Volunteer Resources

Grants and Funding

There are a quite a number of NSW Government grants and funding sources available for volunteer groups and activities. The Guide to NSW Government Community Grants is intended to assist small to medium sized community organisations find out about grants programs and other funds available their projects. It includes:

• a summary of the types of grants and community funding programs available to community organisations
• an overview of the process of managing grants
• a directory of detailed information on government grants held by each government agency on their websites.

There is more information on Government and philanthropic grants available on the Community Builders website. See Funding Programs.

Commonwealth government grants can be found at GrantsLINK. The Commonwealth government has a range of annual grant programs scheduled throughout the year so check the site regularly.

The Commonwealth has a specific grants program for volunteers. To find this program either search through GrantsLINK or click on Commonwealth Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA). Search for ‘volunteer’ using the site’s search functionality.

In 2008 FaHCSIA’s Volunteer grants program provided for:

• purchase of small equipment and sporting items
• contributions towards fuel costs of volunteers
• $1000 - $5000 for volunteer organisations

Community Building Partnership Program

The Department of Premier and Cabinet's $35 million Community Building Partnership Program aims is to support local jobs, stimulate growth and improve community social, recreational and environmental facilities. A funding pool of up to $300,000 is available to every NSW electoral district with and additional $100,000 for electorates with higher unemployment. Not-for-profit organisations and Local Councils are eligible to apply.

NSW Guide to Volunteering - a Guide to Managing Volunteers in Non-Profit Organisations

The Guide was prepared by the NSW Centre for Volunteering, in consultation with the Volunteering Unit in DPC.  It aims to assist small to medium-sized non-government, non-profit organisations wanting to involve and retain volunteers.  It introduces organisations, managers and boards to best practice principles about the processes of organising, managing and growing a community based non-profit organisation.  It covers topics such as:

• effective recruitment and screening
• reward and recognition
• risk management
• occupational health and safety issues.

Other Training  and Support Material

Other training and support sites include:

Volunteering Australia offers a wealth of training materials . This includes information on specific volunteer issues such as volunteering in remote and rural Australia and supporting and training volunteers from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. 

The NSW Centre for Volunteering operates a School of Volunteer Management  with courses for individuals and organisations. The Centre also has resource material on Volunteer Management covering issues such as standards, rights and responsibilities, taxation and job descriptions.

For further information subscribe to the bi-monthly Supporting Volunteering e-newsletter.