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Kensington SA 5068

Community Business Grants

  • Community Business Grants

As part of Community Business Bureau’s commitment to building a stronger not for profit sector, we are proud to offer not for profit organisations across Australia the opportunity to apply for one of our Community Business Grants which offer free consulting support from our Business Consultants.

CBB is a not for profit social enterprise. This means that we reinvest our annual profits into developing our organisation and supporting the not for profit sector through the provision of grants and other initiatives.

Working with over 600 not for profit organisations across Australia, we see various trends and needs within the sector. In each grant round we will offer targeted solutions to support these common sector themes.

Grants available in early 2021

Community Business Grant: Business Resilience

Grant round now open

Find out more and apply

Community Business Grant: NDIS Growth

Grant round opens 1 February

Find out more

Grant round open

Community Business Grant: Business Resilience

The combined crises of the pandemic, societal lockdowns and economic impacts in 2020 have challenged many organisations and their business models.

Many not for profit organisations had activities and revenue streams disrupted significantly, while some fortunate organisations were less directly financially affected and, due to government stimulus, now find themselves with greater than usual profits and growth in financial reserves.

In this round, we are offering two grants in the form of business model resilience consulting support.

We will work with the successful organisations to look at:

  • Analysis of your current business model or models – with particular focus on key partners, activities, resources and revenue streams
  • Assessing the vulnerabilities of the organisation through its business model/s
  • Working with management/board to develop strategies which address the vulnerabilities and opportunities

The consulting support is expected to include meetings, workshops and business model development. Subject to the successful organisation’s needs, there may be some training or capacity building provided, and/or a report with suggestions for improvement.

There are two grants available.

Any organisation registered with the ACNC or ORIC can nominate to take part.  Multiple applications from the same organisation are not permitted. You do not need to be an existing CBB client to apply.

Applications close at 1pm (ACDT) on Friday 5 February 2021.

The consulting project will be delivered between February and May 2021. This program is designed to develop the successful organisation’s business resilience and capacity.

Apply now

Preview the application form

Further information

The business resilience grant program is designed to provide organisations with targeted support to better understand their business model, its vulnerabilities, and put strategies in place to improve resilience.

The scope will be dependent on the specific needs of the successful organisations.

For each successful organisation, we will hold a kick-off meeting to focus the desired objectives, scope and deliverables for the project.

Any organisation registered with the ACNC or ORIC can nominate to take part.  Multiple applications for the same organisation are not permitted.  You do not need to be an existing CBB client to apply.

  • Organisations must be registered as a charity with the ACNC or as an Indigenous Corporation with ORIC
  • Organisations must have been operating for at least 12 months
  • The majority of the organisation’s services must be delivered in Australia
  • Organisations who have previously applied for or received a CBB grant are eligible to apply
  • Successful applicants must be happy to acknowledge CBB as a sponsor of the initiative and provide information to CBB as to how the grant has assisted your organisation or the community you serve
  • Successful applicants must be prepared to participate in CBB’s marketing and community engagement in relation to the grant. You may be requested to provide a case study and to participate in activities such as podcasts, webinars, annual reports, videos or other marketing collateral
  • Applications must be approved by the applicant organisation’s Chief Executive or Board Chair
  • Each grant is in the form of pro bono consulting advice
  • Successful applicants do not receive a cash grant, nor will they be reimbursed for the value of any unused program activities
  • Only one application can be made per organisation

Your application must be submitted via the online application form on the CBB website. You will be required to provide CBB with details of your ACNC or ORIC registration.

Online application forms must be completed by the closing date (1pm ACDT on Friday 5 February 2021).

CBB will then review all applications for best fit with our selection criteria. We will endeavour to award grants across a range of different organisation types and geographies.

Successful applicants will be notified by CBB within two weeks of the closing date.

Unsuccessful applicants will be advised of the outcome of their application within four weeks of the closing date. Unfortunately, due to the volume of applications received, we will be unable to provide specific feedback on the reasons why your application was unsuccessful.

Successful applicant/s are asked to publicly acknowledge receipt of the grant through such means as social media, organisational newsletter or website announcement, or otherwise as specified in the guidelines.

CBB’s decision is final.

Applications are now open and close on Friday 5 February at 1pm

Apply now

Grant round opens 1 February

Community Business Grant: NDIS Growth

Further to our successful NDIS Success program, organisations are invited to apply for one-to-one support from CBB’s Business Consultants to develop a new or grow an existing NDIS service.

More NDIS services are needed across Australia, particularly in regional, remote, rural, Aboriginal, and Torres Strait Islander communities. Whilst NDIS providers may already operate in and around these areas, a greater variety of services is required to meet the needs of individuals living within those communities. The support will focus on assisting organisations to develop a new or grow an existing NDIS service that they can take to market in their community.

There are five grants available.

Multiple applications from the same organisation are not permitted. You do not need to be an existing CBB client to apply.

Applications close at 1pm (ACDT) on Friday 26 February 2021.

The consulting project will be delivered between 1 April and 30 September 2021.

Preview the application form

Further information

All consulting work must take place between 1 April and 30 September 2021. No free consulting support is available outside of these dates.

A lead consultant will be appointed to your organisation. They will be your primary contact throughout the program. Other CBB Business Consultants may work with your organisation throughout the project, depending on the individualised support needs identified during the program.

They will begin by reviewing your business plan as well as reviewing any NDIS audit report/s, financial records, and other documents that you choose to supply.

Your lead consultant will then design and facilitate an action planning workshop, where you will work through the key areas of setting up the new or growing an existing NDIS service. The lead consultant will then develop an action plan and together with you, allocate responsibilities within your organisation and to CBB Business Consultants.

Your lead consultant will act as your guide throughout the consulting support. Monthly telephone or video conference calls will take place between your organisation and the consultant/s to discuss progress, update the action plan and coach you through any roadblocks.

In September, the lead consultant will facilitate a wrap up workshop to review the progress, capture any key learnings, update the action plan, and agree on any outstanding actions.

Anyone that currently provides or wishes to provide NDIS services can apply, but we particularly welcome applications for one-to-one support from:

  • Organisations operating or wanting to operate in rural and remote communities in South Australia, Western Australia, the Northern Territory and Queensland.
  • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations.
  • Organisations must have been operating for at least 12 months.
  • The majority of the organisation’s services must be delivered in Australia.
  • Organisations who have previously applied for or received a CBB grant are eligible to apply
  • Successful applicants must be prepared to participate in CBB’s marketing and community engagement activities in relation to the grant. You may be requested to provide a case study and to participate in activities such as podcasts, webinars, annual reports, videos or other marketing collateral.
  • Applications must be approved by the applicant organisation’s Chief Executive or Board Chair.
  • Each grant is in the form of free consulting support. All consulting support must be finished by the 30 September 2021.
  • Successful applicants do not receive a cash grant, nor will they be reimbursed for the value of any unused program activities.
  • Only one application can be made per organisation.

Your application must be submitted via the online application form on the CBB website.

Online application forms must be completed by the closing date (1pm ACDT on Friday 26 February 2021).

CBB will then review all applications for best fit with our selection criteria. We will endeavour to award grants across a range of different organisation types and geographies.

Successful applicants will be notified by CBB within four weeks of the closing date.

Unsuccessful applicants will be advised of the outcome within six weeks of the closing date. Unfortunately, due to the volume of applications received, we will be unable to provide specific feedback on the reasons why your application was unsuccessful.

Successful applicant/s are asked to publicly acknowledge receipt of the grant through social media, an organisational newsletter or a website announcement, or similar as specified in the guidelines.

CBB’s decision is final.

This grant is funded by the Australian Government Department of Social Services. CBB’s Community Development Fund is also contributing funds to the program. It is free for participating organisations.