Community Participation Grant - for individuals 2023-2024

Submissions closed at midnight 30 June 2024 (AEST).

Welcome to the Merri-bek City Councils online grant application service, powered by SmartyGrants.

**Please note this round will close on 30 June 2024. If you are planning on submitting an applicaiton form after this date, please wait and a new round will open on 1 July.
    * Why? We close off each "round" at the end of each financial year for our reporting.

Applications for this category must be submitted at least 4 weeks prior to the planned activity starting. 

Community Participation Grants
Aims to support initiatives that help residents participate in community life and improve personal outcomes.

Use this application form to apply for the following category: 
  • Community Participation Grant - for individuals (up to $750)

Community Participation Grant - for Individuals
Supports up to $750. Funding is provided to individuals who are residents of Moreland that have been selected to pursue an achievement and / or development activity in their chosen area of expertise. Applications must be submitted at least four weeks prior to the planned activity beginning.

An Applicant must:
   • Read the Guidelines
   • be a resident of Merri-bek City Council 
   • show that they have been invited to participate in an activity by an organisation or group
   • show that there are financial barriers to participating in the activity
   • Demonstrate a strong commitment to their area of endeavour
   • Show the benefit of your activity to the Merri-bek community

What funding can cover
   • Helping an individual to participate in an event or activity such as, artist/cultural events, sporting competitions
   • Opportunities to participate in State, National and international forums that will bring new skills and knowledge to the Merri-bek community
   • Leadership and professional development opportunities that will help build leadership capacity of the Merri-bek community

Read the new Guidelines for more information about this category at our website. 

Assessment timelines
   • The timeline for this grant is approx 4-6 weeks, once submitted and officers are comfortable all supporting documentation is appropriate for the application and funds requested, the application will be assessed against the criteria, and you will receive notification of the outcome.
   • If approved for funding support, you will be required to submit a funding agreement. Payment made in accordance with Council;'s payment terms, which is usually within 14 days of submitting the agreement
   • You may begin anywhere in this application form. Please ensure you save as you go.
   • For queries about eligibility, guidelines or questions in the form, please contact us on 9240 1111 during business hours or email the grants officer - communitygrants@merri-bek.vic.gov.au; and quote your application number.
   • Click here to view further information and the guidelines.

IMPORTANT: Please read information below to assist you in completing your application online.

Before you begin:

NAVIGATING (MOVING THROUGH) THE APPLICATION FORM
On every screen (page of the form) you will find a Form Navigation contents box, this links directly to every page of the application. Click the link to jump directly to the page you want. 
You can also click 'next page' or 'previous page' on the top or bottom of each page to move forward or backward through the application.

SAVING YOUR DRAFT APPLICATION
If you wish to leave a partially completed application, press 'save' and log out. When you log back in and click on the 'My Submissions' link at the top of the screen, you will find a list of any applications you have started or submitted. You can reopen your draft application and start where you left off.

You can also download any application, whether draft or completed, as a PDF. Click on the 'Download' button located at the bottom of the last page of the application form.

SUBMITTING YOUR APPLICATION
You will find a Review and Submit button at the bottom of the Navigation Panel. You need to review your application before you can submit it.
Once you have reviewed your application you can submit it by clicking on 'Submit' at the top of the screen or on the navigation panel. You will not be able to submit your application until all the compulsory questions are completed.
Once you have submitted your application, no further editing or uploading of support materials is possible.
When you submit your application, you will receive an automated confirmation email with a copy of your submitted application attached. This will be sent to the email you used to register.
If you do not receive a confirmation of submission email then you should presume that your submission has NOT been submitted.

ATTACHMENTS AND SUPPORT DOCUMENTS
You may need to upload/submit attachments to support your application. This is very simple, but requires you to have the documents saved on your computer, or on a storage device.
You need to allow enough time for each file to upload before trying to attach another file. Files can be up to 25MB each; however, we do recommend trying to keep files to a maximum of 5MB – the larger the file, the longer the upload time.

COMPLETING AN APPLICATION IN A GROUP/TEAM
A number of people can work on an application using the same log in details as long as only one person is working at a time. Ensure you save as you go.

SPELL CHECK
Most internet browsers (including Firefox v2.0 and above; Safari; and Google Chrome) have spell checking facilities built in – you can switch this function on or off by adjusting your browser settings.

adjusting your browser settings.