Grants & funding

Make it Happen Hobsons Bay Recovery and Reconnection grants are now closed. 

Click here for more information about the Make it Happen Grants. 

You can subscribe to emails regarding future Council grant programs.

Hobsons Bay Business has Heart 2.0 grants are now closed.

If you would like to be notified when business grants are next available, please go to our business website www.hobsonsbaybusiness.com.au to subscribe to our monthly e-works newsletter.

Sign up here. 

The Hobsons Bay Community Fund is a perpetual philanthropic fund established to benefit and strengthen the community of Hobsons Bay for now and future generations.

The fund provides grant opportunities, for more information visit Hobsons Bay Community Fund (hbcommunityfund.org.au)

Westgate Neighbourhood Fund

The West Gate Neighbourhood Fund has been established by the Victorian Government to support communities in Melbourne’s inner west during the construction of the West Gate Tunnel Project.

The $10 million West Gate Neighbourhood Fund (WGNF) has been established by the Victorian Government to support communities in Melbourne’s inner west during the construction of the West Gate Tunnel Project.

Offered in 2 components – partnerships and grants, the WGNF allows not-for-profit groups to access funding for projects that bring people together and build community capacity.

 The program is designed to support these inner west communities, prioritising those who are most affected by the construction of the West Gate Tunnel Project, ensuring that the benefits of the project to the local community start now.

A range of activities will be eligible for funding through the program, including projects that:

• celebrate heritage, history or diversity
• contribute to safe and liveable environments
• focus on arts and culture
• emphasise learning and development, or
• enable greater participation and access of community members

Launched in November 2019, the first rounds of the WGNF - Partnerships and Grants streams have closed and Round 1 recipients for both have been announced.

Westgate Neighbourhood Fund - Grants Round 2

On Friday 22 July 2022 the West Gate Tunnel Neighbourhood Fund will launch the Grants Round 2 to the Community. The grants stream will support community led projects that improve community access and participation. Not-for-profit community organisations can apply for funding in three categories:

• Up to $10,000 for a one-off project or activity that aims to improve community connectedness and participation
• Up to $20,000 for festivals, events, and installations that bring local people together
• Up to $100,000 for improvements to local community, sporting and recreation facilities, and local environments.

This round closes 3pm - Friday 19 August 2022. Announcements of successful recipients are expected to be made in late 2022.

Grant writing workshops and information sessions will be held in support of this opportunity:

• 10am - Thursday 4 August 2022, Newport Community Hub

To keep up to date with the West Gate Neighbourhood Fund information and the opening of Partnership Round 2, please refer to the link in the Related Information section: https://bigbuild.vic.gov.au/projects/west-gate-tunnel-project/community/west-gate-neighbourhood-fund

The Hobsons Bay Grant Finder is a grant finding service for businesses, community groups and not for profits. This comprehensive and up-to-date funding database, makes finding and applying for grants easy. 

Hobsons Bay Grant Finder portal

There are lots of resources available to support you to prepare to write a grant application. There are also lots of websites to locate potential grants or funding sources.

Resources to assist when writing a grant application:

Funding Centre Grant Help sheets – 
Tools, checklists and helpsheets to help you get grants ready, write sparkling applications, and help fund your next project.
https://www.fundingcentre.com.au/grant/help

The Funding Centre – grant writing tips: 
www.fundingcentre.com.au/help/writing-grant

The Funding Centre – sample answers for grant applications: 
https://www.fundingcentre.com.au/help/answersbank

The Grants hub – grant application tips
Grant Resources — The Grants Hub

Philanthropy How to guide - Effective Grant-Seeking: 
www.philanthropy.org.au/seek-funding/how-to-seek-funding

Hobsons Bay Libraries – several publications are available that may assist with grant seeking and writing, e.g. Winning Grants Funding in Australia: 
http://libraries.hobsonsbay.vic.gov.au

Australian Sports Foundation
Fundraising Toolkit

Our Community - Australia's Centre for Excellence for the nation's 600,000 not-for-profits & schools, providing advice, tools and resources: 
http://ourcommunity.com.au

Other funding sources

Hobsons Bay Grant Finder - grant finding service for businesses, community groups and not for profits: 
hobsonsbay.grantguru.com.au

The Funding Centre – grants and fundraising hub (membership fee applies):
http://www.fundingcentre.com.au/

Bendigo Bank
https://www.bendigobank.com.au/branch/vic/altona-community-bank-branch/

Hobsons Bay Community Fund: 
https://www.hbcommunityfund.org.au

Grant connect - Australian government grants
Australian Government grant opportunities and grants awarded
GrantConnect

Victorian government grants and programs
Search grants and programs provided by Victorian government
Grants and programs

Online grants and funding courses available to local groups and clubs

Council is linking community groups with some handy online grant application courses to maximise chances of being successful when applying for grants. There is no charge for the first 40 Hobsons Bay community groups to complete the following courses (a saving of $55 per online course). So be quick!

The course should take about 45 minutes to complete. Once started the group/club has a 30 day window to finish it.

Course 1 - Where’s the funding?

This course will help you identify the many sources of income available to your organisation and help you build confidence to start drawing from each of them.

The result? Fewer burnt out volunteers, more successful events, a bigger donor database, and ultimately a stronger, healthier, more sustainable community group.

Course 2 - Win more grants

Around $80 billion is given out in grants across Australia each year. Is your organisation getting its share?

This course is designed for grassroots community groups that want to find out where to find grants and how to get them. With just a bit of know-how, and some newfound confidence, you’ll go from a grants novice to a grants go-getter!

Register here - https://www.ourcommunity.com.au/hobsons-bay

This link will take you to the Our Community website for registration and access to the courses.