FRRR ABC Heywire Youth Innovation grants
FRRR and our donor partners collaborate with ABC Heywire to help communities take action on the ideas generated by young Australians who attend the annual Heywire Regional Youth Summit.
This year, due to continued challenges with COVID restrictions and travel, the 2022 ABC Heywire Youth Ideas Lab was held as part of the inaugural ABC Takeover Shepparton. Forty-four young Australians from in and around Shepparton, Victoria developed six exciting ideas to champion positive change in communities across Australia.
Grants of up to $10,000 are now available for communities across Australia to adopt, adapt and act on one of the six ideas.
FRRR first joined forces with the ABC in 2013 and the positive impact of the grants we’ve awarded so far is being felt in 160 rural and regional communities around Australia. This short video showcases how some of the ideas have been implemented to create real change.
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Project ideas
The 2022 Heywire Youth Innovations Grants program is now closed.
Announced: Late October 2022
How to apply
Please read the information on each of the three tabs below to make sure this is the right grant for your project.
If you want to explore other grant options, please go to Find Funding Now.
I have a question, who can I talk to?
Lauren Ryan
1800 170 020
info@frrr.org.au
Confirm you are eligible to apply for this grant
To make sure this is the right grant for your community, please read the grant information below carefully. Click on each headline to reveal the detail.
What are the program objectives?
The FRRR ABC Heywire Youth Innovation Grant program helps communities take action on ideas generated by young Australians on issues that matter to regional, remote and rural youth. This year the Heywire Project Ideas were developed at the Takeover Shepparton Ideas Lab in May.
Grants of up to $10,000 are available for communities across Australia to adopt, adapt and act on these ideas within their own community.
The Allies Project: How might we celebrate the strength of regional LGBTQIA+ people and educate rural communities on the importance of being an ally?
The Allies Project is a community festival aiming to teach people of different ages and cultural backgrounds about the challenges and triumphs of their local LGBTQIA+ community. It is not just a celebration of queer culture, but an educational event that focuses on what being an ally is, why it is important and what an ally could look like locally. Learn more.
Hands on Learning: How might we support young people to learn in ways that work for them?
Hands on Learning would support students to spend time on a project or in a profession that takes them out of the structure of a classroom and into the world. It could create lessons that celebrate students who work well with their hands, not just their heads. It could be a series of workshops or days working with a local business to get real world experience. Learn more.
Take Care: How might we promote healthier communities in regional Australia?
Take Care wants to equip individuals to actively care for others. This will promote family support, professional support, peer support and community support for individuals for stronger communities. Learn more.
SPIN: Supporting People In Need: How might we improve morale in regional communities?
SPIN: Supporting People in Need seeks to support high school students and their families. It is an affordable community initiative that would provide mental health support such as peer therapy, counseling groups, and meditation sessions. Learn more.
Triple H: Humanity Helping Homelessness: How might we reduce homelessness and support people who are experiencing it?
Triple H: Humanity Helping Homelessness is a community movement to raise awareness and provide support for homelessness locally. An event could bring the community together with local markets, entertainment and performances, while providing a platform and spotlight on the local homelessness issue. Learn more.
Fusion Festival: How might we raise cultural awareness and stop racism in regional communities?
To stop racism and promote cultural awareness, Fusion Festival will provide a platform for different cultures within regional communities to share their stories, customs, art, history, food and fashion. Learn more.
Is this grant available in my area?
Projects must take place in regional Australia, as defined by ABC Heywire – they must be outside of Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney.
How much funding is available? Are there priority areas?
In 2022, FRRR and our donor partners are offering $130,000 in funding to assist not-for-profit community-based organisations in remote, rural and regional Australia adopt and act on one of the six innovative Heywire project ideas. An additional $30,000 is available specifically for projects in the Shepparton region.
What can be funded?
Funds will be available to implement or pilot one of the 2022 Heywire ideas. The projects can be adapted for your community, but must also do one of the following:
a) Build community resilience;
b) Develop organisational resilience and capacity;
c) Enhance environmental sustainability;
d) Foster cultural vibrancy;
e) Encourage lifelong education & training;
f) Strengthen the local economy;
g) Improve community health & social wellbeing.
- Projects must be undertaken between November 2022 to December 2023.
- Projects must take place in regional Australia, as defined by ABC Heywire – they must be outside of Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney.
- Projects must address a local issue.
What can’t be funded?
- Groups that have overdue final reports with FRRR are not eligible.
- Business-as-usual operating costs and administration will not be funded.
- Applications from sporting organisations need to clearly demonstrate a charitable benefit to the wider community (e.g. that sport is only incidental to the wider purpose of the project).
- Projects that do not have any youth involvement.
- Projects that benefit a single individual, rather than a community.
- Projects that support private / commercial business (excepting not-for-profit social enterprise / local economic development projects, which are eligible).
- Federal, State and Local Government core business and areas of responsibility.
- Overseas travel and overseas projects.
Is my organisation eligible?
To apply, you must meet the following criteria:
- Applicant organisations must be a not-for-profit organisation with either an Incorporation Certificate and/or an ABN. If you are unsure if your organisation is a registered not-for-profit (for example, if you are a Co-operative, Other Unincorporated Entity, Public Company or Trust), please contact FRRR;
- Project must offer clear public benefit (i.e. has a charitable purpose);
- Not-for-profit organisations with or without DGR-1 endorsement are eligible;
- Organisations can submit one application per grant round; and
- Projects must be in a remote, rural or regional area.
Please note, you will be considered ineligible if the:
- Application is submitted by individuals, sole traders, private or commercial businesses (as per the submitted ABN);
- Application is submitted by an organisation that is not a legal entity, without the written consent of the governing / partnering body who holds the ABN / Incorporation number;
- Application is submitted without required financial documentation (see additional information on the second tab);
- Final report/s from any FRRR grants awarded in the previous seven years have not been acquitted (delivery organisations should check with legal organisation to see if there are any outstanding final reports);
- Application is for a project or activity that has already occurred / is occurring prior to the announcement of funding;
- Application is incomplete. NOTE: Due to the volume of applications received, applications are assessed based on the documentation received at the time of application. FRRR is unlikely to follow up missing documentation after applications have been submitted.
If you need to share this information with others, you can download the guidelines above.
Gather information to support your grant application
Please read the information below to plan and prepare your project. The information below sets out what you MUST include for your project to be considered. There are plenty of helpful resources to support you along the way.
Please contact FRRR if you have any questions about the following information.
Your grant application MUST include:
Clear project information
Why is this important?
FRRR needs to clearly understand your project to assess its merits. Applicants should focus on addressing the what, when, where, who, why and how of the project, as this is the best formula to clearly communicate the details of the project.
A ready community is best placed to achieve the aims of your project, so during assessment, our staff look for
information that tells us that good leadership, skills and awareness exist in your community to support the project now and in the future.
A clear description of exactly what the grant funds will be used for, when and where the project will happen, who will benefit and who will be involved in delivering the project, why the project and grant funds are needed, how funds will be spent and how the activities and success of the project will be recorded, evaluated and shared.
Where possible, also indicate that your community is ready to deliver the project and if required, can support the initiative ongoing – i.e. awareness of need is widespread, appropriate leadership, resources, skills and knowledge exist in the community.
Helpful resources:
Financial information
Why is this important?
FRRR uses this information to understand your organisation’s ability to manage the grant funds and its financial viability.
Applications received without the requested financial information are ineligible. Providing incorrect information on financials is currently the most frequent reason why applications are not considered.
- For organisations that have audited financials: Attach the most recent annual audited statements;
- For organisations that do not have audited financials: Attach the most recent 12 months Income and Expenditure Statement. If you have a Balance Sheet, please also submit;
- For organisations less than one year old: Provide Bank Statements for the period you have been operating.
Please note:
- If financial documents are more than 18 months old, please provide an explanation as to why the organisation does not have more recent documents;
- Bank Statements are only acceptable as financial documentation if your organisation has been operating for less than one year;
- Explain any deficits and steps to sustain the organisation financially;
- Provide a brief explanation of any large financial surplus or current assets and reasons why FRRR funds are still required;
- Income and Expenditure statements must cover a full 12-month period;
- FRRR conducts a broad range of due diligence queries when reviewing applications, such as: reviewing current and past incorporation, DGR and ACNC status. If your organisation has happened to have their incorporation status, DGR status or ACNC status changed or ACNC registration revoked or voluntarily withdrawn, please let us know the reasons for this.
- Please contact us if you cannot provide required financials or you are unsure about what to provide.
Project budget
Why is this important?
A clear budget helps FRRR to understand the size of your project, exactly how FRRR funds will be spent and helps demonstrate community support for your project through in-kind contributions either from your organisation or partners / community members.
You must include a project budget that clearly shows the items that FRRR grant funds will be used for and shows all income and expenses related to your project.
Budgets should be realistic and must add up – i.e. total expenditure must match total income.
Applicant contributions in cash or in-kind are highly regarded. Quotes or detailed rationale for items over $1,000 are
required, where possible. Note: FRRR suggests costing unskilled volunteer labour at $41.00 per hour.
Helpful resources:
Eligible legal entities
Why is this important?
The Strengthening Rural Communities program is only able to distribute funds to not-for-profit organisations with an ABN or Incorporation number, and FRRR needs to know that the organisation with that ABN / Incorporation number understands and agrees to carry out their responsibilities in relation to your project, if successful.
Every application needs to include an organisation that holds either an ABN or Incorporation Certificate. If your organisation doesn’t have that, FRRR could still fund the project (with your organisation as the delivery organisation) but you need another organisation’s support, which we refer to as the ‘legal organisation’.
Even though your organisation may complete the application (and will be doing the work), it’s the overarching organisation’s legal and financial information that needs to be provided. They also need to provide a letter of support, confirming they are willing to play this role.
This situation often occurs often when the organisation delivering the activity or project is a branch of an overarching organisation – such as a local CWA or YMCA branch.
Supporting materials
Why is this important?
FRRR seeks to fund projects that are well-supported by the broader local community, are locally led and delivered, show good partnerships and benefit multiple parts of the community. As FRRR is not always familiar with your community, our staff consider support material as evidence toward understanding level of community need, benefit and support.
FRRR strongly recommends that you provide supporting materials such as letters of support, community plans, survey results, photographs, media clips and research reports that can show the wider community support and partnerships involved in the project.
Large documents should be referenced and explained in the application.
Helpful resources:
Focus area
We have grouped the kinds of projects communities commonly ask us to help fund into seven areas, which we call the Activity Tree:
1. Building community resilience
2. Developing organisational resilience and capacity
3. Enhancing environmental sustainability
4. Fostering cultural vibrancy
5. Lifelong learning and education
6. Economic strength
7. Improving community health and social wellbeing
We ask you to nominate one of those seven areas when you apply. So, before you lodge your application, download the Activity Tree to help you identify your focus area.
Need some more help?
We have a large selection of resources on our Grant Seeker Resources Page to help you along the way.
Submit your grant application via the Grants Gateway
Please contact FRRR if you have questions about any aspect of the Grants Gateway online application form.
Before you submit your application via the online Grants Gateway, please ensure you have:
Helpful resources:
It is time to submit your application. If it is helpful, you can download a sample copy of the application form.
Please read the instructions on how to use the Grants Gateway How-to Guide and have your questions answered with our Grants Gateway FAQs.
If you have significant issues accessing a stable internet connection, please contact our team to discuss an alternative way of applying:
Ph: 1800 170 020 or Email: info@frrr.org.au
“I’d like to convey the great thanks of Barossa YAC and of our community for the FRRR ABC Heywire program support which was fundamental in organising RACE – a Racial and Cultural Event. Our day began with a traditional Aboriginal smoking ceremony and the message was one of unity and that today, this land is one that is open to all cultures. It was a very special moment.
“This atmosphere of openness continued throughout the day with a broad cross section of our community participating in workshops and cultural challenges, as well as creating an anti-racism mural.
“Our YAC cannot thank you enough for your support. Being a part of an event like this was an experience none of our committee will forget anytime soon. The opportunities for personal development and the planning of a long-term project were plentiful. Thank you for your support and for helping us make the Barossa a better place.”
Nathalie Johnstone – Barossa Youth Advisory Committee (YAC) – Heywire 2015
Inspiration – Past projects
Explore some of the projects we’ve previously funded to see how other organisations have helped their community thrive.
Good times and opportunities for Eden youth
The Eden Game Development Centre used their grant to deliver a version of the Heywire Step Up initiative, to inspire disengaged young people to take the first step on their journey to success.
Youth for youth
Regional Youth Support Services (RYSS) received a little over $9,000 to create a resource network and ‘hub’ for young people, specifically focused on supporting LGBTQIA+ youth.
Mirror Mirror… youth reflect impact of drugs & alcohol
The Roper Gulf Regional Council worked in partnership with the Indigenous Community Volunteer organisation to increase awareness of the effects of drugs and alcohol abuse within families.
