By Amanda Durry  March 15 2010

Base Café has been given a much needed financial boost with a donation of over $3500 to pay for power, health licensing and music playing costs.

Ashburton's youth café received the funding from the Tindall Foundation, which is administered by Advance Ashburton Community Foundation.

The trust has given out around $45,000 in the past three years and board members were fully supportive of the café, board member Elizabeth Ashford said.

"We see it as a great cause and it needs all the help it can get. The board was 100% in support of the café and we hope the community gets behind it as well. It is being run by a dedicated group of people, including young people which is really commendable.

"One of the things the Tindall Foundation supports is initiatives for young people and this fits well within our criteria. As a community, we need to provide facilities for young people to go and be happy and enjoy themselves," she said.

The café is aimed at 10 to 19-year-olds and is a drug and alcohol free venue. It is currently being run by a group of volunteers and was officially opened in February.

Ashburton Youth Cafe Charitable Trust member Rachel Prendergast said they appreciated the support.

"It's just fantastic and will go a long way to helping us out. They asked a lot of questions about what's been going on and were really positive. They have also offered us ongoing support and want to keep in regular contact.

"It's just another stepping stone towards us getting it running successfully. We're really stoked," she said. Another positive step has been gaining a few more volunteers to help run the café but they were still looking for more, Mrs Prendergast said.

"We're just taking whatever time people have available. There's no pressure involved and whatever time people can manage is fine by us, we appreciate any support," she said.