The Grant for Good is an annual $20,000 community grant to provide help to projects, organisations and initiatives that promote social inclusion activities, health and wellbeing, sports and other fields that benefit our communities.

Applications are now closed for 2026. Applications for next year will reopen April 2027.

 

Congratulations to all our previous winners!
The grants awarded have helped each organisation provide a direct and positive impact within the community.

2025 Winner – The Reconnect Project

The Reconnect Project is a circular economy initiative that trains and employs neurodivergent young adults to refurbish donated digital devices in South West Sydney. The Grant provided 400 hours of paid work to young adults and helped refurbish and distribute 100 laptops to disadvantaged high school students.

2024 Winner – Carevan Blacktown

Carevan Blacktown is a non-profit organisation that provides over 150 free meals weekly to those in need in the Western Sydney region. The Grant provided support to the organisation to rent a newly secured warehouse facility and expand its support to an additional 200 individuals, strengthening social cohesion within the community.

2023 Winner – Eat Up

Eat Up! Eat up are Australia’s only organisation providing free lunches to students on a national scale. The Bank of Sydney Grant for Good helped provide funding for 20,160 lunches and fed 2,740 disadvantaged kids across 20 schools.

2022 Winner – Plate it Forward

Plate it Forward is a not-for-profit organisation which empowers individuals from vulnerable, disadvantaged, and at-risk Sydney communities to overcome barriers to social and economic participation. The Grant for Good provided funding for 1.5 months’ worth of food goods to deliver a minimum of 5,400 free meals through their Social Meal program.

2021 Winner - Variety

Variety is a children’s charity that empowers disadvantaged kids to live, laugh, and learn. They receive no government funding and rely completely on supporters to assist thousands of Aussie kids every year. The Grant for Good enabled Variety to purchase eight adaptive tricycles for two schools in regional Victoria, supporting children affected by factors such as Covid-19, the 2019 bushfires, and various disabilities. These tricycles promoted social inclusion and improved the mental and physical health of the children.

 

Grant Guidelines

Bank of Sydney Grant for Good Guidelines

To qualify or to be considered for the Grant for Good, every application will need to observe the following guiding principles:

A. Eligibility Criteria

  • Applicants must be registered with the ACNC (Australian charities and Not-for-Profits Commission).
  • The organisation has an Income Tax Exempt Charity (ITEC) Status and Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) Item 1 status.
  • Efforts should be focused towards helping/directly benefiting local communities/groups and the disadvantaged.
  • The organisation must receive less than 40% of their income from state, federal or local government funding.
  • The organisation must have an annual gross revenue of less than $2M.
  • Applicants must provide their most recent financial statements and Annual Information Statement as submitted to the ACNC.
  • Note that meeting the eligibility criteria does not guarantee selection or funding.
     

B. Organisations excluded from applying:

  • Organisations and initiatives with direct links to tobacco or alcohol, negative impacts on health or the environment, or associated with risk-taking activities.
  • Initiatives that impact the environment negatively.
  • Organisations and initiatives that support political causes, candidates, events, legislative lobbying or advocacy.
  • Organisations and initiatives supported by conflicting sponsors/significant competitors.
  • Organisations and initiatives that are inconsistent with Bank of Sydney’s values and policies.
  • Organisations and initiatives that expose Bank of Sydney to reputation or financial risks.
  • Organisations and initiatives that conflict with our corporate and/or community Partners.
  • Anything else that Bank of Sydney considers inappropriate or not aligned with its business objectives and values.
     

C. Additional information, Terms and Conditions

  • Bank of Sydney Grant will be given on an annual basis to one successful Applicant.
  • Successful Applicants are entitled to re-apply for the Grant for up to three consecutive years.
  • Bank of Sydney may amend, suspend or discontinue the Grant at any time.
  • The Grant will be paid upon the announcement of the successful Applicant.
  • Successful Applicant agrees that Bank of Sydney can use their logo/name in marketing activities and promotion related to the Grant. (Such as: Announcement, Social Media Posts, etc.)
  • Bank of Sydney may be unable to provide feedback on individual applications. Only finalists will be contacted.
  • Successful Applicant will be announced and posted on Bank of Sydney’s website.
  • Successful Applicant must not engage in any activity that could negatively impact Bank of Sydney and/or its reputation or business.


D. Assessment Process

All applications will undergo an internal assessment process to ensure they meet all Grant for Good guidelines and eligibility criteria. A legal and financial due diligence check will be conducted for the final selection of eligible applications. Please note that applications will be considered on a case by case basis. A committee will be in charge of assessing the applications and nominate three finalists.  Finalists will be asked to submit a video to provide further information about the work they do to help with the final selection process. The committee will then re-assess the finalist’s videos against the assessment criteria to make a final decision on the Successful Applicant.

Assessment Criteria:

  • The purpose and objectives of the Applicant’s initiative/organisation.
  • The plan for what the Applicant’s initiative/organisation will do with the grant.
  • The impact on local communities and the disadvantaged, including the number of individuals/groups who will benefit from it.
  • Brand alignment with Bank of Sydney’s values and vision.
     

E. Timeframe

Applications will open on the 20th April 2026 and close on the 11th June 2026. Finalists will be notified via email within 6 weeks of the application’s closure and will be required to submit a short video within 2 weeks for final selection. The Successful Applicant will be announced by the 23rd September 2026 and contacted by email or by phone. An announcement will also be made on Bank of Sydney’s website and social media platforms. Bank of Sydney may require more information from the successful Applicant.