Last chance to apply for Council’s $600,000 Major Grants program

Time is running out for not-for-profit community groups to secure a slice of more than $600,000 up for grabs in Sunshine Coast Council’s latest Community Grants program.

Applications are still open until 15 March for Major Grants, where eligible groups with great project ideas can turn their dreams about making local communities more active, vibrant, inclusive, resilient or creative into a reality.

Up to $15,000 grants are on offer for projects, events and activities that meet community need and provide community benefit.

Grants of up to $30,000 are also available for infrastructure projects that involve the development, maintenance or improvement of buildings or land that contribute to providing a safe, accessible and inclusive community facility.  

Sunshine Coast Council Community Portfolio Councillor David Law encouraged people to apply now, especially given ordinary co-funding requirements had been temporarily adjusted for this round.

“Council understands how challenging fundraising has become over the past year and how difficult it will be to secure co-funding in the current COVID-19 affected environment,” Cr Law said.

“With this in mind, council has suspended co-funding requirements for grant requests of up to $10,000 and reduced co-funding requirements to 50 percent for all requests more than $10,000 for this round.

“We want to support projects that reactivate the community in a resilient and vibrant way, inject money into the local economy and are ready to get started and be successfully completed.

“Community groups and their volunteers are invaluable to our strong community.

“In recognising this and the impact COVID-19 is having on volunteer numbers and workloads, priority will also be given to projects that encourage or ease volunteerism.” 

Past recipients of council’s August Major Grants round included Volunteering Sunshine Coast, who received $7500 to create Inspiring Youth into Volunteering, a direct marketing campaign, and Coolum Cricket Club, who received a $30,000 grant to go towards irrigation works at the Ron Cargill Oval.

For more information on the Community Grants program visit: www.sunshinecoast.qld.gov.au/grants.