Supporting the Most Vulnerable

We’re here to help your organisation assist people currently in crisis related to COVID-19 and avoid entrenched disadvantage.

The objective of this grant program is to help organisations which provide support to people experiencing financial hardship as a result of COVID-19 to meet their immediate basic needs and to support prevention and early intervention programs that address the longer term impacts and social and economic consequences of the pandemic.

There are two streams of funding available: Crisis and Emergency Relief, and Prevention and Early Intervention.

Grant applications must seek to achieve one or more of the outcomes outlined below.

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Outcomes focus

Crisis and Emergency Relief

  1. Organisations which provide support to people experiencing financial hardship as a result of the COVID-19 crisis have support to help them to meet their immediate basic needs.

  2. Those most vulnerable in the community who are already experiencing hardship, that is exacerbated as a result of the COVID-19 crisis, have support to meet their immediate basic needs to avoid becoming further entrenched in disadvantage.

Prevention and Early Intervention

  1. Secondary and longer-term impacts resulting from the social and economic consequences of the COVID-19 crisis are minimised through prevention and early intervention initiatives that are complementary to and reduce demand for government-funded intervention and welfare services.

  2. Knowledge is shared to strengthen the community services sector to better respond to potential second or third waves of COVID-19.

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Applications for both streams of the Supporting the Most Vulnerable Grant Program will be open on 20 July 2020 and are expected to remain open for 2020-21.

We encourage you to talk to our team to discuss your idea before submitting an application. Application will be assess monthly and approvals for this program may take approximately a few months or longer should further work be required.

To view the implementation approach for these grant programs, including indicative budget allocations and timings, click here. 

Supporting the Most Vulnerable - Who can be supported?

Not-for-profit organisations and local government authorities.

Supporting the Most Vulnerable - What can be supported?

To be eligible for Lotterywest support, a grant request must be:

  • for charitable or benevolent purposes with outcomes that align with one of our COVID-19 Relief Fund streams. 
  • directly related to your organisation’s purpose. Quick tip: You can check the ‘objects’ or ‘purpose’ in your organisation’s constitution or rules
  • taking place in WA, or be of direct benefit to the WA community

The following can be supported through this funding program:

Crisis and Emergency Relief

Costs related to increased demand for emergency relief (ER) services as a result of COVID-19 for time-limited interventions such as:

  • food, blankets, homelessness support, transport, essential pharmaceuticals and essential personal items such as clothing
  • utility payments where they cannot be covered by existing hardship schemes
  • coordination and collaboration costs to deliver ER services
  • costs related to connecting people to other relevant services to avoid entrenched disadvantage and to overcome barriers to accessing new opportunities

Prevention and Early Intervention

Project costs and resources related to:

  • Time-limited prevention and early intervention initiatives and innovations to minimise the secondary impacts of COVID-19 on socio-economic disadvantage, family and domestic violence (FDV), mental health and homelessness
  • Time-limited initiatives that work to help protect and prepare vulnerable parts of the WA community from a potential second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic
  • Initiatives that are complementary to other government funded interventions and welfare services.
Supporting the Most Vulnerable - What won't be supported?
  • Initiatives that are the core responsibilities of other government departments
  • Initiatives fully funded by others, or where there is partial funding and the remainder is more appropriately met by another funder
  • Ongoing costs for emergency relief services unrelated to the impacts of COVID‑19
  • Ongoing initiatives or programs relating to existing entrenched disadvantage, ongoing vulnerability and/or illness that has not been exacerbated as a result of COVID-19
  • Costs unrelated to prevention and early intervention initiatives such as acute service delivery
  • Contingency costs
  • Large infrastructure projects
Supporting the most vulnerable - What are some example projects which may be funded?

This program could involve support for things such as:

  • Support for a homelessness service provider to deliver additional outreach services to people that are newly homeless, or at risk of homelessness
  • Support for food relief service providers to meet identified community needs as a result of COVID-19
  • Collaborative initiatives to provide a range of relevant support for vulnerable people.
  • Funding for additional support services for women experiencing domestic violence
Supporting the Most Vulnerable - Who are our priority communities?
  • People experiencing (or at risk of) homelessness
  • People experiencing family and domestic violence
  • People experiencing mental health issues
  • Newly unemployed (including temporary visa holders)
Supporting the Most Vulnerable - What are the expected outcomes for this grant program?

Crisis and Emergency Relief

  • Organisations supporting people experiencing financial hardship as a result of the COVID-19 crisis have support to help them to meet their immediate basic needs.
  • Those most vulnerable in the community who are already experiencing hardship, that is exacerbated as a result of the COVID-19 crisis, have support to meet their immediate basic needs to avoid becoming further entrenched in disadvantage.

Prevention and Early Intervention

  • Secondary and longer-term impacts resulting from the social and economic consequences of the COVID-19 crisis are minimised through prevention and early intervention initiatives that are complementary to and reduce demand for government-funded intervention and welfare services.
  • Knowledge is shared to strengthen the community services sector to better respond to potential second or third waves of COVID-19.
Supporting the Most Vulnerable - How much can I apply for and how can I apply?

We accept applications from $3,000 upwards and you can submit an application through our website when applications open on 20 July 2020. The limit for unincorporated groups or organisations not GST registered is a combined total of up to $15,000 for each financial year.

Supporting the Most Vulnerable - What are the indicators of change for this grant program?

Crisis and Emergency Relief

  • Volume of emergency relief provided (for example; food supplies, clothing, shelter)
  • Nature and type of coordination undertaken to support identified needs
  • Number of people reporting their immediate basic needs are met and they are connected to other relevant services

Prevention and Early Intervention

  • The extent of changes to socio-economic disadvantage, mental health, homelessness and family and domestic violence (using program specific measures)
  • Nature and type of initiatives to support identified needs
  • Number of people reporting positive outcomes from program
Supporting the Most Vulnerable - What are the assessment criteria for this grant program?

Crisis and Emergency Relief

  1. Community need: your application should demonstrate what the needs of the community are, and how the support through a Crisis and Emergency Relief grant will help your organisation to address this need.

  2. Link to COVID-19: your application should demonstrate how you are responding to a need in the community that is a direct result of COVID-19, or is a community need that has been exacerbated by the impacts of the COVID-19.

  3. Value for Money: your application should provide a clear budget and sound proposal to deliver emergency relief in the community that demonstrates value for money.

  4. Organisational Capacity: your application should demonstrate your organisation’s ability to respond to the community need and to deliver emergency relief services. This includes operating according to best practice, including an inclusive approach, having sound governance and strong relationships with your community.

  5. Outcomes: your application should demonstrate how your proposal will meet the outcomes of the Crisis and Emergency Relief grant stream and how this can be measured.

Prevention and Early Intervention

  1. Community need: your application should demonstrate what the needs of the community are, whether this need is time critical, if it targets a priority area for support and how a Prevention and Early Intervention grant will address this need.

  2. Minimising secondary impacts: your application should demonstrate how your proposed Prevention and Early Intervention initiative will work to minimise the secondary impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic related to socio-economic disadvantage, mental health, homelessness or family or domestic violence.

  3. Value for Money: your application should provide a clear budget and sound proposal to deliver the Prevention and Early Intervention initiative in the community that demonstrates value for money. Details of other funding and contributions should also be provided.

  4. Organisational Capacity: your application should demonstrate your organisation’s ability to respond to the community need and to deliver the Prevention and Early Intervention initiative. This includes working with key partners, having sound governance and strong relationships with your community.

  5. Outcomes: your application should demonstrate how your proposal will meet the outcomes of the Prevention and Early Intervention grant stream and how this can be measured.

Please note that these criteria may be subject to change and will be confirmed prior to applications opening on 20 July 2020.