ORDINARY MEETING OF COUNCIL 11 MAY, 2021
PAGE 462 ITEM-4 COMMUNITY GRANTS PROGRAM REVIEW
THEME: Building a Vibrant Community & Prosperous Economy OUTCOME:
1 A connected and inclusive community with access to a range of services and facilities that contribute to health and wellbeing.
STRATEGY: 1.3 Facilitate the provision of services across the community.
MEETING DATE: 11 MAY 2021
COUNCIL MEETING
GROUP: CUSTOMER, COMMUNITY SERVICES AND TECHNOLOGY
AUTHOR:
GROUP MANAGER – CUSTOMER, COMMUNITY SERVICES AND TECHNOLOGY
JOHN DEAN
RESPONSIBLE OFFICER: GENERAL MANAGER MICHAEL EDGAR EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The purpose of this report is to consider draft changes to the Community Grants and Donations Policy to enable Council to provide financial assistance for activities that increase community service outcomes and community participation for residents.
It is recommended that two grant categories be implemented including:
1. the existing annual Community Grants round reserved for not-for-profit community groups, and
2. a new category called ‘Other Financial Assistance’ to manage ad-hoc requests for any person or private gain entities in accordance with Section 356 of the Local Government Act.
While not-for-profit groups will be able to apply for ad-hoc requests, they will need to demonstrate why they did not or could not apply through the annual Community Grants round.
Under the Local Government Act 1993 (The Act), Council is required to publically exhibit proposals that provide financial assistance to private gain entities for a minimum of twenty eight (28) days. There are no such requirements for not for profit organisations. The public exhibition requirements of the Community Grants and Donations Program Policy now mirror the requirements of the Act.
It is also recommended that a number of changes be considered in relation to the assessment process, eligibility criteria and supported activities. Key changes include but are not limited to:
a new requirement for minimum dollar-for-dollar funding for all grants;
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PAGE 463
a panel assessment score of at least 50% for Community Grants to be considered for approval;
incomplete applications or those not eligible at the time of lodgement will not proceed to the assessment panel;
the assessment panel chaired by the Mayor or delegate to include a minimum of three Councillors and an independent member of the Audit Committee;
the exclusion of some specific expenses (such as audit fees);
a maximum of one Community Grant approval per applicant will be allowed per financial year; and
a requirement for formal completion reporting.
The report also recommends that the Donations category be simplified with applicants required to demonstrate financial need as part of their application, as well as the removal of the specific reference to sport categories and the in-kind Council support component.
It is also recommended that ‘Special Circumstances Donation’ category requests be transferred to the proposed ‘Other Financial Assistance’ grant category.
REPORT
Community Grants and Other Financial Assistance
The draft Community Grants and Donations Policy proposes to continue the current arrangements for financial assistance for not-for-profit community groups solely via an annual Community Grants round capped at $15,000.
The draft policy also proposes that Council consider requests for ad-hoc financial assistance using a similar application and assessment process to the annual Community Grants round.
This new category would be called ‘Other Financial Assistance’ and would be open to any persons, community groups or private gain entities in accordance with Section 356 of the Local Government Act.
A draft online application form has been developed for this purpose and it proposes similar assessment criteria to the annual grants program.
Key Changes
Following the 2020/21 Community Grants round, specific recommendations were made by the assessment panel and these have been included in the draft Community Grant and Donations Policy and Guidelines attached to this report.
The annual Community Grants Program to be run at the same time every year.
The budget allocation for grants and donations is available for both grant categories (annual and ad-hoc) based on merit at the sole discretion of Council throughout the year.
If there is insufficient merit-based applications then the full Council budget may not be allocated.
Council will adopt an equitable and transparent process for allocation and management of all grants and donations with appropriate accountabilities for grant recipients.
Proposed grants will be assessed by a committee, either chaired by the Mayor or delegate, plus a minimum of three Councillors and an Audit and Risk Committee external member, followed by a report to Council.
At the time of lodgement for all requests, Council staff will initially assess non-compliant or incomplete applications, excluding them from proceeding to the assessment panel.
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‘In-kind’ resources will not be included in the budget and an explanation of any ‘in-kind’ is to be articulated in the supporting documentation.
Each applicant must provide an assessment of whether the project could proceed with reduced Council Grant assistance.
A minimum 50% assessment scores for the criteria for any funding to be considered for approval.
Individual scoring for both the annual Community Grants round and Other Financial Requests to be conducted by assessment panel members online and in advance of the panel meeting.
The 75% participation requirement be removed from the eligibility criteria, and replaced by a requirement that the activity is held in The Hills Shire Council area. The completion report must include advice on the percentage of Hills residents who participated or attended the activity.
Applicants will be required to match Council’s grant allocation in their budget for their project and those that can demonstrate greater collaboration or partnerships for the matched funding with a range of organisations will be viewed favourably.
The intention of the Council grant is to deliver increased community service outcomes for the recipients, and that all expenditure must be related to the activity impacting the recipients.
Grants cannot be used for normal ongoing organisational expenditure and/or equipment that would normally be funded by the operations of the organisation on an ongoing basis.
There is an expectation that community groups would canvass opportunities for sponsorships and/or pro-bono assistance from the community for items such as workshop food, audits, event collateral or guest speaker fees in the first instance as part of their partnerships.
Applicants applying for grants elsewhere for their project will need to demonstrate why Council should also support the project.
Council’s financial assistance for the project will be detailed in the Community Grant agreement and can only be used for the stated purpose.
Grants in either category require a completion report within 60 days of the completion of the project.
All grants in excess of $5,000 must be acquitted with a profit and loss statement signed by a Chartered Accountant (CA) or Certified Practicing Accountant (CPA) and any unspent grants cannot be transferred to another project and must be returned to Council.
As part of the completion report, at the discretion of the Council, grant recipients may be required to provide a short presentation to Councillors on the financial and community outcomes achieved by the grant allocation.
Donations
For many years, Council has provided small donations for sporting and cultural competitions.
Individuals or sponsoring organisations could also apply for a donation to support Hills Shire residents selected to compete at a recognised sporting or cultural competition outside the Sydney metropolitan area in NSW, interstate or internationally in accordance with the following scale:
$150 for an individual or $350 for a team selected to compete outside the metropolitan area in NSW;
$200 for an individual or $500 for a team selected to compete interstate; and
$300 for an individual or $750 for a team selected to compete internationally.
It is recommended that the specific categories above be deleted and incorporated into a renamed ‘Sporting, Cultural and Community Donations’ category, to a maximum of $1,000
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PAGE 465 where sport or cultural participation applicants would need to demonstrate financial need rather than just residency in The Hills LGA.
In-kind Council support has also been removed from the Donations category and Special Circumstances will be managed via the Other Financial Assistance grant category.
IMPACTS Financial
Funding is allocated in the Operational Plan each year for the Community Grants and Donations Program.
Strategic Plan - Hills Future
Ensure a connected and inclusive community with access to a range of services and facilities that contribute to health and wellbeing.
RECOMMENDATION
1. Council approve the Draft Community Grants and Donations Policy – Attachment 1 (ECM No. 19393247) for public exhibition for 28 days.
2. Council approve the Draft Community Grants Program Guidelines and the Draft Community Donations Program Guidelines – Attachments 2 and 3 (ECM Nos. 19393248 and 19393246) for public exhibition for 28 days.
3. A further report is brought to Council only if any opposing submissions are received after the 28 day public exhibition period.
ATTACHMENTS
1. Draft Revised Community Grants and Donations Program Policy (7 pages).
2. Draft Revised Community Grants Program Guidelines (5 pages).
3. Draft Revised Community Donations Program Guidelines (3 pages).
