Up to $20,000 is available from Community Skills Development Grants to help environment groups and networks invest in training & development to increase their collective skills.
Community Skills Development Grants
The Community Skills Development Grants aim to strengthen environmental volunteer group and network capacity by supporting learning and skills development opportunities, and encouraging knowledge sharing with other groups and networks.
Objectives
The Community Skills Development Grants aim to enable groups and networks to strengthen their capacity, develop their skills, and operate more effectively, through:
- Supporting learning, development and training opportunities, and
- Encouraging knowledge sharing and skills development.
Funding
There are two funding streams for the Community Skills Development Grants:
- Stream 1 (Individual Group Grants) – individual groups can apply for up to $5,000 for up to three training or skills development activities.
- Stream 2 (Network or Partnership Grants) – networks or partner organisations can apply for up to $20,000 for up to five training or skills development activities.
A total of $600,000 will be shared across the two funding streams.
Eligible Projects
Training and skills development activities that will be considered for funding include (but are not limited) to the following:
- Workshop on benefits of collaboration and developing partnerships (e.g. advantages of networks)
- Communication & promotion training (e.g. writing media releases, developing promotional materials)
- Employment & human resources training (e.g. personel management, developing annual staff plans etc)
- First aid/refresher training
- Fundraising & writing grant applications workshop (e.g. securing project funds)
- Governance training
- GPS/mapping training
- Leadership & succession planning workshop
- Monitoring & reporting workshop (e.g. how to create a monitoring plan, how to use citizen science)
- Training in planning & delivery of community events
- Project development & planning workshop
- Workshop on how to recruite new members & volunteers (e.g. engage more young people in Landcare)
- Strategic planning & action planning workshop (e.g. for group, network, partnership)
- Social media training (e.g. Facebook, Twitter etc.)
Eligible Applicants
Grants are open to all Victorian volunteer community-based environment groups and networks. This includes, but is not limited to, Landcare groups/networks, Coastcare groups/networks, Conservation Management Networks, and ‘Friends of’ groups.
Applicants must either be:
- An incorporated association registered through Consumer Affairs Victoria, or
- Incorporated through an incorporated association, e.g. Landcare Victoria Incorporated, or
- Registered as a not-for-profit organisation with the Australian Charities and Not for Profit Commission.
Applicant groups/networks must also hold insurance sufficient to safeguard the volunteers and participants
involved in the funded activities, including personal accident insurance, and $10 million public liability insurance cover.
Catchment Management Authorities, Parks Victoria, local governments, State government agencies can be an auspice, but are NOT eligible as an applicant.
Commercial entities and for-profit organisations, Commonwealth government agencies and individuals are NOT eligible to be either an applicant or an auspice.
Timing
Applications close 12 October 2017.
