communitymatters.govt.nz Community Organisation Grants Scheme COGS New Zealand : Department of Internal Affairs

Organization : Department of Internal Affairs
Service Name : Community Organisation Grants Scheme (COGS)
Country: New Zealand

Website : https://www.communitymatters.govt.nz/

Community Organisation Grants Scheme

Requests for Community Organisation Grants Scheme (COGS) grants may now be made using the new online system which is replacing Grants Online and application forms on paper.

Related : Department of Internal Affairs Community Development Scheme New Zealand : www.statusin.org/6920.html

Kaupapa / Purpose:
The Community Organisation Grants Scheme is a community-driven fund that provides grants to non-profit community organisations that deliver community-based social services.

37 Local Distribution Committees (LDCs), served by volunteers, consider and make decisions on grant requests from community organisations within their local community.

Funding for outcomes:
An outcomes approach has been introduced to focus grant decision-making on the community outcomes or benefits that will be achieved through the grants that are made. For more information see the guidance notes on the outcomes approach.

COGS Outcomes:
Grant decisions will be based on the likelihood that the services or completed project will deliver the community benefits and outcomes described in the grant request.

Funded services or projects are expected to contribute community benefits or outcomes. These include that:
** participation in communities has been actively encouraged
** community leadership has been promoted
** community capability has been developed
** social, economic and cultural equity has been promoted, or
** downstream social and economic costs to communities and government are reduced.

COGS priorities:
Priority is given to services and projects that:
** are initiated by local community organisations
** have limited access to other government funding
** respond to locally identified priorities.

deliver to one or more of the COGS priority sectors, which are:
** Maori
** Women
** Pacific communities
** other ethnic communities
** older people
** rurally isolated people
** people with disabilities
** families
** youth and children
** unemployed people

Committee outcome priorities:
Each local distribution committee identifies local priorities to focus on for its next funding round, based on consultation with local communities and discussions held at COGS public meetings each year.

For 2015, this priority setting focused on the community outcomes and benefits local communities identified as priorities for grant decision-making. When preparing a grant request, we recommend that you consider the priority outcomes identified for your local community.

Governance:
Organisations requesting grants must demonstrate the appropriate governance, management structures and processes are in place to support the size and complexity of the services or project for which funding is sought.

What we fund:
COGS grants make a contribution to the costs of running community organisations that provide local community-based social services or projects.

There are two types of criteria:
** criteria for those making a grant request, and
** criteria for the type of grant request.

Organisations requesting COGS grants must:
** have an organisation bank account and email address
** have legal entity status if requesting a grant of $10,000 or more
** submit a budget as a supporting document to the grant request, identifying all proposed income and costs associated with the service or project
** have appropriate governance and management in place, and
** have the capability to successfully achieve the service or project outcomes proposed.

What we do not fund:
** Capital items such as land, building/alterations, plant and machinery, vehicles, furniture and office equipment
** Duplication of existing services, unless there is a good reason for both services to exist
** Social functions, unless, for cultural reasons, the ‘social’ event brings people together in order to achieve other significant community benefits or outcomes
** Activities or programmes taking place outside of New Zealand
** Retrospective funding for activities that have already taken place prior to the COGS closing date
** Grant requests from individuals
** Projects seeking to promote commercial, political or religious objectives, including political advocacy projects, employment and/or business initiatives, and commercial enterprises
** Publishing any material of a technical nature unless the material is consistent with applicable policies and guidelines produced by relevant Government departments or Government approved authorities. The onus of demonstrating such approval is placed on the applicant when making the application.
** COGS will only consider funding the publication of any material of a technical nature if the material is consistent with applicable policies and guidelines produced by relevant Government departments or Government approved authorities. The onus of demonstrating such approval is placed on the applicant when making the application.

Example:
From time to time, COGS committees receive applications requesting a grant from an organisation planning to publish an educational resource that is likely to contain health information of a technical nature.