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3 September 2015 | Tennis Victoria

The State Government has announced a $2.7m grants program to cover the cost of up to 1,000 defibrillators for sporting clubs.

Tennis Victoria strongly encourages all interested affiliates to formally register an Expression of Interest via email to [email protected].

Defibrillators are becoming much more commonplace at sporting clubs and venues to manage risk and potentially save lives.

Our market research* (correct as at June 2015) on providers and other sports bodies (which we do not claim to be fully exhaustive) indicates the following key points:

  1. Pricing for the units varies but the cheapest we could find for outright purchase was $1,850
  2. All suppliers include some form of training, ranging from DVD/on-line delivery right up to face to face training. If the training is delivered by a paramedic it is generally an extra $500 or so. Please refer to Item 1 for examples of suppliers in the Australian market;
  3. The costs don’t vary hugely between suppliers but there are ways to potentially minimise your club’s expenditure –
    • If your club shares premises or is located next to another sporting club or organisation they could potentially share the cost
    • In terms of funding, there are various options for local sporting clubs for this purpose –
      • State Government – see Item 2
      • Local Government – contact your council to see if they have any funding for this area
      • First Aid not for profits (Red Cross, St John Ambulance) – see Item 3
      • Banks – each of the major banks (inc. Bendigo Bank) has various grant funding type schemes available to community groups rather than sports clubs specifically. Please refer to Item 4 for links for the major banks, we would also suggest speaking with your local branch for this purpose.
      • Large companies – e.g. Coles and Woolworths – see Item 5
  1. We would note that there are some important differences between devices in terms of functionality and there are ongoing costs for consumables;
  2. The units have varying warranties between 4-8 years but in most cases they would need at least 1 battery replacement during this period;
  3. Not all units are suitable for adults and kids by default – your club would need to consider this when deciding on which unit to purchase

If your club does wish to install a defibrillator, you should aim to have your key users (probably the coach(es) and selected members who are regularly at the club) fully trained, ideally by a paramedic or at the very least by a representative from the supplier.

Once installed, it is recommended that you register your device with Ambulance Victoria.

This enables the emergency operator to help the caller locate the defibrillator and use it ahead of the ambulance arrival, which could be the difference between life and death.

Item 1 – suppliers in the Australian Market (not exhaustive)

Item 2 – State Government

  • The State Government has announced a $2.7m grants program to cover the cost of up to 1,000 defibrillators for sporting clubs. Clubs may now formally register an Expression of Interest in order to directly receive a PDF copy of the program guidelines upon their release. Please email [email protected] with your club or organisation’s contact details, including an email address.

Item 3 – First Aid not for profits (there may be others not listed here also)

Item 4 – Bank grant funding and similar (not exhaustive – speak to your local branch)

  • Commonwealth Bank has a Community Grants funding scheme although this requires recipients to hold deductible gift recipient (DGR) status and is aimed more at community groups supporting young people. Read More.
  • ANZ does provide community funding but it is not particularly targeted at sports clubs. Read More.
  • nab has a similar arrangement to ANZ, although it may be worth contacting your local branch
  • Westpac has a similar scheme to CBA, although it may worth contacting your local branch. Read More.
  • Bendigo Bank makes most of its community grants at a local branch level so you should contact your branch to see if you are eligible. Read More.

Item 5

  • Coles has a community grant scheme – it is not specific to sporting clubs or defibrillators but is worth a look. Read More.
  • Woolworths has various community grant schemes but they are more aimed at food and agricultural initiatives. Read More.

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