The NSW Government’s decision to trim back the popular Active Kids vouchers program will have a detrimental effect on children’s sport in the Hunter.
That’s the opinion of Lambton Junior Soccer Club president Nathan Errington, who is joining City of Newcastle councillor Callum Pull in calling for a reversal of the judgement.
The much-loved $100 coupons for after-school activities were due to be axed at the end of the financial year, when funding expired.
However, the government scaled back the scheme.
Now, Active Kids will only be available to those receiving Family Tax Benefit Part A, approximately about 600,000 of the 1.35 million school-aged children in NSW – and valued at $50.
Mr Errington, who is also involved with various sporting groups from as far as Budgewoi and Tea Gardens, admitted the impact was already being felt.
“Slashing Active Kids and other vouchers is a broken promise by Chris Minns and the new Labor government,” he said.
“They’re cutting this program by more than 50%… and leaving hundreds of thousands of families disappointed.
“The government promised before the election that they would roll these vouchers over.
“Instead, kids across Newcastle, Port Stephens and the Hunter are going to completely miss out on this vital support at the same time as the cost of living is squeezing family budgets even tighter.”
Mr Errington said the government’s decision was also placing pressure on sporting organisations, which were already struggling to keep registration costs low.
“We always try our best to keep fees as affordable as possible,” he explained.
“But, without this financial assistance, families will be affected… of that, I’m sure.
“About 300 participants have used these vouchers at Lambton Juniors since they were introduced.
“However, many parents recently told me they just won’t be able to afford to register their children.
“Just in Lambton Juniors alone, we may lose up to 150 youngsters.
“A number of our Hunter MPs are cabinet ministers and members of this government, so they are directly responsible for this decision.
“I am calling on them to reverse it and not completely gut our kids’ entries into local community sport.”
Cr Pull, a Liberal councillor, echoed those sentiments.
“I recently attended a community meeting at Beresfield Pool where pool users raised concerns about the cutting of the program,” he said.
“They know the value of these vouchers.
“They’ve seen it gets children in the pool and learning to swim.
“But, without this vital entry support, these swimming programs will be gutted and these kids will be missing out on learning a valuable life skill.”
Mr Errington and Cr Pull are encouraging all affected families to reach out and share their stories with their local MPs, so Active Kids is not lost altogether.
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