Registrations still open for regional sports conference at Bay Pavilions

The event, hosted by Eurobodalla Shire Council and the NSW Office of Sport, will run from October 14 to 15 and feature panel discussion, presentations from industry experts, and networking opportunities.

Lachlan Clark, NSW Sport's director, southern region, said the conference was an opportunity to bring together themes of the South East and Tablelands Regional Sport and Recreation Plan.

"This is an opportunity to bring together themes of participation, inclusivity, building active communities, and engaging with a broader cross-section of the community," he said.

"(This conference) has been on the cards for a while. We were aware council was keen to do this, but obviously we've had two years of disruption due to COVID.

"We've been keeping in touch for the past couple of years until we could lock it in."

Mr Clark will be one of the presenters at the conference, speaking about the Sport and Recreation Plan and the lessons NSW Sport has learned from it.

"I'll talk about where we might go next with that, particularly around participation and sports infrastructure," he said.

"There's a really important role for sport and recreation right now in social cohesion, mental health, and as a positive response to the three challenging years we've had in the region."

Other speakers at the conference include former Olympian Jane Flemming and Brooke De Landre from the Australian Sports Commission.

Eurobodalla Shire Council's Aquatics & Arts Contract Coordinator, Mathew Neason, said the council hoped to get between 60 and 100 attendees for the conference.

"The interest has been broad, and there's a mixture of local sporting clubs and representatives from clubs outside the region," he said.

"It's been a big project, probably bigger than we anticipated, but we're thrilled with the quality of presenters we've been able to pull together.

"We're hopeful there will be a big uptake of late registrations."

Mr Neason said the council's aim was to provide a "big city conference" for the region.

"This is a conference that is worthy of being held in Sydney or Melbourne, and it's one that if it was held in the city people would be paying $500 to attend," he said.

"Thanks to the Building Better Regions Fund, this conference is free to participate in.

"One of the things we know happens at these types of conferences is the unstructured learning, the ability to catch up with people who are in similar positions to yourself.

"We've got a networking event on the Friday night to provide opportunities for that type of learning as well as the more formalised learning from the conference."