Northern NSW Football has officially opened a new satellite office in Coffs Harbour, marking a significant milestone for the organisation and establishing a permanent presence in regional northern NSW for the first time.
Located centrally to NNSWF’s four regional member zones, the Coffs Harbour office will serve as a key hub for NNSWF staff working across the Mid North Coast, North Coast, Far North Coast and Northern Inland regions. It is also the first time NNSWF has operated an office outside of the Hunter region.
The new office, located within the Hub 2 building at Coffs Coast Synthetics, strengthens NNSWF’s ability to deliver competitions, education and development programs and provide more direct support to clubs, associations, volunteers and stakeholders across regional areas.
NNSWF CEO Peter Haynes said the opening of the office clearly demonstrated the organisation’s commitment to improving regional service delivery.
“This is an important step for Northern NSW Football,” Haynes said.
“Having a permanent regional presence allows us to be closer to our football community and better understand and respond to the needs of our regional clubs and participants.”
The move reflects significant growth in NNSWF’s regional workforce, with the organisation now employing six regional staff, up from zero three years ago. These dedicated regional roles work across talent development, participation, club development and match official development spaces.
Supporting regional football was identified as a key priority in NNSWF’s 2024 to 2026 Strategic Plan and the Coffs Harbour office represents a tangible outcome of that commitment.
Over recent years, NNSWF has also taken a more regional-first approach to engagement, including:
- hosting its 2024 Annual General Meeting in Coffs Harbour, the first time the event had been held regionally
- delivering an annual regional State Coaching Conference
- conducting meetings across regional areas during the development of the Strategic Plan and through its Peak Steering Committee
- creating a regional premier competition, the NNSWF Regional Super League, spanning all four regional member zones
- creating a regionally targeted Recruitment and Retention marketing campaign which included dedicated television commercials and digital assets featuring bespoke versions showcasing regional football community members
- focusing on regional talent development including expanded Talent Development Programs such as advanced coaching courses, regional junior TSP, regional referee development camps and regional talent development game days
- providing opportunities for regional NNSWF representative teams to tour nationally (Queensland and South Australia) with the first ever NNSWF regional representative teams to compete internationally in Japan in March
- becoming extremely active in government relations space to provide support for regional projects
- assisting regional member zones with constitutional reviews
- holding annual Champion of Champions tournament regionally
The opening of the Coffs Harbour satellite office reinforces NNSWF’s long-term focus on ensuring football continues to grow and thrive across all parts of northern NSW.