Funding announced for Western Australian aquatic and sport facilities and Kimberley tourism

The Western Australian Government has announced a funding boost of more than $2.1 million for sport and recreation facilities along with a new $2.8 million Kimberley Tourism Program package to support local tourism businesses in their recovery from this year's unseasonal weather events.

27 sport and recreation projects throughout Western Australia, are benefitting from more than $2.1 million dollars in funding from the State Government's latest small grants round.

The grants from the July round of Community Sporting and Recreation Facilities Fund (CSRFF) and Club Night Lights Program (CNLP) support vital community projects – including pool renovations, upgrades to changeroom facilities, resurfacing works, and lighting installation.

A total of $1,500,985 in CSRFF grants has been allocated to 18 projects, while nine successful applicants will receive a total of $631,808 from the CNLP. The projects are located in the metropolitan area, Gascoyne, Great Southern, Mid West, Peel, Pilbara, and South West regions.

Some of the 18 recipients of CSRFF grants are:

• $200,000 - upgrade Wyalkatchem Memorial Swimming Pool, Shire of Wyalkatchem;

• $124,866 - upgrade of existing toilets and changerooms at Eaton Recreation Centre, Shire of Dardanup; and

• $107,638 - Robertson Park construction of multisport courts, City of Vincent.

• Some of the nine recipients of CNLP grants are:

• $194,460 ­- Manjimup Speedway Club, Shire of Manjimup;

• $62,640 - Carey Park Football Sporting and Community Club Inc, City of Bunbury; and

• $58,587 - Dick Lawrence Oval, City of Fremantle.

The CSRFF and CNLP grants are valuable in providing funding to help local governments and sporting clubs keep Western Australians physically active and participating in sport and recreation opportunities.

The small grants program enables community organisations, local governments, as well as sport and recreation clubs to apply for and receive funds, to support the development of high-quality infrastructure and environments for sport and recreation throughout Western Australia.

Visit the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries website at dlgsc.wa.gov.au/funding/sport-and-recreation-funding for the full list of recipients along with more information about funding rounds.

Kimberley Tourism Package

The Western Australian Government's new $2.8 million Kimberley Tourism Program package includes a $1.7 million aviation package, offering discounted airfares to visitors flying to and across the Kimberley region.

Other initiatives of the program include self-drive promotions, with $100 discount vouchers to incentivise visitors to extend their stays at Australia's North West holiday parks.

This will be backed by a special Kimberley Season Pass offer with 50% off tours and experiences across the Kimberley region to boost bookings for local tourism operators.

Both these offers will be available for booking starting early-February 2024.

This Kimberley Tourism Program package is in addition to the $6 million assistance package announced earlier this year.

WA Tourism Minister Rita Saffioti noted "Our Kimberley region is such an incredible tourist destination, and it makes a huge contribution to our visitor economy.

"We continue to do what we can to support our local operators who have been impacted by this year's unseasonal flooding, and this package is another example of that.

"I really urge our community, as well as tourists from interstate and abroad, to consider including a trip to the Kimberley as part of their travel plans for next year – a trip that's even more attractive now with these discounted airfares and other incentives.

"The announcement of this package comes a week after we reached a major milestone in the flood recovery with the opening of the new Fitzroy River Bridge, more than six months ahead of schedule, which was a remarkable achievement."

Image top: $200,000 has been allocated to fund upgrade Wyalkatchem Memorial Swimming Pool, Shire of Wyalkatchem; Image above: Kimberley Horizontall Falls Credit: Broome Visitor Centre