Council's Community Strengthening Grants Program has been a valuable source of financial support for local events, projects and programs in Golden Plains Shire communities for 26 years.
Grants of up to $10,000 are available in four streams:
- The Environment and Sustainability stream offers grants to assist incorporated groups and organisations to undertake environmental and sustainability projects on publicly accessible land within Golden Plains Shire.
- The Creative Community stream is available to assist incorporated groups and organisations to undertake arts and culture projects within Golden Plains Shire that directly benefit the Golden Plains Shire Community.
- The Healthy Active Living stream is available to assist incorporated groups and organisations undertake sport, recreation, health and wellbeing projects that directly benefit the Golden Plains Shire Community.
- The Community Safety stream is available to assist incorporated groups and organisations to undertake projects within Golden Plains Shire which increase the community's capacity, resilience and connection to plan for, rebuild and recover from emergencies or ongoing risks.
Groups must match the amount of funding sought, either in cash or through volunteer in-kind contributions, such as volunteer work on the project.
To view Council's Community Strengthening Grants overall Grant Guidelines, click here.
For more information about the Community Strengthening Grants Program please contact:
Community Development and Grants Officer
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 5220 7111
2023 Round 2 Community Strengthening Grants Recipients
Council awarded almost $80,000 in grant funding to successful groups to deliver 13 projects.
The recipients of the second round of Council’s Community Strengthening Grants 2023 are:
| Community Group | Project Name | Grant Category | Grant Amount |
| The Bop Arts Co-op Ltd | Reactive The BOP Workshops | Creative Community | $10,000 |
| Smythesdale Community Arts and Music Fiesta | Smythesdale Community Arts and Music Fiesta 2024 | Creative Community | $6,877 |
| Trust for Nature (Victoria) | Working together to heal Country - Dog Rocks Reserve | Environment and Sustainability | $10,000 |
| Meredith Community Centre Inc. | Seniors Out and About | Healthy Active Living | $7,000 |
| Smythesdale Craft and Cuppa | Craft and Cuppa Program 2024 | Healthy Active Living | $1,500 |
| Inverleigh Senior Citizens Club Inc. | Inverleigh Seniors Community Engagement | Healthy Active Living | $7,000 |
| Haddon Community Learning Centre Inc. | Chairs, Tables, and Trolley Replacement and Upgrade | Healthy Active Living | $7,170 |
| Golden Plains VEX Robotics Club | Golden Plains VEX Robotics Club | Healthy Active Living | $8,082 |
| Golden Oldies Mens Activity Group | Golden Oldies Mens Activity Group | Healthy Active Living | $7,000 |
| Shelford Community Garden | Shelford Community Garden | Healthy Active Living | $1,936 |
| Smythesdale Cemetery Trust | Safety Barriers at Smythesdale Cemetery | Community Safety | $920 |
| Shelford Public Hall Reserve Committee of Management | Carpark Undergrowth Clean Up | Community Safety | $8,646 |
| Cape Clear Recreation Reserve | Extreme Weather Days | Community Safety | $1,971 |
2023 Round 1 Community Strengthening Grants Recipients
In the first round of Community Strengthening Grants for 2023, Council awarded a combined $30,241 to eight successful community groups to deliver eight projects with a combined total project value of $64,757 (across the eight projects) to local communities across Golden Plains.
The recipients of the first round of Council’s Community Strengthening Grants 2023 are:
| Community Group | Project Name | Grant Category | Grant Amount |
| Woady Yaloak Historical Society | Historical Themed Mural | Creative Community | $5000 |
| St Mary MacKillop Catholic Primary Schoool | Indigenous Community Connections Project | Creative Community | $7000 |
| Geelong Landcare Network | Wildlife Hollows and Nesting Box Workshops | Environment and Sustainability | $3200 |
| Smythesdale Cemetery Trust | Gorse Removal at Smythesdale Cemetery | Environment and Sustainability | $1500 |
| Moorabool Valley Masters Football Club | Goal Post Safety Padding | Healthy Active Living | $2126 |
| Haddon Community Learning Centre | Haddon Community Learning Centre Kitchen Fridge/Freezer Replacement | Healthy Active Living | $3635 |
| Cape Clear Recreation Reserve | Solstice Bonfire | Healthy Active Living | $1180 |
| Inverleigh RSL Sub-Branch | Inverleigh RSL Sub-Branch Internal and External Painting | Healthy Active Living | $6600 |