History

The Grovedale Community Centre was constructed and officially opened in 1986 within the Shire of South Barwon. Funding was made available through the State Government. The Grovedale Senior Citizens Club became one of the several tenants, along with a branch of the municipal library. The Grovedale Senior Citizens Club was successful in gaining a grant through the State Government that enabled a contribution of $180,000 to the construction of the Centre.

From July 2005 the South Barwon Community Centre provided an outreach service at the Grovedale Community Centre on a Thursday afternoon, encouraging residents to simply ‘drop in’ and have a cuppa and a chat with the aim of gauging community interest of future activities. With the support of the City of Greater Geelong, South Barwon Community Centre increased their hours at the Centre to all day Wednesday as well as Thursday afternoons. The increased activity created great interest in the community and in late 2006 the Centre received funding through Department of Communities Victoria (DVC) and the City of Greater Geelong to establish a stand alone Neighbourhood House.

In early 2007 the City of Greater Geelong (CoGG) became the auspicing body and employed a Community Development Officer on a one year contract to assist with the incorporation process, the setting up of the Committee of Management and to explore future activities and program for the Centre. The funding enabled capital works to take place in late 2007.

The Grovedale Community Centre Inc was established in November 2007. However in 2010 a period of turbulence saw the funding agreement with this committee terminated and the lease surrendered in August. CoGG resumed the auspice arrangements so that the community did not lose this valuable service and activity.