Funding for disability-led activities that celebrate I-Day

You can apply if you are located or operate in the ACT and are:

• an individual
• an organisation
• a partnership, consortium or collaboration.

You also must not have received funding from another source to deliver or provide the same or similar project/program.

You can't apply if you:

• have overdue acquittal obligations for any previous Community Services Directorate grants
• are a government entity, profit making entity, or registered political party.

Organisation eligibility requirements

Organisations must meet the following organisational eligibility requirements to apply:

• be a non-government, legally incorporated entity or supported by an incorporated auspicing organisation
• be a registered not-for-profit or a charitable organisation
• appropriate insurance cover must be held by the organisation implementing a funded project. This may include Public Liability of no less than $10 million, Personal Accident, Volunteer Cover and or Directors Professional Indemnity. Evidence of insurance may be required as a condition of the grant.

Unincorporated community groups may be eligible to apply through an auspicing entity.

Partnerships, consortiums or collaborations

Have you considered undertaking the project in collaboration with another organisation?

Projects that involve more than one group or organisation may apply as a partnership or consortium. In such instances the following is required:

• list the roles and responsibilities of each group or organisation
• clarify who will take the lead, lodge the application, and submit the final acquittal
• identify the financial contribution each is making to the project.

Eligible projects must:

• provide an activity, project, or initiative that will be located in the ACT
• identify how the program will be led by Canberrans with disability
• demonstrate how they address any of the ACT Health and Wellbeing Framework outcomes
• have not received funding from another source to deliver the same or similar project
• include all supporting documentation needed for the application.

Projects need to be able to illustrate one or more of the following:

• display and or celebrate the skills, abilities, contributions, and achievements of people with disability
• promote community awareness, understanding and acceptance of people with disability
• provide opportunities for people with and without disability to come together, share ideas and network
• build options for people with disability to connect with community.

The 2023 I-Day Grant Program will prioritise funding projects that:

• are led by people with disability
• facilitate people with disability to have greater participation in community life
• support the dignity, rights, and well-being of people with disability
• promote disability awareness and an understanding of the experiences of people with disability
• increase awareness of the benefits of inclusion of people with disability in political, social, economic, and cultural life.

Example projects

A diverse range of activities, programs and events have previously taken place across Australia for I-Day that have been effective in raising awareness, providing information and resources, and celebrating the diversity and talent of people with disability. A few examples are:

• music, dance, and drama performances
• training classes, or art workshops
• networking programs and events
• mentorship programs
• photographic and short film exhibitions
• guest speakers at a workshop, or
• multi-sport competitions and come and try day activities.

Funding cannot be used for

The following will not be funded:

• activities or items that do not achieve the aims of the program
• projects that are not located in the ACT, or that do not benefit people with disability living in the ACT
• general administration and operational costs such as salaries, community and IT, stationery, insurance, rent, leasing, or utilities
• costs of projects or activities that have already taken place, or items already been purchased
• debt repayments of any kind
• projects or activities already funded by the ACT Government or Australian Government
• projects where alternative funding is more appropriate
• any travel or accommodation costs
• projects or activities which are deemed to be inappropriate or offensive including activities that contain content that may offend or bring into disrepute the application organisation, the Community Services Directorate and/or the ACT Government.

When your application is received it will be checked against these grant guidelines to ensure eligibility for funding.

Following the pre-eligibility check, the Grant Assessment Team will assess your application. The Grant Assessment Team will be made up of Canberrans with disability and representatives from Canberra Disabled Peoples Organisations.

Panel members will use the information provided in your application and information from any previous Community Services Directorate grant rounds to assess the applications submitted.

If you have been successful in other recent grant rounds, the panel may take this into consideration during their assessment considering the high number of applications received to ensure fairness across all applicants.

Due to the competitive process, all eligible applications will be assessed and prioritised by the Grant Assessment Team against the following criteria:

• Disability Led: The project, event or initiative is led by people with disability and illustrates the purpose of I-Day.
• Capacity: The proposal demonstrates that the organisation has the capacity to deliver the project including the appropriate qualifications, or dedicated staff with the skills experience and time to deliver the project and ability to manage the funding.
• Budget: The budget is realistic and clearly details all expenditure for the project including demonstrating value for money.

A budget is an estimate of income and expenditure required to complete your chosen activity. You will need to provide a budget with your application. This needs to show the funding breakdown for different items.

In some cases, due to the high demand for grants only part funding can be offered. Therefore, you will need to consider if you can proceed with your project if only part-funding is available.

If you have applied for another grant for this same project, please ensure this is explained in your application.

We will let you know the outcome of your application in writing. If you're successful, the Minister for Disability will notify you in writing and the Community Service Directorate will send you a Letter of Offer.

This process can take a minimum of 12 weeks. During this time you may not hear anything from the Community Service Directorate Grants team.

Unfortunately, not all applications can be funded as there are usually more applications received than funds available. This does not necessarily mean that the application is not worthy. It is more likely that other applications were ranked higher in the assessment process.

All successful applicants must spend the funds within the timeframes listed in the Letter of Offer.

An acquittal is a signed declaration, submitted at the end of the activity, stating that funding was used for the agreed purpose. This includes providing copies of receipts as proof of expenditure.

Acquittal process

The acquittal of the grant is managed through SmartyGrants.

Instructions will be provided to successful applicants in their Letter of Offer. You will need to login using the same identification details you used to submit the application. Please keep this in a safe place.

The funds must be expended in accordance with the activity/project outlined in the grant application and in the Letter of Offer, and all receipts must be retained and submitted with the acquittal.

Unspent funds

Any unspent funds from your grant must be returned to Community Services Directorate. Please email the Community Services Directorate Grants team at CSDgrants@act.gov.au to advise of any unspent funds.">