Centre reopens after $15,000 budget deficit
BY RICHARD EDMONDSON
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Northern News
A Kawakawa youth centre that closed nearly a year ago amid allegations of financial mismanagement is back in business.
The Kawakawa Community Trust was forced to lay off staff at the $640,000 Nu Flo centre, which opened in 2006, after it ran up a $15,000 budget deficit.
But a Nu Flo trust, formed last November to run the centre independently of the community trust, has secured government grants to allow the centre to remain open.
Centre manager Phillip Bristow says the trust is running Social Development Ministry-funded Out of School Care and Recreation programmes at the centre for 5 to 13-year-olds.
Older youths benefit from a Justice Ministry programme that encourages taggers to channel anti-social behaviour into more artistic activities.
The trust, headed by Pakaraka farmer Rob Alderton, has also obtained a Pub Charities grant to allow it to employ Mr Bristow as a centre manager until March.
It plans to build a recording studio at the centre to attract older teenagers with an interest in making music.
"We've had a couple of discos, but we need to try and find a programme that will suit the out of college group," says Mr Bristow.
He is optimistic that the trust can raise the $50,000 it would cost to build a studio and is confident it would be well-used by local youth.
"They've got the talent, but they've got nowhere to go to
practise or refine the skills they have."
Bay of Islands College teacher Albert Cash replaced Johnson Davis as chairman of the Kawakawa Community Trust after its annual general meeting at the start of the year.
He says an audit of the trust's accounts failed to identify clear reasons for the budget deficit or find evidence of misappropriation of money.
The trust has been working with the Nu Flo Trust all year to keep the centre operational and is appreciative of Mr Bristow's efforts to maintain programmes at the centre, he says.
"We're fortunate to have Phillip there keeping the doors open for us because it's been quite hard to do that.
"During the recession the people at the top turn off the tap," says Mr Cash.
- © Fairfax NZ News
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