For assistance with any part of your application contact your local Variety office on 1300 482 743

IMPORTANT: Please read information below to assist you in completing your application online.

BEFORE YOU BEGIN 

Welcome the Variety Victoria Community Application Form

 All submissions received will be assessed, with outcome notification expected within 3 weeks of the assessment.

Variety Victoria promotes inclusivity for all Aussie kids! Schools and Organisations are invited to apply for a grant which will go towards the purchase of equipment that will promote all access and inclusive participation in the community for children aged 0-17 years from financial disadvantage, geographic isolation and/or living with a disability or chronic illness.

Variety Victoria Community Grant Guidelines

• Download Guidelines here

Introduction

Schools and NFP Organisations are invited to apply for a grant which will go towards the purchase of equipment to promote accessibility and inclusivity in the community for children aged 0-17 years with disability, chronic illness, financial disadvantage or geographic isolation.

Eligibility

You are eligible to apply for a community grant provided that:

 The school or organisation:

• is based and operating in Victoria
• is not a private school or business
• directly services children under the age of 18 in one or more of the following areas
  • disability and/or chronic illness
  • financial disadvantage
  • geographic isolation
• Previous recipients are ineligible for a community grant within 2 years of receiving a grant from Variety from the date of the previous grant outcome letter

FUNDING REQUESTS

The applicant may only apply for one or more items as part of their grant request. The items must directly benefit children as per the eligibility criteria above.  Examples of grant requests are, but not limited to:

• Supplies such as decodable readers, musical instruments
• Equipment such as inclusive play equipment and sensory rooms and items.
  • Sensory rooms and items must comply with Victorian Education Department policy
  • education.vic.gov.au/pal/sensory-rooms/policy
• Technology such as iPads, smart boards, hearing loops, c-pens

Grants we will not fund:

• Expenses that have already been initiated or have already occurred prior to submission or written approval
• Incomplete application forms
• Equipment from non-Australian distributors that cannot be invoiced directly to Variety or services outside Australia
• Capital works
• Installation costs
• Wages, training and seminars
• Research
• Insurance, service or maintenance costs
• Programs

Application

 Applications are open for the designated time period.

• Applications must be submitted via the online application form
• An application can be made on behalf on the organisation by an authorised representative
• Only one application may be made per organisation.
• Applicants will be expected to submit a truthful and factual application and attach relevant documentation as evidence, addressing but not limited to the following points:
  • Contact details of the authorised representative and organisation
  • Details of the benefit to children and staff, and, if applicable, families and wider community
  • Why the equipment is required and what need the equipment will address
  • Details of the requested item including supplier information
  • Information related to the expected outcomes and measurements

Quote/s

The application will require 3 quotes that directly relate to the requested item(s) from your preferred supplier. This must be no older than 3 months at the time of submission and remain valid through the assessment process. Please keep in mind that the assessment process may take up to 10 weeks from the closing date before you receive an outcome from Variety.

Funding

An applicant will be required to stipulate why they are requesting support from Variety Victoria and where applicable, any other sources of funding.

The submission letter should contain as much information about your project as possible including why the item/s are needed, how they will be used and the outcomes you expect by having the equipment.

Post-Submission and Assessment

Variety Victoria grants are open at set periods through the year. They are reviewed by the Kids Support department and eligible submissions are assessed by the Kids Support Grants Committee. Approved applications are then submitted to the Variety Board for ratification. Please allow up to 10 weeks following the round closure date for the process to be complete.

Decision

Outcome letters are emailed to applicants following ratification by the Variety Board.

Unsuccessful Applicants

• Reasons pertaining to unsuccessful applications are at the discretion of the Kids Support
• Unsuccessful applicants may be eligible to reapply in the next round.

Successful Applicants

• Successful Applicants have 18 months from the date of approval on their letter to use their grant
• No retrospective funding is eligible
• Successful applicants are directed to provide their outcome letter to the supplier associated with their approved granted item
• The supplier must provide a tax invoice for the approved item/s and for the approved amount (please note, Variety Victoria does not provide money directly to applicants and/or parent/carers; money is paid directly to suppliers). Instructions for invoice submission will be provided to applicants in their outcome
• It is the responsibility of the applicant to action all appropriate steps after receiving the outcome letter (as directed)
• Any unused and/or unspent funds will be forfeited after the expiry date of the grant
• Recipients will not be considered for another community grant until 2 years after the date listed on their outcome letter

Outcome Reporting

Variety takes great care and pride to ensure that their grants are correctly used to the positive benefit of our children and community. You may be required to submit an outcome report on the grant.

If you require further information, please do not hesitate to contact the Kids Support team on kidssupport@varietyvic.org.au

If you need more help using this form, download the Help Guide for Applicants or check out Applicant Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's)

NAVIGATING (MOVING THROUGH) THE APPLICATION FORM

On every screen (page of the form) you will find a Form Navigation contents box, this links directly to every page of the application. Click the link to jump directly to the page you want.

You can also click 'next page' or 'previous page' on the top or bottom of each page to move forward or backward through the application.

SAVING YOUR DRAFT APPLICATION

If you wish to leave a partially completed application, press 'save and close' and log out. When you log back in and click on the 'My Submissions' link at the top of the screen, you will find a list of any applications you have started or submitted. You can reopen your draft application and start where you left off.

You can also download any application, whether draft or completed, as a PDF. Click on the 'Download PDF' button located at the bottom of the last page of the application form.

SUBMITTING YOUR APPLICATION

You will find a Review and Submit button at the bottom of the Navigation Panel. You need to review your application before you can submit it.

Once you have reviewed your application you can submit it by clicking on 'Submit' at the top or bottom of the screen or on the navigation panel. You will not be able to submit your application until all the compulsory questions are completed and there are no validation errors.

Once you have submitted your application, no further editing or uploading of support materials is possible.

When you submit your application, you will receive a confirmation email with a copy of your submitted application attached. This will be sent to the email you used to register.

If you do not receive a confirmation of submission email then you should presume that your submission has NOT been submitted.

Hint: also check the email hasn't landed in your spam or junk email folder.

ATTACHMENTS AND SUPPORT DOCUMENTS

You may need to upload/submit attachments to support your application. This is very simple, but requires you to have the documents saved on your computer, or on a storage device.

You need to allow enough time for each file to upload before trying to attach another file. Files can be up to 25MB each; however, we do recommend trying to keep files to a maximum of 5MB – the larger the file, the longer the upload time.

COMPLETING AN APPLICATION IN A GROUP/TEAM

A number of people can work on an application using the same log in details as long as only one person is working at a time. Ensure you save as you go.

SPELL CHECK

Most internet browsers (including Firefox v2.0 and above; Safari; and Google Chrome) have spell checking facilities built in – you can switch this function on or off by adjusting your browser settings.