From hockey sticks and disc golf to bike skills, two Taupō-based organisations are helping remove barriers to participation and creating lifelong connections to physical activity for tamariki and rangatahi.

Thanks to support from Sport New Zealand's Tū Manawa Active Aotearoa fund, administered in the Waikato region by Sport Waikato, both Taupō KiwiSport and Kids Bike Taupō are delivering inclusive opportunities that are changing lives across the district.

Delivered through the Lake Taupō Sports Advisory Council, the KiwiSport programme has been connecting primary-aged students with a wide range of sporting opportunities for more than a decade.

KiwiSport Coordinator Sue McLean says the programme is “all about participation of students at primary school level year 1 to 8 and offering a whole lot of different opportunities to them.”

By delivering sessions directly into schools, the programme helps remove financial and logistical barriers that can prevent tamariki from participating in organised sport.

“Because it’s an in-school session—we’re able to tap into every child because obviously now there are constraints for parents that they’re not able to enrol or have their kids participating in a sport due to financial reasons, even the petrol cost,” says McLean. “So, coming into the school, every child will get the session, they’ll get a taste of it.”

The programme offers opportunities across both traditional and non-traditional sports including hockey, orienteering and disc golf.

“Probably about four years ago, we got the orienteering club on board,” says McLean. “Last year we had 650. So it’s growing. The kids love it.”

For many schools, the programme also removes equipment barriers by providing all the gear needed for sessions.

Wairakei Primary School Deputy Principal Hannah Simpson says having experts deliver sessions alongside teachers has been hugely valuable for both students and staff.

“I think the biggest one, especially for our younger students, is getting them to experience the sport in context and having experts to come in to support both the teachers and the tamariki.”

She says access to equipment and opportunities is critical for many whaanau.

“A lot of our children don’t have the opportunity to necessarily do after-school sports because of the costing,” says Hannah. “So this is a great way for them to have access to playing the sports, enjoying the sports, possibly getting involved after-school activities, but to be able to experience it.”

Taupō Hockey’s Rose Prisk says the connection between schools and clubs is essential for ongoing participation.

“We notice when we don’t go into schools that participation drops,” she says.

She says the programme also helps children feel comfortable entering club environments later on.

“When they do come to the hockey turf, 9 times out of 10 I’m there and they’re like, ‘Oh, there’s the hockey lady from school.’”

Tū Manawa funding has helped expand delivery capacity, support additional coaching in schools, and purchase equipment to strengthen programme delivery.

“We’ve been able to purchase some gear as well as run the Get Set, Go Athletic programme,” Sue says. “So it’s basically supporting the clubs that are going into the schools and offering more delivery.”

At the same time, Kids Bike Taupō is helping children — and often entire whaanau — discover the joy and independence that comes with riding a bike.

Coordinator Cath Oldfield says the programme begins with a simple goal.

“The first thing it starts with is the under-fives, so we want people to ride by five.”

The initiative works across schools and the wider community, helping children overcome barriers to cycling by providing bikes, adaptive equipment, repairs, and ongoing support.

Cath says many children face significant barriers to learning to ride.

“The biggest barrier is we’ve got parents now that can’t ride a bike for various reasons,” she says. “They didn’t ride as a child, so it’s not in their mindset to do it.”

Tū Manawa funding has enabled the programme to purchase larger and adaptive bikes, maintain equipment, and provide continuity for participants who need extra time and support.

“A really good story I’ve got is a young man who has Down syndrome,” says Cath. “By having the funding to have bigger bikes and to have me be able to go to bigger places, someone like Matt, he was the first one who had an adult balance bike.”

After months of persistence and support, Matt learned to ride independently.

“He can ride on two wheels now,” says Kath. “People who have bigger barriers to do these things need more time. They need more patience. They need the right equipment.”

The programme’s impact is also extending beyond tamariki.

“The biggest thing that we never planned when we started this programme—getting kids on bikes makes adults ride,” says Kath.

At Tauhara College, students look forward to the regular sessions.

Teacher Lisa Hemopo says the programme creates opportunities many students would not otherwise have access to.

“A lot of them don’t have access to bikes at home or have never learned how to ride a bike before,” she says.

“It just gives them that opportunity that they wouldn’t normally have.”

About the Tū Manawa Active Aotearoa fund

Tū Manawa Active Aotearoa is a Sport New Zealand fund designed to help tamariki and rangatahi aged 5–18 access quality play, active recreation and sport opportunities. The fund focuses on removing barriers to participation, particularly for groups who are less active, including young women and girls, disabled young people, and communities experiencing higher levels of deprivation.

The fund is administered in the Waikato region by Sport Waikato.

Applications for the fund are open throughout the year.

Find out more or apply here:
https://www.sportwaikato.org.nz/about/tu-manawa-active-aotearoa-fund