Sport Whanganui encourages organisations to apply for funding after successful first year

Whanganui Girls' College accessed the Tū Manawa Active Aotearoa fund to support students' exploration of the Whanganui River to learn about their ancestry. Photo / Supplied

Sport Whanganui is urging local active and play organisations to apply for the latest round of funding after securing another three years for the Tū Manawa Active Aotearoa fund.

The next round opens on Saturday, July 17, and organisations have two weeks to apply for up to $10,000.

Tū Manawa Active Aotearoa is a partnership between Sport NZ and Regional Sports Trusts, with $366,000 earmarked for the Whanganui, Rangitīkei and Ruapehu region.

The fund aims to support programmes or projects that focus on play, active recreation and sport experiences for tamariki and rangatahi.

Sport Whanganui sport and club partnership lead Aidan O'Connor said Sport NZ had reviewed whether the programme had the desired impact in its first year of existence.

"They think it has and have decided to continue the fund for another three years, which is fantastic news. It gives us a bit of certainty about the money we can invest back into the community."

O"Connor said Sport Whanganui was interested in applications that took innovative approaches to engaging priority groups in quality play, active recreation and sport experiences that met their needs.

"We have a particular emphasis in play initiatives. We would like to see a few more applications."

O'Connor said the fund had helped some great projects, including a Whanganui Girls' College trip down the awa to learn more about their ancestry, providing the RSA Target Shooting Club with more equipment and Access Ability events for disabled children.

"The awa is such an asset to the city and for any project to utilise the awa is awesome," O'Connor said.

"It shows we are willing to listen to all organisations on what they are trying to do.

"We want this money invested into the community so they can meet their desired outcomes."

The RSA Target Shooting Club are among the 30 plus Whanganui organisations who accessed the Tū Manawa Active Aotearoa fund in its first year. Photo / Paul Brooks

He said anyone interested in accessing the fund should contact Sport Whanganui first.

"It's a little bit of a filtering process. So those applications that don't fit the criteria, we can say this probably isn't the fund for you. And those ones that do qualify, we can offer some help with the application."

For more information on whether your organisation qualifies for the fund, visit https://sportwhanganui.co.nz/tu-manawa-active-aotearoa/ or contact aidan@sportwhanganui.co.nz.