Have your say on Community Funding and Support Policy

Published on 03 June 2024

Glenelg Shire is home to over 20,000 individuals and hundreds of community organisations, all striving to make the area a great place to live, work and play.

Council recognises that the local community plays a vital role in empowering people and organisations to have an active role in shaping and growing their community to build a better future and achieve their aspirations.

Funding community, cultural and recreational activities, events and services enables individuals and groups to work in partnership with Council in meeting community needs.

Council has done this for many years but the policy underpinning it dates back to 2008.

Times change, and so do the needs of community organisations.

To reflect that, Council has a draft Community Funding and Support Policy out for public comment.

While the Community Grants Program is perhaps the best known of the funding streams available to community groups and organisations, it is not the only avenue for funding.

The draft policy proposes a new Ageing Well Grants Stream, which is financial assistance to community organisations and groups for activities and projects that foster the social, health and wellbeing needs of older residents (55 years and over).

There are also changes to allow grants of up to $500 for smaller groups that require an incorporated organisation to auspice their projects – these grants would also not count against the total received by the larger organisation, as has happened in the past.

Major/iconic events, Aboriginal Education Scholarships, Minor Community Grants, the Junior Sports Trust and 26 January events funding are other streams covered in the policy.

Public feedback on the draft is open from Monday, 3 June to Wednesday, 19 June.

This can be made through the Your Say Glenelg website or by hard copy via Council’s Customer Service Centres in Portland, Heywood and Casterton.