NSWBA Transition

What’s New - We’re on Track!

In our last update we shared the Purpose and Objectives the future organisations are committed to. This is only one of the many areas the two proxy boards have been working on. Importantly, they have now also developed “sustainable budgets”, which show the likely financial position of both entities after separation. Both groups find their finances tight - they will have to choose between competing priorities.

This has been done in parallel with a financial review of the NSWBA, which will be presented at the next NSWBA Council meeting on Wednesday, 13 September. The financial review has been led by Victor Clarke, a retired PwC partner. We are fortunate to have had access to Victor’s expertise – he has generously contributed to the NSWBA’s transition by performing this substantial piece of work.

We would like to take this opportunity to say a very big thank you to all the volunteers in both groups who have already given much time and effort to get us this far. Of course, a great deal of work is still needed to implement whatever changes are agreed – we look forward to their continued support.

For clarity – please note no decisions about the transition have yet been made by Council, nor are any planned to be made at the 13 September meeting.  Until these decisions are made, please don't forget that the goal of this transition is to create two successful and sustainable organisations – a club with venues in inner metro Sydney and a NSW peak body – and please ignore the rumours!

So what does success look like from both a Club and a State peak body perspective?

We envisage a revitalised Sydney Bridge Club that is financially sustainable, with comfortable playing spaces in the City and Inner West and more sessions throughout the day and evening, that attracts and retains new players. Ongoing education is a priority to support the development of players at all levels from beginner to advanced, with the opportunity for additional events so that our members can hone their skills.

Bridge NSW, the new state peak body, will be focused on supporting the 150+ affiliated clubs across NSW – it will be an advocacy organisation for bridge. It will aim to raise the profile of bridge across the state and position the game as an engaging mind-sport – a desirable activity for the wider community. It will retain responsibility for managing a calendar of successful state-wide events, as well as selecting and supporting NSW representative teams. Bridge NSW will engage with and support its members, the community of affiliated bridge clubs across NSW, by providing training and continuous development opportunities to teachers and directors. In addition, it will represent club and player needs to the Australian Bridge Federation (ABF), and provide input to the ABF for strategy and policy development.

A volunteer group is reviewing Bridge NSW’s responsibility to manage events. We are seeking input from anyone that knows of a thriving bridge community that is successfully running numerous tournaments/events. Do you know of anywhere in the world where they really get that right? 

Thank you for your continued help and support.

Kind regards,

Jake Andrew
NSWBA Transition Program Manager