Council is making amendments to the award of grant funding to a number of grants including:

• Community Events Grants
• Community Grants
• Miscellaneous Financial Assistance awards.

Application dates open Wednesday 1 June 2016 and close Thursday 30 June 2016. The applications will be assessed against Council’s Financial Assistance Policy.

For an application to proceed, Council must have full acquittals for any previous funding that has been awarded. Applicants must notify Council on how the funds were spent by filling in an evaluation report. Formal acquittals are required for all levels of funding. Organisations will need to account for “in kind” funding. “In kind” funding will now be included for the purposes of funding caps, which includes the use of Council facilities and resources.

In 2016 only, if an organisation has received and not spent grant funding from a previous period, they may still apply for another grant. However if the organisation is successful in gaining funding they must spend and provide an acquittal report on the first grant before receiving the second.

“We believe in supporting our local community as much as we can in any way we can. I encourage all local groups – sporting, hobby, volunteering, religious – to apply for a financial assistance grant,” Mayor of Strathfield, Councillor Sang Ok said.

These changes have been made to allow the Council to respond better to requests for financial assistance from the community and to put in place a process which is transparent and fair for the local community.