sport organisations to implement Good Sports in their communities and help lead change to make a positive difference for our tamariki and rangatahi.”  

Sport NZ Chief Executive Raelene Castle says Sport NZ is pleased to be working with Aktive to roll Good Sports out around New Zealand.   

 “We have been working closely with national and regional bodies over the past five years to improve youth sport through our Balance is Better philosophy. Parents, like coaches and administrators, play a key role in this through their ability to influence and support young people’s experience sport. 

 “Having watched the success and impact of Good Sports under Aktive’s leadership, we’re pleased to be making this a key part of how we all work with parents to gain their support for Balance is Better and how parents can advocate for changes to youth sport experiences. These nine organisations joining the national rollout is an important step toward that outcome.” 

Mike Hester, Participation Development Manager at NZ Rugby, says rugby has already seen the positive progress that Good Sports has made in the Auckland region with North Harbour, Auckland, and Counties Manukau Rugby Unions all using the programme to support parents in fostering a lifelong love of the game for their children.   

 “The opportunity to expand the programme over the next few years across New Zealand with the support of Sport NZ and Aktive is perfectly timed as NZ Rugby continues its shift to a more participant centric approach. Good Sports complements this work and will help ensure we provide the best rugby experiences we can for our Small Blacks and teenage players.”  

 More national and regional bodies have committed to adopting Good Sports over the next two years.   

Sport NZ’s national parent approach focuses on supporting national and regional organisations to engage more effectively, support and deliver initiatives to parents through the provision of tools, resources and research.  Additionally, Sport NZ utilises digital platforms such as the Balance is Better and Sport NZ social media channels to provide information to help parents grow their understanding of the important role they play in youth sport.