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.

Community Grants eligibility requirements and guidelines

Review the eligibility requirements below and learn how to apply before you begin your application. Applications are available on or before the first week of September each year.

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

Application guidelines and sample application

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.

Please ensure your application has met these guidelines before submitting:

All applicants must read the Community Grant Policy before completing their organization’s community grant application form and financial information (see below for options to submit either online or by hard copy)
Responses are required to be provided for all the 10 application questions. 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.
A completed sample application is provided as an example of what meets the criteria of this policy for applicants to use as a reference.
Applications must be submitted to the Administrative Assistant, Finance no later than Wednesday October 11, 2023 by 4:30 p.m., as shown on the time stamp in the Municipal Office. Applications can be submitted online or as a hard copy. You can drop off hard copy documents at Town Hall 56 Queen Street Port Hope Ontario L1A 3Z9.

Application submission checklist

I have read the Community Grant Policy

I have completed Community Grant Application with full answers for all 10 questions (either online or by hard copy)

I have collected the required signature for the Signed Attestation as part of the Community Grant Application

I have completed the Financials Excel Document with these completed tabs:

Organization’s Income Statement (tab 1)
Organization’s Balance Sheet (tab 2)
Event’s Income Statement *if applicable (tab 3)
Event’s Balance Sheet *if applicable (tab 4)

I have included the organization’s audited statements *if applicable

View a Sample of a complete application for more information on how your complete application should look when submitted.

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 that 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.

Apply for the grant

Please send us your completed application no later than 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, October 11, 2023

Please submit your completed Community Grant application and Community Grant Financials documents by one of the following:

Icon of a paper icon and a cursor clicking

Submit an online application

Go paperless! Complete your application through our digital community grant application form. Now offering the option to save your form as you go and come back to it later.

Online 2024 Grant Application

Download and print a hardcopy

Download and print your application and financials. Both completed applications can be mailed, hand delivered or placed in our drop-box at Town Hall, 56 Queen Street, Port Hope, L1A 3Z9.

Financials application (Excel required)

Printable 2024 grant application

Review process for community grant applications

Once your application has been submitted, we will review the community grant applications as per the below process.

Remove surplus applications

We will disqualify any applications with a surplus as shown on the income statement of the event or program being hosted.

Provide remaining applications to Finance Committee

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 Community Grant Policy.

Notify applicant that application will be considered

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.

Award grant

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.

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

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