Trentham Sports Centre
built on grants
TRENTHAM SPORTS CENTRE
Built on grants
The Trentham Sports Centre in Upper Hutt has literally been built on grants, funding and community support.
The latest $3,000 from Hutt Mana Charitable Trust is a welcome addition and is being used to install new LED lighting in this Junior Cricket Upper Hutt indoor facility.
David Service Chair of the Trentham Sports Centre Trust says they work hard to keep the building up to scratch.
“We have to refresh our infrastructure every five-six years including nets, lighting and playing surfaces. This is our third lighting upgrade and the $3,000 means we can move to LED lighting which will provide a great lighting environment and is more energy efficient which allows us to keep our rates competitive for our users.”
Although primarily built for Junior Cricket Upper Hutt the building is a community facility and is used by the Harriers, NZ Softball, and is also available to hire for private functions – anyone who wants to book out the space.
“There’s no way we could run this facility without the grants we get from people like the Hutt Mana Charitable Trust and many others.”
David says that back in 1995 Junior Cricket Upper Hutt had just $300 in the bank and by 2003 they had raised over $500,000 for this facility. “Most of the money came from grants and key funders. Once you develop a facility like this you need a very high-quality infrastructure and maintenance regime and that’s where the need for ongoing funding comes from.”
Malcom Benge Chairperson Junior Cricket Upper Hutt says: “A lot of other clubs are extremely jealous of what we’ve got and how we’ve been able to keep that place to a very high standard.”
“Junior Cricket Upper Hutt is extremely lucky to have David and his team looking after the Indoor Centre. It is a jewel for the community.”
As well as grants for the building Malcom says they’ve also received grants in the past for sports gear from Hutt Māna Charitable Trust.
“Our subs have been unchanged for 8 years and a lot of that is because we can access grants funding. We don’t want cost to be a barrier to entry for parents – we try and access funding to keep costs down.”
Malcolm says the application for the Hutt Mana Charitable Trust grants is easy compared to many others and would encourage others to give it a go.