Shade grants cover city

FOUR community organisations will receive a share in nearly one-million dollars from the latest round of the Community Shade Grants Program.

The State government initiative allows for groups to install a range of sun smart solutions like permanent and portable shade sails, as well as purchase protective items.

Victoria Bowling Club received just under $9500 as part of the program and president Barry Clark said the group is thankful for the grant.

“For us to raise $9500 we’d have to have a lot of functions to raise that money, so just to get that given to us is fantastic,” he said.

The club intends to install shade structures along their newly expanded decking so that spectators and players can rest in between matches.

Mr Clark said that the club should have the shades in place sometime early in the new year.

A $4857 grant also went to Ballarat YMCA, $6900 for Centacare and $4066 for the Mount Clear Cricket Club. In Golden Planes Shire Teesdale Cricket Club got $665 and $26,655 went to the municipality.

Wendouree MP Julianna Addison said that the program is all about people getting out and about and making sure they can be sun smart while doing it.

“This is all about encouraging people to stay healthy, encouraging people to be sun smart and really saying to people there is no reason why you can’t be active and we’re going to encourage your attendance by installing these shades and making sure you’ve got sunscreen and sunhats,” she said.

Ms Addison also said that Australia has the highest rates of skin cancer in the world with two out of three people being diagnosed with skin cancer before they turn seventy.

The Community Shade Grants Program is a part of the State government’s Cancer Plan 2016-20, which aims to save 10,000 lives from cancer over ten years.