Community Grants

pink piggy bank

The Municipality of Port Hope provides financial support to non-profit organizations and registered charities through our annual community grant program. We only accept application requests of $1,000 or more. If you are requesting a smaller amount, you will need to apply for a donation. Review the eligibility requirements and learn how to apply.

The 2023 Community Grant recipients list can be found on the Municipal Budget page.

Apply for the grant

The 2023 Community Grant program is now closed, as of Friday October 7, 2022. The 2023 Community Grant program will reopen September 2023 in preparation for the 2024 Budget.

Applications are available on or before the first week of September each year.

Application documents

Staff are only required to provide Finance Committee application forms completed in full, meeting all application requirements, and legible for the Committee’s consideration each year.

As per approved July 5, 2016 Committee minutes, staff were directed to review all applications and any application that is incomplete or does not meet the criteria set out in the Community Grant policy is not to be considered for funding.

For a copy of the following documents please contact us:

Community Grant Policy
Application Guidelines and Submission Checklist
Sample of a complete application

Late submissions

Applications received on the due date, are considered on time. Any applications received after the due date will be considered late.

Please note

Complete applications that are late may be considered for the grant at the discretion of the Finance Committee. Late submissions that are incomplete will not be considered.

Eligibility

Community grants support non-profit volunteer community organizations and registered charities. To be considered, your organization must:

Initiate or deliver programs and services to the citizens of Port Hope
Provide events of Municipal, Provincial or National significance, which could be expected to bring economic, and/or public relations benefit to the Municipality
Provide programs and services to address any urgent and pressing events and natural disasters (i.e., fire, flood, earthquake)
Initiate programs or services for individuals, groups or teams who require assistance to participate in recognized regional, provincial, national or international championships

In order to receive the grant, your organization must request funds for:

General operating and capital expenses including administrative costs and program-related expenses
Activities/functions generally occurring within the Municipality of Port Hope boundaries
Programs/activities/functions addressing a community need, responding to an underserviced demand or contributing to the positive image of the Municipality

Requirements

Each organization submitting an application is required to provide:

Information about the organization and its programs or services;
A statement of the organization's goals and objectives;
A description of how the organization intends to measure the success of the program or service if the funding request is approved;
Demonstrated need for financial assistance as evidenced by a deficit on the income statement for the event or program being hosted;
Income statement and balance sheets of the organization;
If organizations are requesting grant funding for a specific event/project, they must provide an additional income statement and balance sheet;
Audited financial statements for the previous year, if available;
There is community support for the programs or services;
Adequate funding for the programs or services is not available from other sources;
It is presently exploring, or has fully explored, the potential funding from other sources, from other levels of government, the private sector, memberships, donations and fundraising activities;
Efforts have been made to decrease reliance on Municipal funding so other emerging needs or opportunities may be met; and
If a grant was received in the preceding year, the Municipalities financial support was acknowledged in all information pertaining to activities for which funds were granted per the policy.

Restrictions

The following restrictions apply:

Organizations can only submit one community grant application per year
If the programs or services proposed in the organization's application are not completed or there are left over Municipal funds, such Municipality funds will be returned to the Municipality
If you receive a grant one year, that doesn't mean you will receive a grant in future years
Funding is provided only for the sole purpose for which it was awarded within the current fiscal year

The Community Grant program isn't intended to provide funding:

On a retroactive basis for events that have already occurred
To coalitions such as ratepayer or tenant/landlord associations, or to support programs or services geared specifically to these organizations
To organizations aligned with any political party, or to support programs or services which are political in nature
To support programs or services which are operated under the authority of another level of government, such as social services
As donations to charitable causes
As a replacement for other funding sources
For debt retirement
To an applicant that has an overdue amount owing to the Municipality of Port Hope

Review process

We will disqualify any applications with a surplus as shown on the income statement of the event or program being hosted. We will provide the remaining applications to Finance Committee for their review. Finance Committee will use the application requirements as conditions when screening each application to distinguish whether the application meets the requirements and should be considered for funding. Staff will work with the Chair and may not bring forward applications if it is determined that they do not meet the requirements stated in the policy.

We will notify you in advance of the scheduled meeting date that your application will be considered by the Finance Committee. The Finance Committee may request that you appear as a delegation to speak on behalf of your application.

We will notify you if you are awarded a community grant following final Council approval of the annual budget.

After receiving a grant

Your organization must acknowledge the support of the Municipality of Port Hope in all advertising, publicity, programs, and signage for all events and programs related to the grant. You may not represent the Municipality of Port Hope as a partner or hold the Municipality responsible for any obligations relating to the grant initiative.

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