Looking beyond arts funding
- 9 May 2014
Arts and cultural organisations are increasingly successful in attracting Community Benefit funding….
The community benefit funding programs distribute revenue from gaming taxes to various not-for-profit community groups throughout Queensland. This is a source of funding arts and cultural organisations should consider. In the last announced round of the state-wide Gambling Community Benefit Fund (closing date 30 November 2013) several arts and cultural organisations were successful including:
- Topology Inc $25,945 to deliver top up workshops
- Torimba Cultural and Festival Assoc $22,987 to upgrade hall
- Red Ridge (interior Queensland) Ltd $21,000 to purchase equipment and cater to projects
- Queensland Performing Arts Trust $15,047 to provide volunteer equipment for festival
- Queensland Cultural Events Assoc Inc $21,410 purchase of transportable shade structure
- Queensland Arts Council (Artslink) $31,818 to fit out of new studio
- North Stradbroke Island Historical Museum Assoc Inc $27,038 to upgrade hut for storage
- Magnetic Jazz Association $13,900 to conduct the Great Tropical Jazz Party
- Friends of the Brolga Theatre Group Inc $27,610 to purchase lighting equipment
- Brisbane Writers Festival Assoc Inc $22,170 to purchase IT equipment
- Brisbane Chorale Inc $12,655 to develop community engagement program
- Brisbane Arts Theatre $27,123 to refurbish theatre seats
- Board of Trustees of Newstead House $31,818 to upgrade facility
- Bayside Divas Inc $9460 to purchase equipment
Apart from the state-wide Fund there are also three casino funds: Jupiters Casino Community Benefit Fund; Reef Hotel Casino Community Benefit Fund and Breakwater Island Casino Community Benefit Fund with eligibility defined by geographic region. However, there is a bill before parliament to amalgamate the funds. The new fund is planned to be available for the funding round that opens mid-July and closes 31 August, 2014. There will then be four rounds per year for funding of up to $35,000.
As with any grant program it is important you read the guidelines and that you are able to eloquently and concisely demonstrate the community benefit. Feedback indicates that demonstrating the community benefit and clearly articulating what you are asking for and why upfront will enhance the competitiveness of your application. Also lots of applications fail because of technical issues like not providing the required documentation and not completing the application correctly so pay attention to the basics!
Details of all successful organisations are listed on the Fund’s website . As you can see from the list above, funding has been provided for diverse purposes and large and small organisations have been successful. Applications for all but the Reef Hotel Casino Community Benefit Fund are closing on 31 May 2014. Is there something you need to assist in delivering your public programs?
Arts Queensland would like to hear from any organisation willing to share its success with this fund so other organisations can benefit from your experiences. You are welcome to let us know by posting comments to this post or by emailing linda.dreghorn@arts.qld.gov.au or telephone 07 3034 4077.
Feature image: http://www.freeimages.com/