Active Regional Communities guidelines

About the program

The Active Regional Communities (ARC) Grants program aims to increase the opportunities for regional people to participate in sport and active recreation activities in regional Western Australia and is tailored to meet the ever-changing demands and challenges of sport and active recreation groups within the nine diverse regions of the State.

ARC funding is designed to assist the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries (DLGSC) in meeting its regional strategic objectives. It caters for both sport and active recreation groups and is aimed at the club level or to those groups who are not participating in the DLGSC Regional Organisation or Regional Servicing Grants program.

Note: participation initiatives specifically targeting Aboriginal and Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CaLD) populations can also be funded through the Targeted Participation Program (TPP).

Primary objectives

Capacity building

• Provide opportunities to improve the skills of community group or volunteers of organisations that target low participation groups.
• Improve the skills and capabilities of the sport and active recreation sector, through education and training programs.
• Grow and strengthen the sport and active recreation sector, through initiatives that improve the organisational governance within the sector.

Event hosting

• Assist in the hosting of regionally based sport and active recreation events.

Participation

• Provide opportunities that will increase the physical activity levels of target groups who currently have low participation rates.
• Provide opportunities for participation at all levels, through sport and active recreation programs, competitions and events.

Funding may be used for

• running of programs (payment of staff and coaches will not be considered when program activities fall within their normal duties)
• coaching clinics
• volunteer training
• project or program administration (no more than 10% of total funding)
• coaching accreditation courses
• referee or umpire accreditation courses
• equipment (integral to the project or program and must remain the property of the organisation, funded to a maximum of up to 30%)
• event hosting — hire of additional equipment integral to event, e.g. portable ablutions or floodlighting.

Assessment criteria

An assessment will be made to determine if the application is eligible by assessing it against the grant criteria.

If approved, a grant agreement will be entered into, which outlines the grant conditions and acquittal requirements. Once signed and returned, the grant will be paid directly to the applicant body (organisation/association).

Eligibility requirements

• Be an incorporated, not-for-profit organisation either under the Western Australian Associations Incorporation Act (2015) or Commonwealth Corporations Act (2001) with an Australian Business Number (ABN), or Indigenous organisations under the Commonwealth Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act (2006).
• Where appropriate, be affiliated with a SSA or industry peak body.
• Have acquitted all previous DLGSC grants prior to the application being submitted unless the grant is still current.
• Have an Australian Business Number (ABN).
• Your organisation will be required to maintain appropriate and sufficient insurance cover for the duration of the project. Please note, organisations will be required to have current public liability insurance to the value of $10 million per claim or occurrence giving rise to a claim. A certificate of currency of insurance for the coming year is to be provided upon application.

Additional requirement

• Projects are not to commence before approval has been granted by DLGSC. No retrospective funding will be considered.

Who cannot apply

• individuals or groups of individuals
• organisations seeking funds for metropolitan based programs
• State Government departments and agencies
• educational institutions including schools, universities and TAFE colleges
• commercial entities
• organisations already receiving funds through Regional Organisation Grants or Regional Servicing Grants
• unincorporated bodies.

Level of funding available

Grants up to $5000 are available, with applicants needing to demonstrate a significant contribution (up to 25%) towards the cost of the project or event, and/or in-kind contribution.

How to apply

1. Read the guidelines.
2. Contact the local DLGSC regional office to discuss which grants are suitable for your specific project idea.
3. Complete the application form and submit to your nearest DLGSC regional office.
4. Applications are accepted throughout the year and must be lodged 8 weeks prior to the project or event start date. All supporting documentation is required with each application.
5. Organisations can only apply once per financial year in each primary objective category.
6. DLGSC will process the application and may seek clarification before making recommendation.
7. Notification of application outcome occurs within eight weeks of DLGSC receiving your final application.

When to apply

Applications are open all year.

Assessment and notification

An assessment will be made to determine if the application is eligible by assessing it against the grant criteria. If approved, a grant agreement will be entered into which outlines the grant conditions and acquittal requirements. Once signed and returned, the grant will be paid directly to the applicant body (organisation or association). No grant monies will be paid directly to an individual. The applicant body will be responsible for the acquittal of the grant and will be responsible to forward any approved funding to individuals as deemed necessary.

At the completion of the project, the applicant body will need to complete the acquittal documentation, acquittal statement and key results schedule, within 30 days and forward to DLGSC to demonstrate that the funds have been spent in accordance with the outlined grant agreement. Failure to comply with these requirements may jeopardise future funding from DLGSC.

GST registration

• If your organisation has an ABN and is registered for GST, the grant will be grossed up by 10% of the grant amount.
• If your organisation has an ABN and is not registered for GST, no GST will be allocated to your grant.

Freedom of information

• DLGSC will adhere to the provisions of the Commonwealth Freedom of Information Act (1992) in relation to requests for information originating from DLGSC.
• Information not originating from DLGSC but provided to DLGSC, will not be released without prior consultation with or permission by the relevant organisation.

Privacy

• All information provided to DLGSC during the grant assessment process will be stored on a database that will only be accessed by authorised departmental personnel.
• The database is subject to privacy restrictions in accordance with the Commonwealth Privacy Act (1998) and the Freedom of Information Act (1992).

DLGSC acknowledgement

• Successful organisations will be required to acknowledge DLGSC and further details will be provided to successful applicants within their grant agreement.

Further information

To discuss your proposed project or to obtain assistance to complete your application, please contact your regional office.