NRCF to deliver $1 Million Community Resilience Grants Program to support flood recovery
This program has been developed in response to the February and March 2022 floods that significantly impacted the seven Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the Northern Rivers: Ballina, Byron, Clarence Valley, Kyogle, Lismore, Richmond Valley and Tweed.
The Community Resilience Grants Program will provide grants to support local not-for-profit organisations to continue to provide critical services to individuals and families, and to connect communities to recovery services including housing, food, health and wellbeing and financial services, as well as services that provide community connection, supporting the recovery of the region.
This program will include an option for eligible organisations to access funds to support their operations and develop longer-term operating models where appropriate.
The program is delivered by NRCF and funded by the NSW Reconstruction Authority.
Key Program Dates
15 November 2023 | Applications Open at 9:00am AEDT |
4 December 2023 | Applications Close at 5:00pm AEDT |
27 November – 8 December 2023 | Assessment by Assessment Committee |
15 December 2023 | Applicants notified of outcome |
End December 2023 | Funds distributed |
December 2024 | Program complete, funds expended |
January 2025 | Acquittal report submitted. |
The above dates can be amended by the NSW Government and NRCF at its absolute discretion.
Eligibility
Organisation Type | · Incorporated organisations registered and approved as not-for-profit bodies by NSW Fair Trading · Not-for profit companies limited by guarantee (must have Deductible Gift Recipient status and/or be registered with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission) · Indigenous Corporations registered with the Office of the Registrar of Indigenous Corporations · Local Aboriginal Land Councils · Not-for-profit organisations established under Royal Charter or dedicated NSW legislation |
Gross Revenue | An annual gross revenue of less than $5M. |
Location
| Eligible organisations must deliver flood recovery and/or resilience services to support individuals, families and communities that reside in the seven Northern Rivers LGAs: Ballina, Byron, Clarence Valley, Kyogle, Lismore, Richmond Valley and Tweed. NRCF may prioritise local Northern Rivers based organisations in the allocation of funding. |
Governance | Organisations must have an ABN, be able to demonstrate that they are financially viable, and likely to remain so over the duration of the project. |
Not eligible | Applicants are not eligible if they are any of the following: · Individuals, partnerships or consortiums · Schools and universities · For-profit organisations · NSW Government, local councils or Australian Government agencies and their entities · Incorporated businesses or organisations that are insolvent |
Funding Conditions
Types of projects funded under this grant:
The grant funds can be used to deliver appropriate services that support recovery and respond to community need. Services funded under this grant need to:
- Enhance community-based recovery for the region
- Build on and leverage community recovery and resilience support services being provided
Grant funds can also be used to strengthen and build capacity of recovery and resilience organisations to develop longer-term operating models.
Types of projects that will not be funded:
- Flood mitigation and future preparedness projects
- One-off Emergency Relief Response
- Provision of emergency housing and temporary accommodation
How grant funds can be used:
The grant funds can be used by organisations to deliver recovery and resilience services. There may be scope to adapt that support as community needs change, provided it is on eligible spend and aligns with the program objectives.
Examples of what can be funded includes:
- Staffing costs for designated recovery roles to deliver services
- Costs to deliver activities, events, programs and services
- Cost of purchasing equipment and materials
- Providing community wellbeing support
Up to 25% of grant funding can be used to strengthen and build capacity of your organisation to deliver outcomes. This may include strategic planning; development of longer-term operating models and/or governance supports; and/or, core operational costs and overheads directly related to service delivery, for example, vehicle hire.
Funds cannot be used for:
- Expenses that are already covered by other government grants or insurance payments
- Purchasing food, food vouchers, furniture, building supplies, or brokerage
- Capital expenditure
- Core administrative staff costs not related to delivery of recovery services
- Infrastructure and major equipment and assets, including the purchase of vehicles
- Costs not related to service delivery (excluding the up to 25% of grant funding specifically for organisational core operational costs and capacity building)
- Promotion of a religion or a political party
- Duplication of a project already being run by another organisation in your local area
- Interstate or overseas travel
Reporting
Successful applicants will be required to submit a final project report and a simple financial acquittal in January 2025. A six-monthly progress report will be required for grants over $25,000.
Insurance
Grant recipients must maintain current and adequate insurance appropriate to the activities/services funded under this grant to cover any liability of the grant recipient that might arise in connection with the performance of its obligations under a Grant Funding Agreement. This must include, but is not limited to, a minimum of $10 million Public Liability Insurance.
Essential criteria and assessment
Grants will be assessed on the following criteria including:
- Community need
a. Clearly define the ongoing community need and demand for recovery and resilience support services including:
- Community connection activities
- Individual and community capacity building
- Improved living situations including housing and food
- Improved health and wellbeing
- Outreach and services referral support
- Financial capability building
- An ability to understand and respond to the ongoing needs of our local communities
- Activities and goals
a. Describe the activities of the project or program and how it will contribute to addressing community need for recovery and resilience.
b. Describe the goals for the project; what does success for this project look like?
Provide an accurate budget with realistic costs
Organisational capability and viability
a. Demonstrate the capability to deliver responsive and flexible community-based recovery support services for the duration of the project
b. Show your organisation’s experience to deliver the project
Applications will initially be reviewed for general program eligibility, and then assessed. Applications may also be prioritised to ensure equitable geographic distribution across the seven Northern Rivers LGAs and across impacted stakeholder groups.
The assessment process may prioritise applications from organisations that primarily deliver recovery and resilience services in response to the community recovering from disaster declaration under AGRN 1012.
Grant amounts
The total funding pool is $1 million. Eligible applicants can apply for one-off time limited grants in the following categories:
Small Grants
Grant amount of $20,000 to $50,000.
Examples of projects that may be funded in this stream:
- Programs of community connection activities to help rebuild community networks
- One-off or time-limited activities with volunteer or low staff resources required
Large Grants
Grant amount: Up to $100,000 (maximum allocation of $500,000 of the funding pool).
Examples of that may be funded in this stream:
- Working with a large or complex client group for an extended period
- Provision of services to address unmet community need
- Comprehensive place-based supports for a large client base for an extended period
- Projects with unfunded service delivery costs including rent and staffing costs
All grants must be fully expended by December 2024 and acquitted by January 2025. Successful applicants may be offered funding lower than the amount requested.
How to apply
Applications will only be accepted through NRCF’s online grants portal, accessible via the NRCF website. If you have any issues accessing the online portal, please contact us at grants@nrcf.org.au.
Applicants can preview the form before starting a grant application on the grant portal.
Applications open at 9:00am AEDT Monday, 15 November 2023, and close at 5:00pm AEDT on Monday, 4 December 2023.
Applicants will receive acknowledgement of their submission via email only.
What is the process after applications close?
Applications will be reviewed for general program eligibility. All eligible grants will then be assessed by a panel of community representatives, program stakeholders, NRCF Board Members and NSW Reconstruction Authority representatives, who are knowledgeable and experienced in relevant local issues and grant funding.
Final decisions will be made by NRCF Board, with oversight by The NSW Reconstruction Authority.
Applicants will formally be notified by 15 December 2023 if their application has been successful or unsuccessful. Applicants must ensure their contact details are up to date and that the applicant is contactable during December.
Successful applicants will be published on NRCF’s website and the NSW Government Grant Finder.
Should your application be successful, you will be required to enter into a Funding Agreement with NRCF. This Agreement will outline the nature of the partnership including how the grant shall be used and the reporting requirements.
All funding decisions are final. The NRCF Board reserve the right to not recommend projects for funding.
NRCF's grants team will support you with your application before it goes to the assessment panel. We will work support you to make sure you have the right documents uploaded and we may ask for clarification about your project. Talk to us early and we may be able to help you resolve any challenges.
If you have any questions about the Grants Program , please contact NRCF's Grants Team on 0499 862 886 or grants@nrcf.org.au (Monday to Thursday).
Learn more about NRCF here: https://nrcf.org.au/about/.
