Aboriginal Sport for Respect Grant Program

It is important that applicants work through the form in sequence, including the eligibility requirements. Questions asked throughout the application are based on your responses provided in the initial sections of the application. 

Incomplete (unsubmitted) applications will not be considered.

Primary prevention means stopping violence before it occurs. It focuses on addressing the underlying conditions that drive domestic, family and sexual violence (DFSV), including attitudes, norms, structures and power imbalances that enable or excuse violence[1]. Primary prevention works across whole communities to create lasting change by strengthening respectful relationships, promoting equality and supporting safer environments.

The NSW Government’s strategy, Pathways to Prevention: NSW Strategy for the Prevention of Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence[2] (the Strategy), recognises that gender inequality is a key driver of violence against women. However, it also recognises that violence is shaped by a range of intersecting social, cultural and historical factors, and that effective prevention must respond to different community contexts.

For Aboriginal communities, evidence shows that violence cannot be understood through gender inequality alone. Research from Our Watch[3] highlights that violence against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women is driven by the intersection of three key and interrelated factors:

• Driver One: the ongoing impacts of colonisation, including intergenerational trauma, disruption of culture, and experiences of systemic disadvantage and disempowerment
• Driver Two: the ongoing impacts of colonisation within broader Australian society, including racism, discrimination and structural inequalities of power
• Driver Three: gendered drivers of violence, including harmful attitudes, behaviours and norms that reinforce inequality and disrespect towards women

These drivers interact and reinforce each other, resulting in disproportionately high rates and more severe impacts of violence against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women.

The NSW Government has allocated up to $625,000 in 2026/27 for this Program.

Grants of between $3,000 and $25,000 are available to eligible applicants for eligible projects.

Funding is available to support Aboriginal-led, partnership-based projects that use sport and active recreation as a setting for the primary prevention of DFSV.

An eligible applicant may submit multiple applications; however, the maximum amount of funding that can be awarded to any one eligible applicant is $25,000.

Organisations may be listed as a project partner in more than one application. Where an organisation is involved in multiple applications, the Office of Sport may consider its capacity, role and proposed contribution when assessing project deliverability.

Organisations may only receive NSW Government funding once for the same project or same component of a project from this program or any other NSW Government funded grant program. 

Aboriginal Sport for Respect Program enables Aboriginal organisations and communities to design and lead activities that reflect local priorities and ways of knowing, fostering respectful relationships through genuine partnerships with the sport and active recreation sector. In doing so, it responds meaningfully to the drivers of violence while strengthening culture and self‑determination.

Investing in local capability, cultural leadership and ongoing reflection will help drive long‑term prevention outcomes for whole of community, across NSW.

Key Objectives

• Support Aboriginal-led Prevention through Sport: Enable Aboriginal communities, organisations and leaders to design and deliver primary prevention activities that reflect local priorities, strengths, culture and Aboriginal ways of knowing.
• Promote safe, respectful and inclusive sporting environments: Support projects that use sport and active recreation to strengthen respectful relationships, challenge harmful attitudes and behaviours, and promote safety, inclusion and belonging
• Address the drivers of DFSV in culturally meaningful ways: Support projects that respond to the gendered, colonial and social drivers of domestic, family and sexual violence in ways that are culturally safe, strengths-based, trauma-informed and community-led.
• Build local capability and partnerships for prevention: Strengthen the ability of Aboriginal communities, sport and active recreation organisations, ACCOs, DFSV prevention specialists and local partners to work together and embed prevention into everyday sporting activities, leadership, policies, practices and community engagement.
• Strengthen learning and impact through Aboriginal-led reflection and evaluation in sport: Embedding culturally appropriate reflection, continuous evaluation and storytelling to understand what works, what is meaningful for communities, identify opportunities to strengthen impact and how Aboriginal-led approaches can inform future prevention activity and investment.

The Applicant acknowledges and agrees that:

• submission of this application does not guarantee funding will be granted for any project, and the Department expressly reserves its right to accept or reject this application at its discretion;
• it must bear the costs of preparing and submitting this application and the Department does not accept any liability for such costs, whether or not this application is ultimately accepted or rejected; and
• it has read the Funding Guidelines for the Program and has fully informed itself of the relevant program requirements.

By submitting this application form, the Applicant acknowledges and agrees that:

• if this project application is successful, the relevant details of the project will be made public, including details such as the names of the organisation (Applicant) and any partnering organisation (state government agency or non-government organisation), project title, project description, location, anticipated time for completion and amount awarded;
• the Department will use reasonable endeavours to ensure that any information received in or in respect of this application which is clearly marked ‘Commercial-in-confidence’ or ‘Confidential’ is treated as confidential, however, such documents will remain subject to the Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009 (NSW) (GIPA Act); and
• in some circumstances the Department may release information contained in this application form and other relevant information in relation to this application in response to a request lodged under the GIPA Act or otherwise as required or permitted by law.

To be eligible for funding, your application must:

• be submitted by an eligible applicant as per 2.1.2.
• be submitted through SmartyGrants.
• be for a project located in NSW.
• be for an eligible project as per 2.1.6
• request a grant amount between $3,000 and $25,000
• provide evidence of a partnership as per 2.1.4.
• be for a project completed by 1 December 2027.
• include a declaration by the applicant organisation that if successful they will provide Public Liability Insurance with a minimum $5 million cover

Eligible organisations that have outstanding reporting from previous Office of Sport grant programs may be deemed ineligible for funding.

Eligible applicants must have the legal, financial and operational capacity to manage and deliver the proposed project. The applicant organisation will submit the application, enter into the funding agreement with the Office of Sport, receive the grant funding, and is responsible for delivering and acquitting the project.

There are two ways an organisation can be eligible to apply. Both must use the partnership model outlined in section 2.1.1.

Ineligible applicants are any organisation types not listed in the ‘Eligible Applicants’ section, and include (but are not limited to):

• Individuals 
• Unincorporated groups that are not applying through an eligible applicant.
• Parents and Citizens (P&C) Associations.
• State and Federal Government departments and agencies.
• Schools and TAFEs.
• NSW Institute of Sport, Australian Sports Commission (incorporating the Australian Institute of Sport) and NSW Regional Academies of Sport.
• For-profit commercial organisations, unless they are listed as an eligible applicant under this section, such as an eligible Aboriginal-owned business or eligible NSW-based professional sporting organisation.
• Organisations named:
  • (i) by the National Redress Scheme for Institutional Child Sexual Abuse on its list of institutions that have not joined or signified their intent not to join the Scheme; or
  • (ii) in the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse that has not yet joined the National Redress Scheme. 

Eligible projects must:

• Be delivered in NSW.
• Use sport or active recreation as the primary engagement setting.
• Meet the definition of Aboriginal-led project in section 1.3.
• Address one or more relevant primary prevention drivers of DFSV outlined in section 1.
• Be completed by 1 December 2027.

Projects may engage Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal participants within the sporting environment where the project responds to Aboriginal community priorities and is intended to contribute to positive outcomes for Aboriginal communities.

Eligible project costs

Eligible project costs may include, but are not limited to:

• Venue hire for project delivery
• Minor equipment, materials and resources required specifically for project activities
• Promotion, communications, marketing and community engagement materials directly related to the project
• Specialist facilitator, trainer, cultural advisor or other specialist contractor fees
• Accessibility costs, including transport support, interpreters, childcare or other participation supports where needed
• Reasonable payment for Aboriginal cultural knowledge, community leadership, Elders, speakers or lived/living expertise where directly related to the project
• Reasonable catering for project activities, workshops, yarning circles, community gatherings or training sessions, where the cost is directly related to delivery of the project. Catering must be proportionate to the number of participants, duration, and nature of the activity.
• Travel and accommodation where it’s essential to project delivery, particularly for regional or remote participation
• Staff salary or wage costs for time directly attributable to project delivery (limited to no more than 10% of the total grant amount).

Ineligible projects

• Projects that do not meet the definition of an Aboriginal-led project in section 1.3.
• Projects focused primarily on increasing sport or active recreation participation, where there is no clear and explicit link to DFSV primary prevention outcomes.
• Projects whose primary purpose is crisis response, victim-survivor support, case management, counselling, perpetrator intervention or tertiary response
• Projects that do not use sport or active recreation as the primary setting for engagement and delivery
• Projects that have already been funded by the NSW Government unless significant new and additional scope is identified.
• Projects that will not be completed by 1 December 2027. 

Ineligible costs

• Costs associated with preparing and submitting the grant application
• General administration costs, or organisational overheads that are not directly related to the Project.
• Prize money, trophies and presentation functions.
• Entertainment, hospitality, catering, food and drink not directly related to the Project. The purchase of alcohol will not be funded in any circumstances.
• Events organised primarily for fundraising purposes, including charity fundraising events.
• Purchase of land, rental of premises for the organisation’s administrative and operational requirements, or associated occupancy payments.
• General running costs including capital equipment, insurance costs (public liability and general liability insurance).
• Infrastructure projects (e.g. construction, upgrade, maintenance, and repairs).
• Costs of engaging an independent evaluator or evaluation consultant.

Project budgets should not include any ineligible costs. These will be removed by assessors if included, at the absolute discretion of the Office of Sport.

Criterion 1: Community Priority and prevention purpose (25%)  

Criterion 2: Project activities and use of sport (30%) 

Criterion 3: Aboriginal-led Partnership (25%)  

Criterion 4: Deliverability, safety and budget (20%) 

The key objectives of the Program align to the Office of Sport Strategic Plan 2024-2028 

You can find the guidelines here: Program Guidelines.

Applicants must address at least one of the program objectives.

• It has been prepared by and is being submitted by an eligible applicant
• Applicants will notify the Department if grant funding is secured from another source