Sports Small Grants Program

Increasing women and girls’ participation in community sport

Northern Rivers and Mid North Coast
Accepting applications until April 28th 2025

Siddle Family Foundation (SFF) is committed to supporting communities to thrive in Northern Rivers and Mid North Coast. In addition to our core strategic approach which targets housing, income and relationships, we also deliver small grants programs to support communities in other ways.

Local sport plays an important role in communities. For fitness and mental health, and where communities come together to build friendships and a sense of belonging. The passion and dedication of local sporting leaders cultivate important life skills such as teamwork, commitment and leadership. Local clubs are gathering places for celebration, commiseration and connection.

For the Siddle family, sport has always been an important part of their lives. Lifelong participation in competitive sport – playing, coaching, officiating and spectating – is something they hold close to their heart and continues to contribute to who they are today.

Whilst we celebrate that women and girls’ participation is on the rise, there continues to be structural and societal challenges which hinder full participation.  The combination of this information and the Siddle family’s passion for women and girls’ participation in sport is what led us to deliver this grant program.

We talked to a range of leaders within diverse codes to help develop our understanding of the needs and context of women and girls’ participation in community sport in Northern Rivers and Mid North Coast. Throughout this process, we witnessed people’s passion for community sport and discovered many champions for women and girls’ participation. We also heard about the great progress already being made in providing more opportunities for women and girls in the regions.

Our aim is that this grant program will amplify existing opportunities and bridge gaps in pathways, enabling women and girls to participate in sport throughout their lifetimes.

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Grant Details

A consistent theme emerged in our discussions which was a need for more pathways for women and girls to continue playing, coaching or officiating through their lifetime. The following elements were identified as key parts of the pathway that need developing:

  • Supporting girls to move from junior “just for fun” school programs to club competitions
  • Developing opportunities for girls aged 13 and over to remain in sport and pathways that enable their participation
  • Increasing opportunities for women and girls to play at representative level

We invite eligible associations to apply for a one-off grant that will be used to address any of the above areas.

Additionally, we emphasise the importance of safeguarding children and young people and invite applications for strengthening safeguarding practices in community sport. More information about safeguarding can be found below.

Grants will be awarded and paid in FY25 and can be spent over one or more financial years.

The total grant pool is $500,000.  Individual associations can apply for up to $50,000.  The grant total for joint applications is expected to be proportional to the number of associations included in the application.

Eligibility

  • Applications must be for projects, initiatives or activities that address any of the three areas outlined in the grant details above in the following codes:
    • AFL
    • Soccer
    • Cricket
  • Applications must be led by or for regional associations (or equivalent) located in Northern Rivers and/or Mid North Coast. Joint applications are welcome.
  • Applicants must be able to receive funds in FY25 and demonstrate they are equipped to receive and manage the size of the total applied funding
  • Grant funding can be spent in any time frame
  • Applicants must meet national standards for safeguarding children and young people and demonstrate a commitment to creating a safe environment for vulnerable and marginalised groups
  • Applicants must demonstrate a genuine commitment to improving women and girls’ participation in community sport

 

Note: Charity or DGR1 status is not required for this grant program.

Grant Criteria

Applications must be for projects, programs or activities that address one or more of the following:

  • Supporting girls to move from junior “just for fun” school programs to club competitions
  • Developing opportunities for girls aged 13 and over to remain in sport and pathways that enable their participation
  • Increasing opportunities for women and girls to play at representative level
  • Strengthening safeguarding practice within sporting organisations

This grant program’s goal is to provide resources for establishing or expanding pathway opportunities for women and girls in Cricket, AFL and Soccer across Northern Rivers and Mid North Coast. We are interested in applications that clearly articulate the steps and resources required to cultivate these pathways.

Funds can be used for:

  • Salaries and honorariums
  • Professional fees and consultants
  • Outreach and engagement
  • Community consultation and design
  • Scholarships and subsidies
  • Training and development
  • Travel expenses
  • Equipment and uniforms
  • Operational and administration costs
  • Any other costs associated with activities promoting women and girls’ participation

Things we will not fund:

  • Projects, programs or activities without potential for financial sustainability beyond the grant funding
  • Applications exclusively for equipment and/or uniforms
  • Individual clubs or teams
  • Projects, programs or activities where women and girls are not the primary target cohort
  • Projects, programs or activities not based in Northern Rivers or Mid North Coast
  • Projects, programs or activities that do not demonstrate a high level of commitment to safeguarding children, young people and vulnerable persons
  • Retrospective activities that have happened prior to funding being awarded
  • Activities that promote political campaigns or legislative lobbying efforts

Safeguarding

Safeguarding describes the commitment, knowledge and actions of a sporting organisation to prevent and appropriately respond to the harm, abuse and exploitation of children and young people. A strong safeguarding culture and a focus on continuous improvement are key components of a sporting organisation likely to be safer for children and young people.

Importantly, safeguarding focuses on understanding the unique risks children and young people are exposed to when in contact with sporting organisation and putting strategies in place to reduce those risks.

Whether children and young people are playing sport, volunteering or employed by a sporting organisation, they have the right to feel and to be safe. Adult staff, volunteers and players are responsible for creating safe physical and online environments for children and young people, for preventing, identifying and responding appropriately to the different types of risk, for following the safeguarding policies of the organisation and for contributing to a strong safeguarding culture. 

In response to the ongoing harm children and young people experience in a variety of settings across Australia, a commitment to introducing effective safeguarding practices across all levels of sport has become a national priority. This is being achieved through integrating the National Principles for Child Safe Organisations into the governance and culture of sporting organisations so that children and young people can participate in sport and be free from harm.

Safeguarding Package

Siddle Family Foundation has worked with a specialist safeguarding consultant to develop a Safeguarding Package for this small grant program. The package includes resources such as links, videos, tools and policy examples for the essential components of safeguarding in community sport context.

The Safeguarding Package has helped us understand effective safeguarding practices and will support us in assessing applications.

We have included the Safeguarding Package in the supporting materials for this grant program as a useful resource for strengthening safeguarding practices in your organisation. Please download, use and share it freely.

Application process and time frame

All applications must be made through the form linked below.

Applications must be submitted by regional association organisations, or by a state/national organisation on behalf of one or more regional associations.

Joint applications are encouraged, and the grant total is expected to be proportional to the number of organisations applying.

Applications open: March 25th 2025

Applications close: April 28th 2025

Applicant online interviews: May 6th – 8th 2025

Applicants notified: by May 29th 2025 

Payments made: by June 30th 2025

During the application process, we may reach out to ask for additional information about your organisation/s such as financial statements, strategic plans or policies.

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Supporting Materials

Contact

For questions about the grant program and application process:

Teddy Loveny
0466 044 503
teddy@sfo.net.au
Available Mon-Thurs

Frequently Asked Questions

We understand the boundaries of Northern Rivers and Mid North Coast regions can be flexible and that associations don’t always align with the defined geographic region. We generally consider Kempsey to Tweed covers the region, however, for this program, we are preferencing the areas covered by regional associations over geographic boundaries.

We consider associations to be an organisation that governs sporting activities of a regional area. It provides support and resources to sporting activities within an area. It is not a club or competition. In some codes, associations are considered state organisations whereas in other codes, there is a state level organisation that oversees all regional associations. We recognise this definition still might not provide sufficient clarity and invite you to get in touch to discuss your context.

We are not accepting applications from individual clubs or teams however, clubs can be included on joint applications with an association.

It is unlikely we will run a future small grant program with the same focus as this one. This is why we are seeking applications for projects/activities with the opportunity for future financial sustainability or a discrete project. There is no further funding once the grant round is completed.

No, you do not need to acknowledge SFF as a sponsor or funder. However, if it would be advantageous to you for the funding to be publicised, we will work with you on an appropriate announcement. Public acknowledgement of SFF in any form must be approved by SFF.

We recognise that women and girls’ participation is important in all sport and that for some codes, this is already a primary focus. We decided to focus on these specific codes because they have a significant presence in the regions we fund with growing momentum around women and girls’ pathways. Given the size of our funding pool, we want to avoid creating unnecessary competition and ensure grants are large enough to make a meaningful difference.

Yes, you are welcome to submit more than one application or be included on multiple joint applications. We recognise there may be potential budget efficiencies should multiple applications be successful but request that you treat each application as standalone and assume full project cost. Should your applications proceed to shortlisting, there will be an opportunity to discuss combined resourcing during interview.

Yes you can. We understand that state or national organisations might be best placed to receive and manage grant funding. Please submit a joint application and list the associations you are applying with/on behalf of.