Using Smart Club Technology to Strengthen Your Safe Shooting Program Grant Application

If you’re a shooting club in New South Wales, the Safe Shooting Program

offers a valuable opportunity to improve safety and upgrade infrastructure — including digital solutions.

This state-funded grant helps clubs invest in facilities, technologies, and initiatives that contribute to safer environments for licensed shooters. While many clubs naturally think of physical upgrades like fencing, lighting, and secure storage, it’s important not to overlook the role of digital administration software and smart infrastructure in achieving safety and compliance outcomes.

What the Safe Shooting Program Covers

The Safe Shooting Program is designed to support:

• Upgrades to shooting range infrastructure
• Security improvements
• Safety and compliance systems
• Club development and governance initiatives
  

Within this scope, clubs can apply for funding to implement smart systems that support firearm safety, attendance tracking, and compliance monitoring.

Digital Systems as “Smart Infrastructure”

Modern membership management and attendance tracking platforms, like SquadSpot, fall into the category of digital technologies and smart infrastructure.

These systems can play a key role in:

• ✅ Automating attendance records (critical for firearms licence compliance)
• ✅ Ensuring all shooters sign in and out using secure, verifiable methods
• ✅ Logging scores for handgun disciplines where required
• ✅ Flagging expired licences or suspended members in real-time
• ✅ Streamlining club governance and reducing paperwork risks
  

By adopting smart technologies, clubs not only improve their internal processes — they also demonstrate a proactive commitment to safety, accountability, and regulatory compliance.

Strengthening Your Grant Application

When applying for a Safe Shooting Program grant, clubs need to clearly explain how their project will improve safety and compliance. Here’s how digital administration software can help meet those criteria:

• Safe Shooting Practices: A smart system ensures that only licensed shooters can check in, helping clubs enforce participation rules and meet legal obligations.
• Club Governance: Digital platforms automatically track who is using the range and when, creating a reliable and time-stamped activity log that supports transparent governance.
• Risk Reduction: By automating check-ins and licence checks, clubs can prevent non-compliant attendances — reducing the risk of incidents and safeguarding the club’s reputation.
• Smart Infrastructure: Introducing card readers, attendance kiosks, or QR code scanning qualifies as smart infrastructure, offering a modern and secure way for members to check in.
• Compliance: Attendance records are stored securely and can be quickly retrieved in a searchable, auditable format — making inspections and reporting much easier for clubs.

Using a platform like SquadSpot, clubs can automatically log attendances, flag non-compliance risks, and generate audit-ready reports — removing the margin for manual error and reducing the compliance burden on volunteers.

Examples of Smart Technologies You Could Include

• Self-serve attendance kiosks with card readers
• Member check-in via QR code or RFID tied to licence status
• Digital firearm use logs tied to specific attendance records
• Automated expiry alerts for licences or memberships
• Cloud-based reporting tools for audits or inspections

These are all valid inclusions under a Safe Shooting Program grant — especially when they clearly contribute to safer club operations and better governance.

How SquadSpot Can Help

SquadSpot is a purpose-built platform for shooting clubs, combining:

• Smart digital attendance
• Licence and membership tracking
• Optional card reader integration
• Built-in score recording and compliance reporting
• Simple renewal and club management tools
  

We work with clubs across Australia to improve compliance, automate admin, and reduce risk — all while supporting safer, smarter operations.

If you’re considering a Safe Shooting Program grant and want to include a digital upgrade as part of your submission, get in touch — we’d be happy to help you scope a solution that fits within the grant’s criteria.

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