Caloundra Australian Football Club has kicked off 2013 with a bang, becoming the first AFL Queensland Community Club to achieve Silver Quality Club Accreditation.
The Caloundra Panthers obtained their Bronze Quality Club early last year and achieved well above their expectations on and off the field in 2012 taking out AFL Sunshine Coast Juniors Club of the Year and numerous volunteer accolades both regionally and state-wide.
The Quality Club Program is a club based accreditation program that recognises quality club administration by volunteers and promotes positive environments within their club.
The Panthers have a solid volunteer base across the juniors and seniors who work solidly together in enabling development and cohesion, according to Club Chairman, Brad Hipwood.
“We have been working really hard as a club to get the Panthers back to a stage of financial stability, with quality volunteer numbers and a facility within the community that everyone is aware of and proud to be a part of,” Hipwood said.
“As a club we now have a great base of volunteers and plans in place to secure the future of our club and AFL within the community.
“The Silver Quality Club Program really gave us the necessary resources for our club to move forward with appropriate plans in place to ensure that everyone understands and appreciates the direction of our club.”
In line with the Australian Government Sports Commission ‘planning module’ recommendations that highlights decision making, forward thinking, goal orientations and systematic approaches to successful club planning, the Caloundra Panthers have identified, sought consultation and are moving forward with plans.
“As a club we had a good hard look at our internal process and how they could function more efficiently to not only support the club but to establish future goals to cater for growth in a sustainable manner,” Hipwood said.
“We have a great facility at North Street Caloundra and we are also aware that there is room for improvement and have plans in place to ensure everything moves forward in a progressive manner.”
As the first Silver Quality Club Accredited Community Club in Queensland, AFL Sunshine Coast Regional Manager, Mark Kennedy is thrilled to have the Panthers moving forward in such a positive direction.
“The Caloundra Panthers have always been a very strong club and the work that they have put in across the last two to three years has really demonstrated what they are capable of and how a junior and senior club can work together developing AFL programs and players in the region,” Kennedy said.
As the 2013 AFL Season kick-off approaches on the Sunshine Coast the Panthers are eager to continue to moving forward on and off the field, eventually vying for not only premierships, participation and member satisfaction, but for Gold Quality Club Accreditation.
