Tenpin Bowling Australia (TBA) has been assigned a Sport Australia project officer to support the development of a new participation strategy post-COVID-19.

The participation strategy is set to be released before the end of the year, with a focus on aligning to TBA’s strategic plan, engaging stakeholders in the review, feedback and forward planning process, utilising data and research such as market trends, barriers, and participation life stages, and providing ‘sturdy grounding for our states/territories, centres and the broader community to connect’.

Discussing the project, TBA program and development manager, Emily Rennes, said: “Our aim is to ensure the ever-changing participation needs of all Australians are being met by what we provide; whether that be our programs, the services or the broader connection to a community.”

“We witness every day the opportunity that tenpin bowling provides individuals, leading to a lifetime of enjoyment in the sport.

“The support from Sport AUS is fantastic.

“It provides us with broader insights into the participation trends and the barriers to participation that we need to consider when looking to the future.

“Having a ready-made participation design toolkit to in essence build our strategy is brilliant,” she said.

Mentioning the role the current programs and partnerships will play in the strategy, Rennes said: “We certainly understand that the delivery of this strategy will be absolutely critical, however, having clarity on where we want to go and what we want to do is vital.”

“Our junior programs like Sporting Schools, Club Connect and Bowl Patrol continue to grow, and we have the International Bowling Federation partnership to build on in 2022.

“We believe there is momentum building across the sport and industry despite the challenges of COVID-19.

“We know people love to bowl and our research indicates around 1.7 million Australians are interested to try tenpin bowling.

“We believe that this strategy continues us on the pathway of being a sport of choice, acknowledging inclusion, growth and fun along the way,” she said.

Sport Australia participation advisor, Tom Hunter, has been facilitating the strategy development for TBA, combining insights with input from the Participation Tenpin Bowling Advisory Group.