Community Sponsorship Program

The Community Sponsorship Program supports opportunities for Council to partner with our community and upholds the community vision as found in the Community Strategic Plan. Through this funding, Council harnesses the ideas, energy and knowledge of our community to plan and deliver programs and projects that support a connected, healthy, resilient and inclusive Hawkesbury.

Working together in partnership with the community to identify and respond to the needs within the community is one of the important responsibilities of Council.

There are three categories within the Community Sponsorship Program: Participation, Access to Facilities and Resilient Hawkesbury. There are two rounds of the Community Sponsorship Program each year.

Which category are you applying for? *

ParticipationAccess to FacilitiesResilient Hawkesbury

Participation Category

Financial assistance may be provided to support the participation of residents who have been selected to represent the Hawkesbury in state, national, or international sporting, artistic, education and musical performance competitions.

Funding is available as follows:

State competitions $150
National competitions $250
International competitions $500

To be eligible an applicant will be required as part of their application to provide the following:

The name, date and location of the competition or event
A letter from their coach or the organisers of the competition or event confirming their selection and confirming the amount paid for the competition or event
If an applicant is under 18, their parent/guardian will need to counter-sign the application.
If an applicant is under 18, consent must be given by their parent/guardian for the participants name to be published in the Council report. If consent is not given, the participants name will remain confidential.

Access to Facilities Category

Community groups located in the Hawkesbury or providing services to the Hawkesbury, can apply for financial assistance for a subsidy of 50% off the cost of hiring a Council or community facility up to a maximum contribution of $750.

To be eligible an applicant must be located in the Hawkesbury or providing services to the Hawkesbury.

As part of their application, applicants will need to provide the following:

Confirmation of organisational status
A copy of a current public liability insurance
The name of the facility being hired
A written quote for the cost of hiring the community facility

Resilient Hawkesbury Category

Council may provide funding to community programs that help to build a connected, healthy, inclusive and resilient Hawkesbury. Maximum funding of $3,000.

Under the Resilient Hawkesbury category, the funding aims to:

Encourage community groups to develop and implement projects, events or activities that occur in the Hawkesbury LGA that reflect the communities’ priorities as outlined in the Community
Strategic Plan
Enable delivery of creative, recreational, social, environmental and cultural projects, events or activities that enrich the community
Support community groups to respond to emerging challenges within the community and engage in capacity building activities
Foster community partnerships and encourages cooperations between organisations to improve access to community services or skills for residents of the Hawkesbury
Provide equipment for local organisations to increase their community services beyond their current capability
Promote the Hawkesbury as a vibrant, diverse place to live and/or visit
Encourage alignment with the principles of access, inclusion and equity

To be eligible for funding under the Resilient Hawkesbury category, applicants must be either a registered not-for-profit organisation, an incorporated community group or a registered charity. All applicants must have an ABN. The applicant’s details will be checked on the Australian Charities and

Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC). The organisations annual revenue must be below $5 million based on ACNC data.

If an organisation is not required by the ACNC to have audited financial statements or an organisation has only been registered within the previous 12 months and an audited financial statement is not available, the following will need to be provided:

Profit and Loss statement (certified by an accredited accountant)
Organisational balance sheet (last 10 months)
Provide evidence of appropriate insurance coverage.

It is not a requirement that organisations be located in the Hawkesbury LGA, but projects must demonstrate that the majority of project participants or beneficiaries are residents of the Hawkesbury LGA.

Organisations that do not have an ABN must have their activity auspiced by a not-for-profit organisation with an ABN that can manage the funding on its behalf.

General Guidelines for Resilient Hawkesbury

An application assessed as eligible to receive the Community Sponsorship Program is not a guarantee of sponsorship. The decision as to whether sponsorship is approved and the amount to be provided to an applicant rests with Council. Where the amount requested exceeds available sponsorship funds, the assessment criteria matrix score of applications may assist Council in prioritising the allocation of funds.

All funding recipients must enter into a sponsorship agreement and meet all requirements of reporting and acquittal. An organisation is only eligible to apply for the Community Sponsorship Program once per financial year, excluding auspice arrangements.

Council will not provide in-kind services such as waste removal, site set up, or equipment. Organisations must include these activities as part of their budget expenses and can be applied for as part of the funding.

Applicants will be required to return the funding if the event is not held within 12 months of the date of the signed sponsorship agreement or if there is a scope change.

Note: Applications may be recommended for full funding, partial funding, or no funding.

For further information, please view the Community Sponsorship General FAQs.

Full Name of Participant *

Nominated Parent or Guardian (if applicant is under the age of 18)

Postal Address *

Street address *

City *

State *

Postcode *

Phone Number *

Email Address *

Are you a resident of the Hawkesbury Local Government Area? *

YesNo

Name of Competition or Event *

Date of Competition or Event *

Is your Competition or Event State, National or International? *

StateNationalInternational

What is the location of your Competition or Event? *

Do you have written confirmation from your coach or the organiser of the competition or event confirming your selection? *

YesNo

Please attach a copy of the written confirmation *

Browse

(MAX 10MB upload limit. Only .pdf, .png and .jpg file types are accepted.

Do you have written confirmation from your coach or the organiser of the competition or event confirming the cost? *

YesNo

Please attach a copy of the written confirmation *

Browse

(MAX 10MB upload limit. Only .pdf, .png and .jpg file types are accepted.

Do you consent for the participants name to be in the Council report, which is publically available information? *

YesNo

Name of the person hiring the facility *

Phone Number *

Email Address *

Name of facility to be hired *

Date/s of hiring *

Provide a written quote for the cost of hiring the facility *

Browse

(MAX 10MB upload limit. Only .pdf, .png and .jpg file types are accepted.)

Provide a copy of your Public Liability Insurance Policy *

Browse

(MAX 10MB upload limit. Only .pdf, .png and .jpg file types are accepted.)

Provide a confirmation on your Not For Profit organisational status *

Browse

(MAX 10MB upload limit. Only .pdf, .png and .jpg file types are accepted.)

Before starting the application form below, please make sure that you have read and understood the Community Sponsorship Program Policy, including the Assessment Criteria Matrix, and had a look at the FAQs.

Incomplete applications and/or applications received after the closing date will not be considered.

Please note: The Community Sponsorship Program does not support fundraisers. Please see the policy for more information.

Before proceeding, please confirm the following:

You have read and understood the program guidelines
You are able to demonstrate alignment between your project and the aims of this program
Your organisation is a not-for-profit organisation, and/or registered charity
Your organisation is incorporated, or is auspiced by an incorporated organisation for the purposes of this application
Your organisation has an address within the Hawkesbury LGA or can demonstrate that a significant proportion of your activity occurs within the Hawkesbury LGA and engages the residents of the Hawkesbury.
Your organisation has the appropriate type and level of insurance for the activities that are the subject of this grant

Are all the statements above true and correct? *

YesNo

Name of Organisation *

Applicants Name *

Position held within organisation *

Phone Number *

Email Address *

Postal Address *

Street address *

City *

State *

Postcode *

Is your organisation based in the Hawkesbury Local Government Area? *

YesNo

Is your organisation providing services in the Hawkesbury Local Government Area? *

YesNo

Is your organisation a not-for-profit organisation and/or a registered charity? *

YesNo

Please provide your ABN. The ABN will be used to look up information on your organisation. Please check that you have entered it correctly. *

Briefly describe the project for which you are seeking funding. *

How will your project benefit the Hawkesbury community? *

How many people do you expect to be involved or attend your project? *(The Events team may be notified depending on the number of people in attendance. Your organisation may be required to provide relevant event documentation under Event Sponsorship, referencing Council Event’s Guide - https://www.hawkesbury.nsw.gov.au/your-council/events/events-guide2)

The Assessment Criteria Matrix has been developed to guide you in filling out the application form. The following questions relate to the Assessment Criteria Matrix. When filling out the application form, refer to the criteria.

Describe how your project contributes to a connected community *(Your answer should include information on community partnerships, number of volunteers involved and how many residents are expected to attend.)

Describe how your project contributes to a healthy community *(Your answer should include information on community and wellbeing, healthy and active aging, and sustainability provisions.)

Describe how your project contributes to an inclusive community *(Your answer should include information on actions and measures taken to be inclusive, details of consultation with vulnerable individuals and groups and outline First Nation involvement.)

Describe how your project contributes to a resilient community *(Your answer should include information on community resilience, improved access to information, community preparedness and any increase to service capacity.)

The Assessment Criteria Matrix also asks questions relating to finance and governance. Please provide the following information about your organisation that shows you can complete the project you've described in this application.

How much funding are you requesting from Hawkesbury City Council? *(The maximum amount is $3,000.)

Will your organisation accept partial funding of the project? *

YesNo

How will funding be spent? *

Has Council sponsored this project in the past? *

YesNo

Describe why your project is needed within the Hawkesbury and provide supporting evidence *

Which action in the Community Strategic Plan does your project address? Please tick one of the following: *

Enable a shared responsibility for community resilience, community safety and disaster management.Encourage and enable our community to participate in a healthy lifestyle.Increase the range of local partnerships and plan for the future.Invest in our places, spaces and infrastructure to support thriving, prepared communitiesProvide the right place and spaces to serve our community.Build on a sense of community and wellbeing.Encourage broad and rich celebration of our local culture and significant heritage.

How does it address this action? *(For more information on the actions in the Community Strategic Plan, please refer to the Strategic Direction 1: Great Place to Live in the below/attached document)

Community Strategic Plan

Will your organisation be providing a co-contribution, either financial or in-kind? *

YesNo

Please describe the co-contribution. *

Will other funding be needed for this project? *

YesNo

Provide information on donations and other grants that you may be seeking to fund this project. *

Describe the plan for future financial support or continuance *

Thank you for filling out this application form. You will be directed to a page that confirms your application has been received. If you do not proceed to this page, your application has not been received.

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