About Lotterywest Grants

Here you will find information About Lotterywest Grants including:

• Our grant-making approach
• Our broad grant areas
• Who is eligible for our grants
• Our grant assessment process

Our Grant Making Approach

Thanks to the profits derived from the sale of games such as Lotto and Scratch’n’Win, Lotterywest is able to support a wide variety of not-for-profit, community-based proposals that enhance the lives of Western Australians right across our State.

Our grants are an investment in the future of your organisation and support the diversity of communities and community services by complementing contributions from other sources.  They support people with special needs, disadvantaged people in our community, and initiatives that contribute towards the quality of life for all members of the Western Australian community.

Our grant-making approach is submission based, and we are flexible and responsive to changing community needs.  To help achieve this we link our grants team with regions and with key community sectors across the State.  The team focuses on building relationships in these regions and sectors to ensure we understand and can respond to your needs. 

Our Broad Grants Areas

Five broad objectives provide the framework for our grant-making and aspirations for our community:

• Extending the Capacity of Not-For-Profit Organisations
• Strengthening Community Service Delivery
• Enhancing Community Development Initiatives
• Valuing our State’s Heritage
• Advancing Participation in Community Life

Various grant opportunities are offered within these five areas.

We also have broad types of grants that may be requested under the five areas. These include:

• Equipment
• Information Technology
• Vehicles
• Service Accommodation and Community Facilities 
• Time Limited Projects
• Research

Go to Grant Opportunities for a list of the various grants available from Lotterywest and links to more specific information and application form/s.

Please contact us if you have a proposal that doesn't seem to fit any of our grant areas and we can explore whether there is any potential for a grant.

Who is Eligible for Our Grants

The Lotteries Commission Act 1990 determines what types of organisations can receive a Lotterywest grant and for what purposes grants can be used.

Grants are available to:

• Not-For-Profit Organisations and
• Local Government Authorities.

Grants cannot be made to individuals, private or for-profit organisations, government bodies or organisations with a statutory base.

For projects/services that are subject to Tender processes, special conditions apply.  Please read our Policy and contact us before applying for a grant.

Grants can only be provided to support initiatives that are for a charitable or benevolent purpose and which benefit the community of Western Australia.

In 2007/08 a total of 1,270 grants totalling $86.8 million were made to 1,035 different organisations.

Hospitals, Sports and Arts also benefit from Lotterywest support.  Last year Lotterywest provided $116 million to the Departments of Health, Sport & Recreation and Culture & the Arts to support their work with the community.

Refer to the Test Your Eligibility section to explore whether your organisation and your proposal may be eligible for a Lotterywest grant.

Our Grant Assessment Process

The attached chart shows the Lotterywest Grants Process.

Once your application has been accepted it is linked with a member of our grants team according to its relevance to a region or community sector. The application is then assessed by the relevant member of our grants team who may also refer to a Technical Panel or Advisory Committee for input in some areas.  Recommendations are submitted to the Lotterywest Board for its consideration and then to the Premier for approval.

Currently, Lotterywest recommends support, in full or in part, for around 96% of applications.  This is due to careful partnerships between Lotterywest grants staff and potential applicants to ensure applications being prepared have the best potential to succeed. This can involve our grants staff working with applicants to develop their application so it better addresses our key assessment considerations and to share their knowledge and experience to help add value to a community project.

Refer to the Application Must Haves section for more information on how to apply and a checklist for what is required.

Refer to the Frequently Asked Questions section if you would like more information about Lotterywest grants.