$700,000 on offer for community projects

OzHarvest driver Luke McKelvey, Miranda Browne from the Food Hub and OzHarvest Manager Newcastle and Central Coast Richard Stark, delivering their one millionth meal on the Central Coast

Not-for-profit and community groups delivering important projects and initiatives to assist those most in need in our communities are being encouraged to apply for a share in the $700,000 kitty from Newcastle Permanent Charitable Foundation.

The grants on offer will support new or existing community-based projects concerned with the key focus areas of health, young people and social wellbeing.

Newcastle Permanent Charitable Foundation Executive Officer, Carly Bush, said the rising cost of living was driving a higher need for those in our communities seeking services and support.

“The current economic landscape is really intensifying the pressure already felt by our regional NSW communities, and in particular the charities that work tirelessly to support them,” Ms Bush said.

“Those in the Central Coast community who were already vulnerable are becoming even more at risk and it’s the charities of the region who are doing the most to help out. 

“We are committed to giving back so that local groups can continue to make a meaningful difference in people’s lives now and for future generations,” Bush said.

Grants appointed as part of this funding round will mark 20 years of the Charitable Foundation supporting deserving charities and not-for-profits, during which time $25M in funding has been granted to initiatives that have helped rewrite the future of people in need across regional NSW.

Over the past year alone, the Charitable Foundation has contributed to a number of projects aimed at addressing disadvantage and creating opportunity in the Central Coast region, including $110,000 to The Shepherd Centre’s first clinical service for deaf children, $90,000 to OzHarvest’s Central Coast and Lake Macquarie Food Rescue expansion and $87,000 to Autism Camp Australia’s Helping Hands Project.

Applications are now open via the Charitable Foundation website and close at 11.59pm on Monday, October 31.

Sue Murray