All applications must meet the eligibility criteria, as listed below.

Organisations must:

• Not owe any outstanding rates or debts to Council.
• Be up-to-date or have completed and adequately acquitted any previous grant/sponsorship funding from Northern Beaches Council.
• Be one of the following:
  - Incorporated
  - Not for profit organisation
  - Commercial businesses or individual with an ABN
• Acknowledge if the activation is for the purpose of fundraising either for itself, or a third party, further information is in the FAQ section
• Have sought permission from the building/site owner for the project to proceed in principle. 

Activations must:

• Be open to the public to attend and/or participate.
• Be held in town and village centres within the Northern Beaches LGA and directly support the businesses in the area.

Ineligible activities

• Activations that are overtly religious or political, divisive or offensive to the general community.
• Promotion of alcohol or tobacco products or gambling.
• Be based on privately owned buildings or land.
• Recurring or ongoing operational expenses not directly related to the proposed activation.
• Payment of debts.
• Fundraising for political parties or religious groups.
• Activations that are seen to be in competition or conflict with Council activities.
• Normal operation of regular activations such as gatherings, markets, or sport.
• Online activities.

General exclusions

Northern Beaches Council does not provide grants to projects that:

• Duplicate existing services or programs unless there is a demonstrated additional need.
• Have already occurred (no retrospective funding).
• Are already funded by another Northern Beaches Council grant program.
• Have multiple applicants submitting applications for the same project.
• Have operational expenses, such as rent, ongoing staff wages, insurance, utilities, day-to-day general office supplies not directly related to the project. 
• Include travel or accommodation expenses.
• Council does not provide fee waivers or free use for in-house design, printing
  and distribution service, hall hire, street closures, or cleansing and waste service for events. These costs must be included in the application budget.

Total funding pool $20,000

A grant request can be for any amount but must be able to provide justification for the amount requested within the context of their budget and plan. Grant amounts can be as small as $500 to decorate a shop front or up to $4,000 to paint a mural or create a live activation. Grants for larger amounts can be submitted and will be considered on a case-by-case basis. All grants may be partially or fully funded following the panel’s consideration.
 

You may only receive partial funding for your project from Council, so please consider if there are other options for funding i.e. sponsorship and participation fees.

View past grant recipient projects

Applications will be assessed against the funding objectives and the following priority areas

• Community benefit – demonstrate significant economic, social, community, cultural and/or environmental contribution to the Northern Beaches community. 
• Priority areas – strongly relate to one or more identified Council Goals. 
• Value for money – justify the grant amount requested and included a well-researched and realistic budget, clearly indicating what Council funds would be spent on, as well as other contributions including corporate sponsorship and in-kind support.
• Activation of places – Activations must be located within Town & Village Centres or in other areas that can demonstrate that placemaking activities would directly support the surrounding businesses.
• Environmental & waste management – the activation promotes sustainability and utilises waste avoidance principles.
• Organisational capacity to deliver – the applicant has a demonstrated track record in delivering projects of the scale and type proposed and/or the application includes a thorough and realistic project delivery plan

View the Community Strategic Plan

Activations must be located within Town & Village Centres