Funding to boost youth recreation across West Wimmera

Published on 06 August 2026

West Wimmera Shire Council has secured funding to improve active recreation opportunities for people aged under 25 across the municipality.

Council received $200,000 through VicHealth's Partners in Place program to deliver the Close to Home – Reimagining Rural Recreation in West Wimmera project.

Existing community assets, including halls, ovals, courts and playgrounds, will be used to deliver activities closer to where young people live.

The approach recognises that long travel distances and limited transport options can prevent young people from participating in sport and recreation across rural communities.

Council Chief Executive Officer David Bezuidenhout said the project would help make recreation more accessible for young people across the shire.

"This is a genuinely different approach to rural sport and recreation," he said.

"Instead of asking young people to travel long distances to a central facility, we want to bring activity to where they already are, supported by local volunteers, coordinated professional staff and the voices of young people themselves."

Under the proposal, day-to-day coordination would be led by the Wimmera Regional Sports Assembly, working alongside a cross-Council Close to Home Working Group and partners including By Five and the Future Regions Research Centre at Federation University.

The project will begin with research, community engagement and early activation trials.

The findings will help shape a long-term strategy to embed successful approaches into Council's future planning and improve opportunities for young people to be active close to home.

The funding is part of VicHealth's new $21 million Partners in Place initiative, which supports councils and community organisations across Victoria to improve the everyday conditions that support health and wellbeing through locally led action.

The initiative recognises that good health is shaped by the places where people live, work, learn and connect.

It supports communities to address local priorities through partnerships, evidence and practical approaches that improve health and wellbeing.