Before you apply, please read through the information below. It will give you the best chance of your application being successful.
Important information
- Name: Community Service Organisation (CSO) Funding
- Status: Closed
- Frequency: Once every 3 years
- Amount: $5,000 - $40,000 (although we may not approve the full amount you request)
- Previously successful recipients
Purpose of this grant
This grant is designed to help community organisations deliver services that support the residents of Casey. This grant is aligned with Council objectives and addresses community needs. Funding can be used to cover administrative and operational costs.
CSO Funding aims to:
- Enhance the health, wellbeing and safety of residents through the provision of high quality sustainable services and programs.
- Build the capacity of CSOs to plan and deliver vital services for diverse communities.
- Provide support to CSOs to respond to Casey’s population growth, changing demographics and emerging community needs.
- Strengthen partnerships between Council and CSOs to inform facility and services planning and development.
- Support a range of services and programs across the funding priority areas detailed in the guidelines.
Who can apply for this grant
To apply for this grant, you must:
- be a not-for-profit or charitable organisation
- be a legally constituted entity such as a cooperative, incorporated Association, Company or trust
- have a Committee or Board of Management
- have public liability insurance of $10 million
What we cannot fund
- Capital works including permanent structures or anything that increases the value of your facility.
- Programs that only advocate religion or faith.
- Programs that already receive funding from Council
- One-off activities, events or fundraising activities
- Anything that is already being funded elsewhere in government, such as kindergartens.
Who cannot apply for this grant
- Individuals
- Government agencies at local, state or federal level
- Businesses
- Political parties or groups
- Schools and Council managed kindergartens
Funding priorities
Applications should align with the following funding priorities and demonstrate outcomes in one or more of the funding priority areas.
| Funding priorities | Outcomes or benefits to Casey residents |
| Inclusive health, wellbeing and social support services that address economic and social disadvantage. | Improved range of culturally appropriate support services; better access to healthy food options; enhanced health and wellbeing; increase in LGBTIQ+ inclusive services; improved range of support services for people with a disability; enhanced services for Aboriginal residents; improved digital ability and local access to integrated services for the community particularly women, older people, families and children aged 0-4 years. |
| Support for residents who are in crisis or impacted by COVID-19 | Access to COVID-19 recovery, emergency relief and crisis support; access to legal information and services; increased availability of crisis and longer-term affordable accommodation/housing options; enhanced mental health outcomes; reduction in use of alcohol and other drugs; enhanced digital and internet access for those in need. |
| Participation, social connections, and capacity building programs for young people and people from CALD communities. | Development of young people’s strengths; minimisation of risk factors; higher rates of participation in capacity building programs; lower rates of young people offending; improved access to a diverse range of culturally appropriate support services; increased social connection and participation in community life; more equitable access to digital resources. |
| Family violence prevention and gender equality initiatives. | Reduction in incidents of violence against women and children; increased number of women accessing family violence-related support services; increased number of perpetrators accessing behaviour change programs; improvement in perceptions of safety; enhanced community awareness of respectful relationships between all genders. |
| Pathways to employment, local job creation and volunteering. | Increase in the number of local jobs; improved employment pathways for unemployed and job seekers; reduction in barriers to access employment opportunities; development of English literacy, vocational and job readiness skills; increased awareness of Australian education pathways and employment systems; enhanced employer awareness of Casey workforce; increased levels of community volunteering. |
| Services that meet gaps and unmet demand in Casey’s growth* areas and coastal communities**. | Improved access to a range of local support services and programs in growth areas and coastal communities; better spread of programs across Casey; provision of outreach or satellite services in areas of unmet demand; better availability of different models of online and digital service delivery; better access to services for residents without access to transport. |
* Growth areas include Berwick South, Botanic Ridge, Cranbourne East, Cranbourne South, Cranbourne North, Cranbourne West, Clyde, Clyde North
** Coastal communities include the suburbs of Blind Bight, Cannons Creek, Tooradin and Warneet.
How we decide on successful grants
Your application will be assessed on how well your application meets the following criteria:
| Criteria | What we're checking for |
| 1. Clear purpose and objectives that align with Council’s funding priorities for the CSO Funding program. | • Evidence of organisational purpose, core services and programs that are community focussed. • The aims and objectives of the proposed service or program are clearly identified. • The service or program and intended target group aligns with the funding priorities of the CSO Funding Program. |
| 2. Evidence of need in the community and for the organisation | • The applicant has evidence of a strong community need for the service or program. • The service or program will improve the overall quality of service provided by the applicant and/or enable the applicant to broaden or deepen their role in the community. • The service or program cannot be funded elsewhere or Council funding is required for the program to proceed. |
| 3. Direct benefit to the Casey community | • The service or program is accessible and delivers clear, measurable outcomes or benefits to the target group. • There is potential for the service or program to have lasting community impact. • There is participation and support from Casey residents, other local community groups and partner organisations |
| 4. Capacity of the organisation to manage the funding and deliver the service or program | • The applicant has the organisational structure, management skills and financial capability to achieve the outcomes listed in their application. • The organisation has successful delivered services and programs in the past. • The organisation has an effective plan to implement and manage the service or program over the three year period. • The budget is detailed and realistic. |
What happens next?
If your application is successful:
- We will notify you by email in June 2021
- You will be provided with a Funding Agreement which will outline expectations and conditions for the three years of funding. A three-year funding agreement will be offered to organisations, subject to the decision of Council.
- You will need to review our Grants Policy
- You will need to clear any outstanding payments to Council before we can pay the grant.
- Any other Council grants or acquittal requirements must be satisfied before funds can be released.
Successful applicants can expect their funds in July/August 2021, once Funding Agreements have been signed and other necessary documents provided.
If your application is unsuccessful:
An email will be sent to unsuccessful organisations explaining why the application was not successful. You can expect to hear from us in June 2021.
What are the conditions of funding?
All successful applicants must adhere to the conditions as outlined in the City of Casey’s Grants Policy in addition to the following:
- Successful applicants will be required to enter into a funding and service agreement with the City of Casey, which lists funding conditions. This must be signed and appropriate documentation provided before funds are issued. A three-year funding agreement will be offered to organisations, subject to the decision of Council.
- Successful applicants will be required to provide a written evaluation report after the first year of funding (or as otherwise specified in the funding agreement) as part of the decision-making process for continuing the funding for a second year. Council will provide the evaluation report template to all organisations, and Council officers will review the completed reports.
- Council reserves the right to withdraw the offer of a second year of funding if eligibility or funding conditions are breached; or if the funded service or program is unable to meet its objectives or agreed outcomes.
- Successful applicants will be required to provide a statement of expenditure or an audited statement at completion of the three-year funding period. If Council’s grant funds are not spent, all remaining funds must be returned to Council.
- Successful applicants will be expected to attend quarterly networking meetings convened by Council officers to discuss community needs, trends and partnership opportunities.
- Successful applicants may be approached by Council to assist in the area for which they are funded in the event of an emergency in Casey. The nature of this assistance would be discussed during the development of the funding and service agreement.
- Please note that a CSO Funding application will not necessarily result in funding, or may result in only a portion of the amount requested being allocated.
- Groups with outstanding payments due to Council will need to clear the debt before they can receive their funding each year.
- Groups will need to satisfy acquittal requirements for previous Council grants and funding before funds will be released.
Tell us how your grant was used
After you have completed your project, you must tell us how you spent the grant money and what the outcomes of the project were. This is known as an acquittal process. An acquittal report will be required at the end of each year of funding.
Contact us
Community Grants Officers are available to answer questions about how to apply, eligibility criteria and general enquiries.
Please phone (03) 9705 5200 or email: [email protected]