Concerns have been raised about a lack of focus on women in a sports strategy prepared for Lake Macquarie.
A draft sports strategy for the city was endorsed for public exhibition at Monday's council meeting, but several councillors flagged issues with what it missed.
The idea behind the strategy is to provide a 20 year strategic framework for the use and management of sports facilities, examine the condition and supply of facilities and respond to unmet needs.
But Councillor Barney Langford said he was "disturbed" that the first mention of women was on page 11 of the document - after the mayor's message, executive summary, strategy overview and sport landscape sections.
Related: Council to investigate sporting club facilities in response to rise in female sport
"One of the really big issues that the community has confronted me with is the whole idea that women are increasingly participating in what we considered to be male oriented sports and our facilitates have not kept pace with this," he said. "I would like to see more emphasis placed upon that in terms of things like the vision, the priorities, the way that we see that participation by women, and particularly young women, as the future for sport.
"I would hope that coming back from the exhibition period there would be more of an emphasis on ensuring that that participation by women is encouraged and engendered by our policy."
Councillor Kevin Baker echoed these comments, and also flagged that motorsport wasn't mentioned, while councillor Adam Schultz said he thought golf should have received a nod.
"Women are the future of sports, particularly our community sports," Cr Baker said. "I think council has done a great job in some of the work it has done in providing a diversity of facilities. I think we have a long way to go though. I think there is benefit in ensuring that commitment to female sport and a quality of participation is really up front and centre.
"I love that we're starting to see facilities for motorsport within Lake Macquarie.
"I think that it's important that we continue to support them then maybe look at expanding them. I know there's a lot of community support out there to bring back the speedway at the Morisset showground."
An analysis of playing fields indicated more than a third are used at or above capacity. About a quarter are used below capacity and many are used well below capacity.
