The City of Chestermere’s Human Services Advisory Board (HSA) will be awarding grants to service programs that create better lives for residents.
From January to December of 2020, $200,000 in grant funding will be awarded to social service programs in the community.
“We’re looking at not-for-profits and registered charities that service residents in Chestermere,” said the City of Chestermere’s Manager of Community Support Services Danielle Fermin.
“Our preference is to partner with agencies that offer programs focusing on service delivery through prevention, early intervention, and community development,” Fermin said in a Media Release.
The joint application process between Chestermere Family and Community Support Services (FCSS) and the United Way/Chestermere partnership encourages not-for-profit and registered charities to apply for grant funding.
“We’ve had quite a response from the not-for-profit and registered charities in Chestermere seeking out opportunities for funding,” Fermin said.
“We know that in Chestermere, we don’t have much social infrastructure in place. The grant provides agencies a source of funding that is local for the projects, services, and programs they are trying to advance here,” she said.
For not-for-profit organizations and registered charities to be eligible for grant funding, the support services are required to attend an information session.
The information session allows for the agencies to understand the eligibility requirements and allows them to talk about program ideas in advance to submitting their application, Fermin said.
She added the agencies that apply for the grant funding do not have to be an organization in Chestermere. However, they are required to provide programs and services to residents.
When looking at the applications that have been submitted, the HSA looks at the fit of the program proposal in regard to the Social Investment Framework.
The support services that receive grant funding are required to meet requirements including, prevention, early intervention, and community development.
While supporting inclusive and engaged communities, positive development of children and youth, and social wellbeing.
“That framework is what our board uses to determine if it’s a fit for the priorities that they have had in determining their allocation,” Fermin said.
The proposals that will be awarded with grant funding include defining the program design and approach in addressing the social issue, identifying the need in the community, outlining all research and current partnerships, listing short and mid-term outcomes, and describing the current funding.
Depending on the organization’s application, some agencies that apply for the grant-funded could receive the entire amount of funding they requested.
“It just depends on the strength of their application, and the amount of money we have available,” Fermin said.
“Each year that we put the call for applications out, we’ve had more requests for financial funding than dollars that are actually available,” she added. “We know there is a need in the community.”
Since the FCSS and United Way have created the joint application process in 2015, the HSA has received feedback from agencies that have been awarded the grant funding.
“We’ve heard from agencies that they appreciate the process, and they find the one-on-one information sessions are really helpful for them to understand how to design their programs,” Fermin said.
“It helps them make sure they’re putting a really-well thought out application together,” she said.
The currently funded agencies have seen a lot of benefit from receiving the grant, such as positive changes that have occurred in their programs and participates lives.
For many of the funded agencies, the grant funding process was a self-starter, Fermin said.
“For the groups, it gives them the knowledge that in 2020 they have funding, it also encourages our agencies to look at partnership opportunities,” she said.
“It provides a sense of sustainability knowing that they have funding so they can plan in advance, and for our residents, it’s accessing services locally,” she added.
Past recipients include Camp Chestermere, Synergy, Prairie Waters Elementary Awakening Passions, Junior Achievement of Southern Alberta, Rocky View Immigrant Services, Canadian National Institute for the Blind, and the Canadian Red Cross Society.
Proposals are encouraged until Aug. 26.
For additional information on grant funding criteria, please visit the City of Chestermere’s website at https://www.chestermere.ca/767/Human-Services-Advisory-Board-Grants.
