Issue 131 : 18 June 2023
Talofa Lava, Kia Orana, Malo E Leilei, Tena Koutou, Hello ...
... and welcome to the latest issue of “For The Love Of The Game”, the official e-zine of the New Zealand Amateur Sport Association Inc., founded in Wellington, New Zealand in 2017.
If you have any feedback on this issue, ideas for future articles, or would like to contact the Editor, please click here. And, you are invited to forward the e-zine to others you know, who may be interested in reading it. An archive of earlier editions of the e-zine can be found here.
For those who follow Twitter, you can also follow the Association, @AmateurSportNZ. If you are interested in applying for membership of the Association, please click here.
Irish Law Commission Warns Against Over-Regulation ...
As the Republic of Ireland considers a new regulatory framework for civil society groups in that country, the president of the Irish Law Reform Commission former chief justice Frank Clarke says the commission is very anxious not to interfere unnecessarily in the work of clubs and associations that do so much good work and contribute so much to society.
(A different legislative framework for ICSOs should be considered for New Zealand)
“We are trying to balance three things,” he says. “One is that there is clarity, so people know where they stand. Secondly, to deal with that sort of situation [e.g., club members having to pay a €2 million damages bill], before it happens. And thirdly, to be mindful that over-regulation might discourage people from doing things that are very good and very useful.”
(Justice Clarke warns against over-regulation of civil society groups in Ireland)
The third of these factors is the one which (in this Association’s view) will determine whether or not New Zealand's incorporated community sport organisations (ICSOs) choose to re-register under the new Incorporated Societies Act 2022. The Irish Law Commission's awareness of the risks of over-regulation as a disincentive to community volunteers, indicates that the solution to be determined in Ireland is unlikely to result in regulatory obligations for clubs and associations as onerous as those now being implemented in this country.
The Irish Law Reform Commission is planning to draft a report for early next year which will provide recommendations for changes in Ireland. You can read more here.
Study Finds That Concussion Impairs School Performance ...
Recent research by Sydney's Macquarie University has looked into the academic performance of thousands of students across the country who had been admitted to hospital with a concussion. The researchers found 77% of those who sustain a severe head knock are less likely to finish Year 12. They were also 30% more likely to fail to achieve Australia's minimum numeracy standards. "The bottom line is essentially that concussion appears to negatively impact on kids' school performance," lead researcher Dr Reidar Lystad said.
(The study linked the health and education records of Australian youth)
The study linked the health and education records of young people under the age of 18 years who were hospitalised with concussion in New South Wales during 2005–2018, and matched comparisons of those not hospitalised with any injury.
The data showed that young people with concussion had a higher risk of not achieving the national minimum standards for literacy and numeracy assessments, ranging from 30% for numeracy to 43% for spelling, and not completing high school, ranging from 29% for year 10 to 77% for year 12, compared with matched peers. You can read more here.
(A link has been established between concussion and educational achievement)
Incorporated Societies – Age Of Membership ...
Section 47 (3) (a) of the Incorporated Societies Act 2022 prohibits a person under 16 years of age from holding office as an officer of an incorporated society. Given section 45 of the Act requires a majority of officers on the committee of an incorporated society to be members of the society (or representatives of bodies corporate that are members of the society), it can be assumed that to be an individual member of a society, a person must be aged 16 years or older.
(An officer of an incorporated society must be aged 16 or older)
If so, this age threshold is incongruous with subpart 6, section 85 of the Contract and Commercial Law Act 2017, which defines a “minor” as a person who has not reached the age of 18. As membership of an incorporated society is an enforceable contract between the society and an individual (for the individual to accept the society’s Rules), it is unusual that the age of individual membership of an incorporated society does not align with that of this legislation.
There is a second important point concerning the use of the word “membership”. Many organisations offer “memberships” which are not actually memberships as envisaged by the Incorporated Societies Act 2022. For example, a “membership” to use a facility for physical fitness, does not infer that the facility is an incorporated society, or that it is offering the “member” any rights concerning how that facility is operated. This is something all ICSOs should be mindful of when inviting participation in their activities.
("Membership" is a term loosely used by many community groups)
The Association is seeking independent legal advice on these and other matters relating to the interpretation of how the Incorporated Societies Act 2022 is intended to operate for ICSOs.
College Sport Wellington Joins Association ...
When it was first registered as an incorporated society in 2004, one of the principal objects of College Sport Wellington Inc. was “to promote a sound and philosophical base for sport to continue to be part of the secondary school educational process”. The society was formed to represent secondary schools in the Wellington region (bounded by Waikanae in the northwest and Upper Hutt in the northeast). In 2008, the society also registered as a charity and in 2019 it allowed schools outside the geographic area to become members. Today, College Sport Wellington is the guardian of secondary school sporting activity in the 41 secondary schools of the greater Wellington region, north to include Otaki.
In joining the Association, College Sport Wellington notes that it intends “to show our support for the excellent work carried out by the Association and to strengthen the network between like-minded organisations.” We welcome College Sport Wellington’s support and look forward to their ongoing involvement in the Association’s work.
(College Sport Wellington represents 41 secondary schools in the Wellington region)
National Sport Club Survey (NSCS) 2023 ...
A reminder to all Association members (and other interested parties) that the sixth edition of the National Sport Club survey commences on Friday, 18 August 2023.
If your club has not registered to participate in the survey and would like to do so, please contact support@asa.org.nz to register your participation. Key themes which will be explored in this year’s survey are: sport “casualisation”; the intersection between schools and clubs; disability sport; and the “integrity of sport”, (in association with Sport New Zealand).
Squash Club Receives Eviction Notice ...
The Mount Pleasant Community Centre Squash Rackets Club Inc. was first registered 47 years ago in 1977 and has occupied its site in McCormack’s Bay in Christchurch since then. Recently the club (which has around 60 members) received notice that its "license to occupy" the building which houses the courts and the club’s facilities was being withdrawn. Six of the club’s members decided to mount a fight to prevent the club being taken over by the Mt. Pleasant Memorial Community Centre & Residents' Association Inc.
This has led to the notice being put on hold until arbitration is held between the two parties. Hamish Methven, president of the club, is concerned that the Community Centre will not provide the same level of support to those who currently use the facilities. The club offers members a junior inter-club competition, squash tournaments, professional coaching and free use of table tennis, a foosball table and lounge facilities.
The Association notes that both entities will need to re-register under the new Incorporated Societies Act 2022, which may prompt further consideration on how best to resolve the dispute for the benefit of the local community which supports the facility. You can read more here.
From The Archives ...
DOMINION CROQUET TOURNEY BEGINS
STAR (CHRISTCHURCH), ISSUE 19282, 20 JANUARY 1931, PAGE 13
“A veteran woman player is Mrs Wedderspoon, of Wanganui, who is eighty years of age. With her partner, A. G. F. Ross, New Zealand champion, she defeated Mesdames M. Stallard (United) and J. L. Lowe (Auckland) in the first round of the handicap doubles. The pair, however, found their match in the second round when they were defeated by a margin of three points by Mesdames Garner and Mayes, of Palmerston North.”
Isabella Wedderspoon (nee Robertson) was born in Aberdeenshire, Scotland in 1850. She was married twice, firstly at the age of 16 to Donald Lourie, a Turakina pioneer farmer in 1866 with whom she raised 11 children. Following Donald’s death in the Porirua asylum on 21 March 1902, she subsequently married Richard Wedderspoon a commercial traveller, from Edinburgh, Scotland in a service at 120 Oriental Bay, Wellington on 31 January 1913.
(Isabella and Donald Lourie, of “Glen Nevis” in the Turakina Valley, near Whanganui)
Both Isabella and Richard were avid croquet players and members of the Wanganui Croquet Club, with Richard being the club "reporter". In 1931 at the age of 80 years, Isabella competed in the “Dominion Open Croquet Championships” at Christchurch, partnered in the doubles by New Zealand champion player Arthur Ross. In the same year she presented a cup to the Wanganui Croquet Club for inter-club matches between players of “7 bisques and over”, becoming known as the "fairy godmother" of the club. Richard competed in the Dominion championships held in Whanganui the following year.
Isabella Wedderspoon died in Whanganui on 19 July 1933 and is buried in Turakina Cemetery alongside her first husband, Donald. At the time of her death, she was reported to be the oldest living pioneer of the Turakina Valley and the oldest croquet player in the country.
The Final Word ...
“Our biggest concern is to ensure that we don’t do something that has consequences that make things more complicated and worse.”
(Irish Law Reform Commission)