Big winners in Community Grants
Published on 23 January 2026
What do tennis courts, governance and old stables have in common?
The answer is they are among seven community projects that have been given a substantial helping hand as part of Loddon Shire Council’s latest Community Grants funding round.
A total of $47,566 was approved for the projects, making $60,415 in grants for the 2025/26 financial year so far.
The latest round of grants will also see more than $73,600 in work undertaken by the successful community groups.
One of those groups is the Wedderburn Lawn Tennis Club, which will get some much-needed new equipment.
The club was successful in applying for two grants, one to upgrade existing irrigation and the other for new nets, a ball machine and some play equipment. Its own contributions of more than $9,000 have been boosted by $17,579 in Community Grants.
Secretary Rachel Ellsmore said the club was excited about the future of the tennis club with this much needed opportunity to upgrade old equipment.
“We’ve had the same watering system in there for over 30 years,” she said.
“Prior to this a volunteer had to go to the club up to 12 times a week to water all the courts.
“It was an archaic system and having a new pump will significantly reduce the volunteer labour.”
The new ball machine will replace one that has served the club well but is long past its use-by date.
“We’ve been running the same ball machine for 40 years and every time you use it you have to replace the spark plug,” Rachel said.
“It also doesn’t work if you move it – the ability to have a new ball machine is great, especially for young children who really need a lot of repetition to get into the sport otherwise they lose interest.”
A previous Community Grant enabled the club to purchase a new mower, and Rachel said the club’s lawn courts were “second to none” in the region.
It all adds up to a bright future for the club, with coaching programs proving popular as well, but Rachel said the grants were crucial to increase participation and to the club’s survival.
“It’s simply too hard without grants,” she said.
“You can exhaust your volunteer labour very quickly – I believe it’s easier to get and maintain volunteers when they all do a bit.
“I think there’s a misconception that these Community Grants are much harder to apply for than they really are – (Council staff) have been exceptional in terms of helping us through the process. There’s always support there if you need it.”
Community grants applications can be submitted all year round, with a minimum four assessments taking place each year.
The next assessment period is set to take place shortly, for applications received before 27 February, successful applicants will be notified prior to 31 March.
Grants are for a maximum of $10,000 and for a maximum 2:1 basis, meaning that for every $2 provided by Council, successful applicants must contribute a minimum of $1 towards the cost of a project.
For more information on Council’s Community Grants program, please visit Council’s website.
Successful Community Grants recipients (November 2025 assessment round)
Organisation, Project, Grant, Total Project Cost
Boort Lawn Tennis Club, Purchase of ball machine for junior coaching, $2,376, $3,565.
Bridgewater Football Netball Club, CLUBMAP training to strengthen governance, $3,998, $5,998.
Dingee Bowling Club, Replace rink boundary markers and repair concrete edging, $7,774, $12,687.
Wedderburn Golf Club, Upgrade of infrastructure and clubhouse facilities, $10,000, $15,554.
Wedderburn Lawn Tennis Club, New tennis nets and ball machine, $7,579, $11,368.
Wedderburn Lawn Tennis Club, Replacement of existing pump and sprinkler heads and timer installation, $5,839, $8,759.
Wedderburn Lions Club, Refurbishment of old stables behind museum, $10,000, $15,671.
Caption: Wedderburn Lawn Tennis Club secretary Rachel Ellsmore with young tennis fans Charlotte Turnbull and Henry Hargreaves.