Community Grants 2023 recipients
Each year we support our community groups and environment by helping make important projects possible through our Community Grants program. While we help to fund these projects, it’s our community groups who bring them to life – often with a team of passionate volunteers.
A Better Life for Foster Kids
Helping children aged 0-16 who are entering out-of-home placements in the Frankston area.
Their grant will allow for the purchase of 60 crisis suitcases to be filled with age-appropriate hygiene essentials, clothes, toys, and books - helping to make the transition just a little bit easier.
Carrum Downs Secondary College
The grant will be used to create a culturally safe and inclusive place for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students to connect.
This includes an Aboriginal inspired bush tucker garden to encourage cultural exploration and learning through education, cooking and storytelling.
Casey North Community Information & Support Service
The grant will be used run a financial literacy program and create a financial literacy resource.
This will help them support vulnerable community members in managing their finances, whilst freeing up financial counsellors to assist the wider Casey North community.
A copy of the financial literacy resource 'Stay on Track' developed to provide information and advice to community members about financial matters ranging from budget to credit to scams is located here.
Chelsea Community Support Services
The grant will provide 60 households with ‘Winter Warmer care packs’ to help those struggling to pay rising energy bills to stay warm and well during the winter months.
Winter warmer care packages include an electric throw blanket, woollen socks, a pull-over gown, soup and a hot water bottle.
Elwood Lifesaving Club
The club will use its grant to fund weekly pool training sessions for volunteers.
This will help them maintain fitness and rescue skills during winter, improving member retention and community safety.
Visit Elwood Lifesaving Club
Hastings Bowling Club
The club brings community members together through lawn bowls.
Their grant will be used to install an automated garden watering system, reducing manual labour and conserving water by utilising their rainwater tanks.
Visit Hastings Bowling Club
Inclusion Melbourne (Stonnington)
Inclusion Melbourne will create and promote a plain language "dual read" resource for people with cognitive disabilities.
The resource will guide community sports organisations on how to include people with cognitive disabilities in mainstream sports, whilst promoting accessibility and inclusivity.
A copy of the plain language resource 'pass it to me!' developed to promote the inclusion of people with cognitive disabilities in mainstream sports is located here.
Launch Housing (Dandenong)
The community grant will help to create and install an edible and medicinal garden at Viv's Place, an apartment building for at-risk women and children in Dandenong.
Long-term residents will now have a communal space to grow food, learn about natural remedies, and build community connections.
Lighthouse Foundation (Frankston)
Their Sustainable Garden Project will create a therapeutic and sustainable garden at their home for young people in vulnerable circumstances in Frankston.
The project will involve creating a garden, complete with a watering tank and irrigation. This will allow young people to learn new skills, engage in nature-based activities and nurture a sense of accomplishment.
Sandy Beach Community Co-Operative Society
The Sandy Beach Community Co-Op is known for its cooking classes for people with disabilities.
The grant will be used to purchase specialised kitchen equipment that caters to individual needs to provide a safe and supportive environment to improve participants' cooking skills.
