CHAIRPERSON’S REVIEW
YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2010

In March 2000, a public meeting was held to review and assess the state of the sporting and leisure clubs in Greytown.  They were really struggling to survive in the modern world.  The outcome was a group of Greytown people appointed to look into the facts of what was actually happening and come up with a way forward. After about two years work and an extensive study, the Greytown Community Sport and Leisure Society Incorporated was born.

In April 2010, we celebrated our progress with a very successful Dinner and Debate evening that raised funds, but more importantly in my eyes, lifted our profile to a lot of people outside the volunteers we work with. The range of ages and interests of those attending illustrated the importance of the word “Community” in our title.

Members of our Board and our Executive Officer have attended governance courses run by Sparc and Sport Wellington/Wairarapa has regularly conducted workshops in Greytown attended by club volunteers. Our board has changed the way we run our meetings as a result. Skill levels are being raised by everyone.

Executive Officer Keith Brown goes beyond his duties in thinking outside the square to assist the clubs improve their product, support the volunteers and keep moving forward.

The junior sports clubs are holding their own in player numbers; the Swimming Club is bursting out of its facility.  The Bowling Club has an increasing membership, a proactive committee and is promoting their sport by hosting corporate groups.  The Cricket and Junior Football clubs have run intensive coaching courses for their players.  We welcome a new senior club, the Greytown Football Club to the Society; and our membership is broadened by the addition of the Greytown First Scouting Group.

Funding will always be issue of some proportion for sport and leisure clubs but our club volunteers are now able to do more that just surviving from year to year. They are now able to put together promotions and coaching programs and manage teams, which is why they volunteer in the first place.

The Society thanks the Greytown District Trust Lands Trustees, South Wairarapa District Council, Sport Wellington and Wairarapa, Trust House, Eastern and Central Community Trust and the South Wairarapa Rotary Club for their continued support as we look forward to the next decade.

Lois Pitt
Chairperson

CHAIRPERSON’S REVIEW 2008-09

As the song says, the times they are a changing, and we must all be prepared to change with them in order to survive and then to grow.

The member clubs of Greytown Community Sport and Leisure Society have and are changing to meet the needs of the community they are part of. Money is tight and volunteer time is even more precious, but our clubs are recognising where to use their energy to their best advantage.  All our member clubs are now incorporated societies which reflects the work they have put into creating a sound management base and are able to work now on sustainability and growth.

There has been a noted lift in communication in the last twelve months; within the member clubs, between the member clubs and between the clubs and the community. Examples of this are the junior sports notice board at the Primary School and the Rugby and Community Gym clubs working together. Communication is the key to finding a way forward. An exchange of thoughts and ideas can often sort a situation before it becomes a problem.

The Society initiated a public meeting in December 2008 to discuss the sporting facilities in Greytown.  This is the first time the different clubs and interested parties have got together to have a discussion about how the facilities could be improved for the benefit of the whole community and not just one club. The Greytown Park Development Group was formed from this meeting. The Society is part of the group at this time but our core business is supporting clubs and their volunteers and that is where we see our focus to remain.

The funding available to our member clubs from the Greytown Trust Lands Trustees is a tremendous boost to our clubs. The clubs set their own goals they want to achieve in improving their club and funding will be reflected in the results.

Mark Childs and Mike Gray are both stepping down as Independent members of the board. Mark has been involved since the early years of the Society and his financial knowledge and active sporting involvement has been very valuable to us.  Mike’s knowledge of governance and procedure is appreciated.  John Manning is also not standing as a club representative this year.  We thank John for his contribution.

Our Executive Officer, Keith Brown, has continued to inspire confidence in the volunteers he supports with information and mentoring to run our clubs.

SPARC has indicated a change in their thinking towards a focus on sporting participation in clubs and schools and away from the social marketing, reports and websites of the past few years. While we wait for some filter down to the grassroots of sport, we give thanks for the support the Greytown community has that allows us to already be on this road.

The Society acknowledges the support of the Greytown Trust Lands Trustees, South Wairarapa District Council, Sport Wellington and Wairarapa, Trust House, Eastern and Central Community Trust, South Wairarapa Rotary, Greytown Community Supermarket and Lamb-Peters Print.

Thank you to my fellow members of the Board of the Society and all those people whose knowledge, feedback and support reflect the Community in our name.

Lois Pitt,

Chairperson

 CHAIRPERSON'S REVIEW 2007/08

The Greytown Community Sport and Leisure Society and its member clubs are moving forward with a positive attitude to defy the difficult environment we sometimes find ourselves in.

The Society’s office in the Greytown Town Centre has done wonders for increasing our profile in the district and ease of communication between our Executive Officer and the Clubs. There is nothing like an informal chat, face to face, to sort a problem, put a worry in perspective, or celebrate a success.

And celebrate success we should because the Clubs are increasing not only their active members but also their volunteer base. By having more people fill vital roles the Clubs are moving away from being run by a one or two person band.  Therefore the workload is spread and the knowledge also. The volunteers are also notably looking at the future and not just going from week to week.

The Greytown District Trust Lands Trust is our major financial supporter and their longer term backing is much appreciated in that it enables the Society to concentrate on the future of our member Clubs. Just as we have key performance indicators to fulfil for them, so we ask the Clubs to aim for goals as well and this they are doing.

The Society thanks our Executive Officer, Keith Brown, for the tremendous support the Club volunteers are receiving to achieve their aims and the Society’s aims. The volunteers are being supported with access to information, assistance with financial matters and mentoring that helps them have confidence in what they are doing. They are now a much more organised and confident group of people.

The Society acknowledges the Greytown District Trust Lands Trust, South Wairarapa District Council, Sport Wellington and Sport Wairarapa, Trust House, New Zealand Community Trust, Eastern and Central Community Trust, Prime Community Trust, Pelorus Trust, South Wairarapa Rotary, Greytown Community Supermarket and Lamb-Peters Print for their support over the past twelve months.

Thank you also to the members of the Board of the Society and all those other people whose knowledge, ideas, feedback and general support make the Greytown Community Sport and Leisure Society a valuable asset to our local community.

Lois Pitt,

Chairperson.