Lion Foundation and Regional Sports Trusts to Continue with Pioneering
Volunteer Project
Sport Wellington today announced the ongoing support of the Lion Foundation in the pioneering Regional Sports Trust
volunteer initiative. In a partnership collective, six regional sports trusts - Sport Wellington, Sport Gisborne
Tairawhiti, Sport Hawkes Bay, Sport Manawatu, Sport Taranaki and Sport Whanganui, who each have local volunteer
initiatives - will continue to exchange resources including research and information that promotes best practice and
innovation in sport volunteerism.
The Lion Foundation, one of New Zealand’s oldest charitable trusts with a strong commitment to community development,
has pledged its ongoing support for the second year of the three-year project. Volunteers in the sport and recreation
sector in New Zealand are critical to its delivery and its future. They have a significant impact on their communities
and their time is calculated to have an economic value of over $1 billion.
“The Lion Foundation support continues to provide an opportunity to make a significant difference to the sporting system
across a number of regions” says Ken Allen, Sport Wellington’s Volunteer Strategy Senior Advisor.
The initiative is now into its second year. In year one, the partner RSTs identified regional volunteerism needs, and
developed programmes that will contribute to the sustainability of volunteering and volunteers as well as the systems
and processes that support sport and active recreation volunteering. Year two will see the partner RSTs continue to
implement their programmes alongside their community partners.
Sport Wellington is now supporting sports organisations to plan for better volunteer recruitment and recognition. Ken
Allen says “It is encouraging to see organisations starting to take a sustainable approach to volunteerism”.
Sport Wellington CEO Phil Gibbons says “Volunteers sit at the core of the New Zealand sporting system. This project will
lead to growth of regional volunteerism, greater recognition and status in regional sports volunteerism, and a
sustainable approach to the volunteer process taken by regional sporting organisations.
Sport Wellington is proud to work with Lion Foundation and lead regional RSTs on such an important project”
Within sport and recreation there continues to be a shortage of skilled people in roles or having a thorough
understanding of what is expected of them. The Volunteer Project assists RSTs, sports organisations and schools to plan
and collaborate more effectively for the benefit of the sport and active recreation workforce.
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