Funding for grants ‘not enough’
Community groups looking to council for funding are finding the kitty bare.
The Matamata-Piako District Council each year invites community groups to make application for some of the $15,000 available which is shared across three towns.
Under the council’s Community Grants Policy, organisations can apply for funding in one of the two rounds held annually.
At the April meeting of the council, Te Aroha ward councillor Ash Tanner, referring to the Community Grants summary outlining the numbers of applicants that were declined, called for a review of the amount available ‘‘as it obviously isn’t enough’’.
Matamata-Piako Mayor Jan Barnes agreed some organisations will be disappointed having their application turned down but also agreed with the need to look to an increase in how much funding is made available.
Proving how hard it is, 11 organisations in the Matamata applied for community grants totalling $16,435 while council had a maximum of $3070 to distribute.
The total amount was spread between all organisations.
Biggest winners were the Matamata Geriatric Day Care Centre, which was granted $250, close to the amount of their $350 application.
Other organisations to achieve the top payout ($500) for this round were the Matamata community patrol, gymnastics and the squash clubs.
Waikato IHC will receive $300, Red Star Country Music Awards and Rotary Club, both received $250.
Other clubs and organisations were given amounts of between $100 to $200.
Between Hinuera and Matamata Playcentre, whose applications totalled $3600, both received $100 each towards their respective projects.
In total, 32 applications were received throughout the district with one application split across two wards.
There were also 11 from Matamata, 13 from Te Aroha and nine from Morrinsville.
One of the highlights of the latest round was the number of applications which were rejected.
‘‘The reasons behind ward councillors rejecting applications come down to some applications were missing vital information and some were just incomplete,’’ said Tanner.
‘‘We as councillors are becoming more discerning as we are looking to see how many people are impacted by the grant,’’ he said.