Current Funding Policies

The terms of the Wills give the Trustees complete discretion in making their decisions on what they fund or choose not to fund in support of the Designated Purposes.

Without limiting this discretion or limiting their freedom of action,

1. The Trustees' usual practice has been

to make relatively small monetary grants, mostly in the range $5000 to $30,000, to many different organisations and projects rather than to make fewer grants at higher levels of monetary support – see Publications – Recent Distributions,
to make single grants rather than multi-year grants or grants by instalments and
not to make grants to individuals.

2. The Trustees consider that the following areas of need that would qualify for consideration as meeting one of the Designated Purposes, might warrant greater support than usual in current social and economic circumstances.

In Fund 1: Public Benevolent Asylums and Institutions in Victoria and in Fund 7 Relief of Poverty in Australia etc.

Projects and programs directed to the alleviation of distressed circumstances such as poverty, homelessness, unemployment, sickness, trauma and helping recent immigrant communities overcome disadvantage.

Social outreach programs to the poor and disadvantaged that are undertaken by churches or religious groups would normally be considered under Fund 7. But if there is and explicit religious component, a program would be considered under Fund 5.

In Fund 2: Public Hospitals in Victoria

Regional hospitals that act as centres of excellence and specialisation and smaller community hospitals.

In Fund 4: Public Educational Purposes in Australia

early education initiatives for disadvantaged children,
education and training for the young,
"Core education" and completion of schooling and
improved education for immigrant and disadvantaged communities.

In Fund 5: Religious Purposes in Australia.

(Note comment above in Fund 1 and 7 on social outreach programs of churches)

Applications from churches or religious communities in rural areas or from parishes in disadvantaged areas.

Support for the following categories of need might be provided:

religious ministry to the poor and disadvantaged,
training for religious ministry,
ecumenical religious initiatives especially those having an educational element,
upkeep and support of ministers of religion in their ministries and maintenance, refurbishment and improvement of places of worship. (However, restoration projects for churches in relatively wealthy communities would not normally have priority.)

N.B. Please note that the closing date for Distribution applications for 2013 and thereafter will be 30 June, not 30 September.