Bill passes but Government silent on sports voucher expansion

A bill to extend the $200 government sports vouchers to all school students passed the South Australian Legislative Council on Wednesday night.

SA-BEST MLC Connie Bonaros had previously introduced the bill in 2024 to double the government sports voucher program to $200 per student per calendar year from reception right through to Year 12.

The bill was never taken to a vote, but the Government included the new $200 sports vouchers as the centrepiece of its 2024/2025 State Budget. However, the vouchers scheme cuts off at the end of Year 9.

Ms Bonaros took the bill to a vote in the Legislative Council last night to extend the vouchers scheme all the way to the end of Year 12.

The bill passed with support of Opposition and crossbench, but the Government was silent on the issue. 

“This Government says it is committed to getting our young people off their screens,’’ Ms Bonaros said.

“A Year 10 student is generally about 15 years old which means next year they will be banned from social media but, ironically, if this bill does not pass the Lower House, it means they will not be supported to play sport or play music or dance or learn to swim.

“One season of sport can cost upwards of $500, and that is before you start considering things like uniforms and equipment, and match fees and match-day fees.

“The benefits of sports for children extend far beyond the physical health and fitness benefits. They also foster valuable life skills such as teamwork, discipline and resilience,’’ Ms Bonaros said.

“Participation in sports has been shown to have a positive impact on academic success, with reduced absenteeism, better performance in terms of attention and working memory, and higher numeracy and literacy scores observed among participants.

“It makes no sense to me, and to the parents I have spoken to who have taken advantage of this program, that the current voucher only extends to the end of year 9.

“It makes no sense that some families are actually choosing or having to enrol their students up until year 9 purely by virtue of the fact that this scheme exists, only to yank them out of that activity in year 10 because there is not a sporting voucher system there to support their ongoing physical activity.

“We know that regular physical activity is crucial for teenagers' overall health and wellbeing,’’ Ms Bonaros said.

“No child should be financially prevented from enriching their life, health and wellbeing through co-curricular activity.’’

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