Happy to share the load around

Basketball Manawatu are the first sporting code in the region to take advantage of the shared services at Sport Manawatu.

Basketball Manawatu have started shared services with Sport Manawatu, who will help with the running of the sport in the region.

Some sports are run by one administrator who is flat out doing everything, so this is a way of giving sports with skeleton staff more support.

Sport Manawatu chief executive Trevor Shailer wants them to be a hub of shared services and in the future more sports could come under their umbrella too.

‘‘We see this as a step to be able to support boards to focus on the direction of their sport,’’ he said.

He said this type of arrangement is not a decision they took lightly.

Bush Multisport Trust also has uses shared services. The trust runs the trust, but they contract Sport Manawatu to look after the people management.

Shailer said that it was about future proofing sport and recreation, and they need to alongside different sports.

Previously Basketball Manawatu operations manager Helen Richardson was running everything and reporting to the board. She will now be known as the competitions and events officer, but essentially do the same job.

She will spend part of her week at the Sport Manawatu offices and the rest at the Arena. Basketball Manawatu will get another staff member, Shailer said.

If Sport Manawatu get their proposed sports house built, then more sports could be based there.