Nestled beside the Rocky River and amid the undulating hills of the Southern Flinders Ranges in South Australia, Laura is a lively, artistic rural community with around 720 residents. The Laura Fair, inaugurated in 1980 to foster art and culture in the region, has been held without interruption until the COVID years.

The Fair is a major highlight for the region and normally taking place over two days at the beginning of April, typically attracting 10,000 to 15,000 patrons. The event is entirely driven by a small volunteer committee and a large contingent of casual volunteers who assist with various aspects of the event.

The event significantly benefits local businesses economically and serves as a primary fundraising platform for numerous local community groups. This family-oriented fair offers a delightful rural experience with great food and coffee, artisan market stalls, entertainment and more throughout the weekend.

To decrease the event costs of hiring equipment, including chairs, the fair committee was supported through a $4,590 Rebuilding Regional Communities grant to buy 200 stackable outdoor chairs for use at the fair and other community events, beginning with the 2024 Fair, which aimed to foster community connections post-pandemic and reinvigorate the event.

The Fair took place 13-14 April and attendees enjoyed a Street Parade, vintage cars, SES, CFS and local business floats and live entertainment, as well as roving performers and buskers, Sideshow Alley, food stalls, an Art Gallery exhibition and more than100 market stalls.

Events such as the Laura Fair are allowing regional, rural, and remote communities to heal and reconnect after the uncertainty and disconnection caused by COVID impacts and are vital to the social and mental recovery of residents.

The chairs purchased with the funds provided by the RRC program will mainly serve the Laura Fair during their yearly event, eliminating the recurring cost of renting them, as the group estimates the money they have spent over the years would have paid for chairs several times over.

The group has storage space in an existing facility to keep and maintain the seats in good condition. With COVID affecting revenue, this cost-saving measure will allow the group to allocate more funds towards running costs or supporting other local community groups. Additionally, these chairs will be available to other community organisations in the Laura area to eliminate the need for them to pay equipment hire.

Funding to meet the local needs and connect communities

One hundred and twenty-nine community groups across remote, rural and regional Australia are sharing nearly $1.4 million in grants through FRRR’s flagship Strengthening Rural Communities (SRC) program.

Awarded via three streams of funding, SRC grants support small and vital projects, like upgrades to the community pool in Cummins, SA; COVID recovery projects, such as creating an arts and cultural precinct in the remote community of Tully, QLD; and disaster preparedness or recovery initiatives, like providing culturally informed, trauma-responsive community healing days for the flood-affected community of Lismore, NSW.

FRRR received a record 450 applications for this round of SRC funding, requesting more than $4.5 million in grants for projects valued at more than $19 million. The team has worked hard to shorten the time between applying and awarding SRC grants, with these grants being awarded just nine weeks after the round closed.

Jill Karena, FRRR’s Place Portfolio Lead, says that there is an increasing need for FRRR to fill gaps in areas that may have previously relied on funding from government incentives or programs or support from local businesses.

“The SRC program is flexible and open year-round, meaning it can lean in when Government and other agencies lean out. This access to continued funding opportunities is especially vital in communities that are moving beyond the immediate threats and response to natural disasters and other shocks.

“This round, we have seen increased applications from the organisers of community events, such as local agricultural shows, as some local governments are reducing their annual funding support. We also saw increased funding requests from smaller more remote communities that are a seeking to boost the local economy by developing activities and events to encourage overnight stays from visitors who would otherwise pass through. We also noticed an increase in applications from fringe metro areas and inner rural communities, which seems to indicate that they too are facing diminishing funding opportunities,” she said.

Unmet need continues in small communities

In addition to the 129 initiatives awarded grants, there were a further 85 funding-ready projects, requesting more than $900,000, that FRRR did not have the funds to support. This highlights the importance of small grants to remote, rural and regional community groups and is why FRRR is seeking new partners so that the Foundation can fund more projects in the future.

“Given the uncertainty of the current financial landscape, groups have told us that they value having access to timely secured funding to support medium to long term goals, as well as initiatives that respond to present needs and priorities.

“These are the projects that create a sense of place and identity, and the people and organisations that make these inspiring projects happen need our support. SRC grants provide leverage as they demonstrate to other funders that the projects have value and are supported. But to be able to fund more of them, we need to bring in additional collaborative funders. So we invite all those who want to see a thriving remote, rural and regional Australia to join us to support local initiatives. They really do make a difference,” Ms Karena said.

The SRC program is collaboratively supported by donors, ranging from private individuals to larger foundations, who are acknowledged on the SRC program page.

FRRR always accepts applications to this program, which awards funds around four times a year. Local not-for-profit organisations and community groups are encouraged to review the program guidelines and apply. More information about the SRC program is available at www.frrr.org.au/src.

The full list of grant recipients and their projects are below.

Sustainable Agriculture and Gardening Eurobodalla (SAGE) is a not for profit, community based organisation whose mission is to create and support a NSW South Coast sustainable fair food economy and food sovereignty for local communities.

In 2013 SAGE faced a logistical challenge of effectively connecting consumers to the thriving local market garden and produce businesses. The solution – enable online shopping for the surrounding community who wanted to buy the goods but due to work or family commitments were unable to browse leisurely and shop at the 2pm Tuesday timeslot.

The ANZ grant paid for the website design and build, with a complementary grant from the NSW Government supporting the planning and administration. 

The establishment of this online farmers market in 2015 was the first in Australia. SAGE designed and implemented the initiative with careful consideration of both local shoppers and the stall holders to ensure it added value and was not onerous.

The SAGE Farmers Market has twice won the ABC Delicious! magazine award for Best Farmers Market in Australia and is established as a national benchmark. All produce comes from within a 160 km radius of Moruya.

Following this early innovations success SAGE continued to thrive with operations growth including the SAGE Community Garden and Stepping Stones Training Farm. However the last 3 years have been difficult. Communities on South Coast NSW were significantly impacted by the 2019/20 bushfires and then Covid-19 restrictions limited the physical market, and escalated demand for online services. At the beginning of 2022 the volunteer group were financially depleted and simply exhausted… but not beaten.

In 2022 SAGE was awarded $50,000 via FRRR’s COVID Regional Community Support program, which was funded by the NSW Government. The grant funding provides for a salaried Business Manager for 12 months with the objectives of developing and implementing the SAGE Business Plan aligned to the existing strategic goals of improving organisation capacity with new revenue stream that ensure ongoing financial sustainability and resilience. Speaking with volunteers Stuart Whitelaw and Catherine Reilly recently it was exciting to hear that an appointment has been made and plan development underway. The Stepping Stones Farm operation has been successful in attracting interns to its agriculture training program from as far afield as WA, with great local farmer relationships supporting peppercorn leases on small land plots that enable graduates to stay local and commence their market garden development. Not only the capacity but also the confidence of this passionate volunteer group has been bolstered by the grants recognition of their capability and the value of their work.

Located in the picturesque Colac-Otway Shire, Colac Makers’ Space provides a workspace for regional artists and undertakes community engagement with the arts. ReGenZ is a youth arts group run in partnership between Colac Makers’ Space and the Colac Youth Health Hub.

The group attracts significant numbers of young people to its activities, particularly LGBTQIA+ youth who see this group as a safe space in a community where their options for organised support are limited. Support for this cohort of youth is critical, given the rise in youth mental health issues since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The group is one hundred percent volunteer-run, and like many other organisations, Creative Otways and the Colac Makers’ Space were facing significant hurdles post-COVID-19, with volunteer burnout colliding with increased need amongst youth.

To meet this increased need, and in the context of ongoing volunteer pressures, Colac Makers’ Space embarked on a new project. By hiring a professional artist as a mentor to teach skills in various art forms including drawing and sculpture, supporting them in life skills and accessing pathways to work in the arts field, the program provided deep engagement for the youth participants of ReGenZ, while providing some relief for the organisation’s volunteers. The program was run with support from local mental health services and culminated in an exhibition of the students’ work as part of the 2023 Colac Art Showcase and Exhibition. Flowing on from this, an annual exhibition program will help support the long-term sustainability of ReGenZ.

Lynne Richardson, Project Manager at Creative Otways (auspicing Colac Makers’ Space), highlighted the importance of the project to support local youth and volunteers:

“As a volunteer organisation we struggle with a limited number of volunteers and without this project, our youth Art group could have easily gone into remission as our volunteers struggled with many pressures … this project kept the youth group going and allowed us to deliver more projects which engaged more youth and gave much needed support to both our volunteers and our youth.“

With 15-20 youth attending the program each week, and more than 300 students engaged over the course of the program, Outside the SQUARE- ReGenZ was able to connect like-minded youth from Apollo Bay with those in Colac, allowing them an opportunity to be themselves, be creative and build their confidence. Impressively, 256 of the youth displayed their work at the Colac Art Showcase and Exhibition with other professional and emerging artists, and many were provided prizes of art vouchers to encourage continuation of their arts practice. Wider benefits were also felt by the project, with students from Studio 92, an all-ability arts venue, also participating in the exhibition with the support of the ReGenZ youth: inclusivity and kindness were on display as well as art works in Colac-Otway Shire!

Colac Makers’ Space was also able to capitalise on opportunities as they arose. The initial plan was for a well-known local artist, Reuban Whyte, to provide the mentoring role, however he took up a new position as the youth engagement officer at the Colac-Otway Council. The project was able to hire another local artist, Jodie McGill, to undertake the mentorship role while also engaging Reuban in an in-kind capacity through his Council role – meaning the youth had two mentors for the duration of the project – double the benefit for ReGenZ!

Auspiced by Creative Otways Incorporated, Colac Makers’ Space successfully applied to FRRR for a $10,000 SRC Rebuilding Regional Communities grant, funded by the Australian Government, to support this project.

Continued demand for small grants to support local initiatives

More than 150 not-for-profit organisations (NFPs) in rural regions across Australia are sharing $1,579,380 in grants for projects that will strengthen their communities.

Awarded through FRRR’s flagship Strengthening Rural Communities (SRC) program, the grants will fund projects that address a range of diverse needs, including fostering community connectedness and wellbeing, as well as supporting ongoing COVID and disaster recovery and preparedness.

The 151 grants range from $750 for a lawn mower to help local volunteers prepare the community for future bushfires, to $25,000 for a “Get Started Emergency Preparedness” program to empower people with disabilities through tailored disaster readiness education and planning.

Jill Karena, FRRR’s Place Portfolio Lead, said that the Strengthening Rural Communities program has been a consistent support for local NFPs in rural places, helping to fill funding gaps needed to get projects off the ground or sometimes bring them to conclusion.

“FRRR’s small grants have supported rural Australia for the past 23 years. Within our Strengthening Rural Communities program alone, we have awarded nearly $18 million in small grants since 2019 and the program’s flexibility is one of the key reasons why it continues to be so popular.

“Flexible funding means that we can support projects that meet a wide range of needs, reflecting what the community sees as a priority. For some, this may be a new roof for the town hall, for others it may be an event to bring people together, and for others it could be mental health first aid training.

“Virtually every part of Australia is recovering from one or more disasters, from the pandemic to floods, bushfires or drought – and many have experienced successive or even overlapping events. The cumulative effect means that even within the same region, there are people working to respond and support recovery, while others are putting planning and training in place to build their resilience and prepare for the next, inevitable, event.

For example, in Shepparton, local groups are working to address different community needs and, collectively, help their community to recover, grow and thrive.

“Shepparton Foodshare is one of the NFPs supporting their community’s recovery. The organisation will use a $25,000 grant to purchase a refrigerated delivery truck, which will boost organisational capacity so that they can provide food relief to those impacted by the flooding that the region experienced in September 2022. Meanwhile, the Goulburn Valley Woodworkers will use their $10,000 grant to strengthen social connections that have been challenged by COVID lockdowns. The NFP wants to build the capacity of its volunteers by providing a safe gathering space with concrete flooring that has been sealed and finished. North Shepparton Community & Learning Centre is also helping to strengthen connections for diverse communities by using their $10,000 grant to deliver creative workshops and an exhibition.

“Grassroots organisations, which are often led by volunteers, play an important role in the vitality of rural Australia, because they drive the projects that maintain and sustain their communities. But to do this, they need funds. We’re honoured to play a small part in helping rural Australia thrive and we encourage others to join with us to support local initiatives that really do make a difference,” Ms Karena said.

Some of the projects funded in this round of SRC grants include:

The SRC program is collaboratively supported by donors, ranging from private individuals to larger foundations, who are acknowledged on the SRC webpage. This round there were a further 50 funding-ready projects, requesting more than $610,000, that FRRR could not support. We are urgently seeking new partners, so that we can fund more projects like these in the future.

FRRR always accepts applications to this program, which awards funds four times a year. Local NFPs and community groups are encouraged to review the program guidelines and apply. More information about the SRC program is available at www.frrr.org.au/src.

To support grants like this through FRRR, make a tax-deductible donation at frrr.org.au/giving/.

The full list of grant recipients and their projects are below.

Originally a resting place for passing drovers, Foster is a small town just north of the Gippsland coast. Like much of regional Victoria, Foster was hit hard by COVID, with long-lasting economic, health and social outcomes. Impacts on social connection, the need to provide food relief for the community, and the reduced ability for community groups to fundraise were all felt strongly by the volunteers at Manna Community Garden.

Established 22 years ago, Manna Community Garden strives to improve food security and social wellbeing in the community. Working closely with Manna Gum Community House, community lunches are held and meals are provided for people in need of support. Demand for these lunches and meals was heightened during the pandemic and continues today, with the need exacerbated by escalating cost-of-living pressures. The two organisations also work together to provide assistance and information via workshops on topics such as grafting and seed saving, and a community stall at the local farmers’ market.

The fire pit in the gardens is an important gathering place for community members. The facility hosts the local youth group, community lunches, evenings in the garden events and NAIDOC week activities.

Before the pandemic, fundraising efforts were underway to pay for desperately needed upgrades to the Manna Community Garden, including to the garden beds and the amenities around the fire pit. A large Christmas in July fundraiser had to be cancelled two days before it was due to be held due to lockdown orders and while local sponsorship allowed the garden upgrades to go ahead, the works around the fire pit remained unfunded. The seating was dangerous and needed replacing if the gardens were to continue to provide an important social space for the community.  

The volunteers at Manna Community Garden applied for an FRRR grant to supplement their fundraising strategy and allow them to continue with these much-needed works. Through an Australian Government-funded SRC Rebuilding Regional Communities grant for $2,600, the fire pit seating was able to be upgraded. The community of Foster is now able to safely enjoy the gardens as a space to socialise, come together, learn and provide food relief for the town.

President of Manna Community Garden, Ms Juneen Schulz, explained the importance of the garden upgrades for reconnection:

“The space has provided a beautiful location for members of our community, especially our garden group, to connect. This is particularly important in the recovery from COVID-19, as it gives us a safe space to be together and rebuild our community.”

With the easing of COVID restrictions, Manna Community Garden has since joined together with other community gardens in the district to run annual events, bringing the wider South Gippsland and Bass Coast communities together and celebrating the benefits of growing locally. The first event, held in Foster in the newly renovated garden, attracted 60 guests and included workshops, guest speakers, and of course lots of beautiful locally grown produce!

“We wanted an inclusive day where community gardens across our slice of the universe could come together and discuss our favourite topics – growing food, looking after our hamlets and communities, sharing our knowledge.”

The neighbouring town of Meeniyan will host the next event, in what is hoped will be a long-running tradition – supporting communities that were badly impacted by COVID-19 to come together and encourage the health, economic, environmental, and social benefits of growing produce locally.

The work of Manna Community Garden shows that a small project can have a big, and long lasting, impact!

Grants awarded to 176 community groups for COVID recovery, climate-related impacts and Small & Vital projects

FRRR has awarded $2,309,331 in grants to 176 community projects across remote, rural and regional Australia as part of the Strengthening Rural Communities (SRC) program.

This is the largest SRC round on record in terms of both funding awarded and the number of projects being funded.

Collaboratively funded by a number of donors, this program gives small communities across rural Australia access to funds for a broad range of initiatives that directly and clearly benefit the local area and people. The program is split into three streams: Small & Vital (S&V), Prepare & Recover (P&R) and Rebuilding Regional Communities (RRC), which supports recovery from COVID-19.

Small & Vital stream

In total, $527,636 in grants have been awarded to 61 grassroots organisations and NFPs through the S&V stream. Grants of up to $10,000 will support initiatives that local leaders and community members feel are a priority when it comes to strengthening the community.

An example of an organisation being funded in this stream is the Cervantes Community Men’s Shed in WA. They will use their $10,000 grant to develop the group’s new shed site, which will support and service the community.

Prepare & Recover grants

The SRC program has long supported disaster recovery, most recently through the 2019/2020 Black Summer Bushfire Recovery stream. However, with disasters affecting more of the country, the program has been renamed the Prepare & Recover stream. It offers grants of up to $25,000 to support projects that prevent and prepare for future climate related impacts, or recover from existing disasters in the medium to long-term. In addition to ongoing recovery from Black Summer fires, this round supports recovery from flooding in 2021/22, as well as some other storms and flood events across the country.

A total of $883,940 will be shared among 62 initiatives through this stream. An example is the Victoria based Boort Resource & Information Centre’s initiative to support flood recovery and boost local connections by bringing the people together to share a free community meal.

Rebuilding Regional Communities – supporting COVID-19 recovery

Funded by the Australian Government, the RRC grants are divided into micro grants, which are up to $10,000 and larger grants, which are up to $50,000. In this round, 53 organisations have received $897,755 funding that will help remote, rural and regional communities recover from the impacts of the pandemic.

Among the recipients in this stream is the Regional Food Security Alliance, who will use a grant of $47,050 to develop resources that will support volunteer recruitment and retention at food relief agencies across regional Victoria, after demand for their services has been exacerbated by COVID-19.

Jill Karena, Place Portfolio Lead at FRRR, said that this record-breaking SRC round is a clear indication of the level of support that remote, rural and regional Australia needs.

“In the history of the SRC program and its predecessors dating back to 2000, we’ve never awarded this amount of money or this many small grants. That in itself speaks volumes about the need for resources and support in rural communities around the country.

“What we saw in the applications in this round, across each of the streams, was a strong emphasis on individual and community health and social wellbeing. This is a reflection of how the last few years have impacted remote, rural and regional areas. Back-to-back natural disasters, the pandemic and now the cost-of-living crisis have left people with limited resources when it comes to prioritising their wellbeing.

“We also saw a high number of applications for creative and wellbeing activities, like festivals and community events. These initiatives are wonderful to see because not only are they helping to bring people together and giving them a creative outlet, but they also often provide a boost to the local economy.

“Similarly, we continue to see a demand for support in maintaining or upgrading community spaces, halls and hubs. This kind of infrastructure is so important when it comes to keeping small communities connected, particularly during the ongoing recovery and resilience-building process that rural Australia is currently facing,” Ms Karena said.

Some more of the 176 projects funded include:

• Gainmara Birrilee Preschool Association Inc – NSW – Enhance the COVID-19 recovery of 117 Brewarrina Aboriginal families by providing practical assistance, building social connections and cultural identity, wellness activities and a community garden. $46,092 (Rebuilding Regional Communities stream)
• MacDonnell Regional Council – NT – Prepare youth for leadership roles through the expansion of the council’s youth app to include governance and project management information and functions. $9,702 (Small & Vital stream)
• FNQ Aviation Museum Ltd – QLD – Build young people’s job readiness for careers in engineering industries by constructing a new hanger at the aeronautical museum to run a program with students restoring vintage airplanes. $10,000 (Small & Vital stream)
• Bridge to Nowhere Arts Association Incorporated – SA – Enhance the process of recovery from the pandemic and encourage greater participation of seniors in activities by providing a comfortable environment at a local community arts facility through heating and cooling upgrades. $7,405 (Rebuilding Regional Communities stream)
• Surf Life Saving Tasmania – Central Coast Marine Rescue – TAS – Enhance community safety and boost volunteer capacity through expansion of training and lifesaving equipment. $9,383 (Small & Vital stream)
• Upper Murray Performing Arts Inc – VIC – Encourage community connection and generate economic growth by delivering a creative dance festival that will increase tourism in a township recovering from bushfires. $10,000 (Prepare & Recover stream)
• Shire of Carnamah – WA – Improve the community’s resilience for future emergency responses during cyclones by upgrading the medical centre’s electrical switchboard, enabling connection to back up generators during power outages. $10,000 (Prepare & Recover stream)

The SRC program is collaboratively supported by many generous donors, who are acknowledged on the FRRR website under each of the SRC grant streams:

• Small & Vital donors
• Prepare & Recover donors
• Rebuilding Regional Communities is supported by the Australian Government

This program always accepts applications. Local NFPs and community groups are encouraged to review the program guidelines and apply. More information about the SRC program is available at www.frrr.org.au/src.

To support grants like this through FRRR, make a tax-deductible donation at frrr.org.au/giving/.

The full list of grant recipients and their projects are below.

On Ngaiawang Country

The Morgan Volunteer Support Group is a not-for-profit organisation that delivers Meals on Wheels Monday to Friday including public holidays, for the Morgan, Cadell and Mount Mary areas in SA’s Riverland region. The Meals on Wheels service, which has run for more than 35 years, is invaluable for those requiring assistance to remain in their homes for as long as possible, as well as those who have problems such as a broken limb, drug rehab or failing eyesight, which diminish their ability to shop and cook. Additionally, Meals on Wheels delivery offers important social contact for people who use the service and may otherwise be socially isolated. This is of particular concern for those living in regional areas.

The Support Group has partnered with the local prison training program to cook the meals. This not only helps them gain skills for a future trade, but participants also gain satisfaction from helping the community.

In the past, the Morgan Meals on Wheels service used a car owned by Meals on Wheels SA. However, they wanted to sell the vehicle and instead have volunteers use their own cars. After some discussion, Meals on Wheels SA agreed to retain the vehicle for a further three years, to give the Morgan volunteers time to raise funds to acquire a vehicle of their own. Otherwise, the service would most likely cease.

This was also an opportunity to purchase a newer, more reliable, efficient and safe vehicle, as the car they were using was more than 10 years old. The Morgan Volunteer Support Group undertook a lot of local fundraising and secured a $10,000 grant through FRRR’s SRC program, thanks to the support of the Kellogg Australia Charitable Foundation. With COVID causing supply-chain issues, demand for second-hand vehicles was high but after much searching, they purchased a second-hand Toyota Camry Ateva. It met most other requirements – most importantly room for hot boxes, baskets and eskies.

In addition to using it for Meals on Wheels delivery, the group is also seeking to expand their delivery services. They also have plans to make the vehicle available at other times to offer transport solutions to the community, raising additional funds for the Support Group, at the same time as offering a valuable service for those who can’t drive or don’t own a car.

The group is rightly proud of what they achieved, on time and on budget.

“We had help from many different groups – Waikerie Men’s Shed, Waikerie Woolworths, Morgan Friendly Grocer, Morgan Roadhouse, Morgan Home Hardware, Morgan Commercial Hotel, Morgan Cadell Golf Club and hundreds of individuals.

“The car has been operational since March 2022 and is working well. We have been delivering meals for Meals on Wheels and for Morgan Activity Centre. Current customers can be assured of an ongoing service,” said Jakob Gamertsfelder, Secretary / Treasurer of the Morgan Volunteer Support Group.

For more inspiring stories like this, head to our FY 2021/22 Annual Review.