Social Grants

If you have an idea that will strengthen social well-being, address complex social issues in communities and support vulnerable people, this program could help support it.

2019 Program Updates

The Trust has made improvements to the program to address feedback from the social sector including:

Extending the intake period to allow for more time to develop project ideas and applications;
Increasing the frequency of intakes to one every six months;
Accepting applications up to $5,000 (Small Grants) and over $5,000 (Large Grants) in the same intake; and
Consolidating the Small Grant and Large Grant online application forms into one.

Who Can Apply

Eligible applicants include registered non-profits, public organizations, municipalities, regional districts and Indigenous organizations. Businesses may be considered depending on the project and its broad community impact. The project must not mainly benefit the interest of the business.

Your project must take place within the Columbia Basin Trust region.

Project Categories

Your project should address one of the following three categories:

QUALITY OF LIFE PROJECTS:
- Pilot or expand community-based activities that increase quality of life for Basin residents living in poverty, facing significant barriers and/or experiencing vulnerabilities.
- Pilot or expand projects that improve access to community and social services and resources for Basin residents living in poverty, facing significant barriers and/or experiencing vulnerabilities.
- Pilot or expand initiatives that foster social inclusion and increase social connections for populations experiencing, or at risk of experiencing, social isolation (e.g., children, youth, LGBTQ2+, people with diverse abilities, seniors, visible minorities, recent immigrants).
CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS:
- Pilot or expand early years (ages newborn to six) or middle years (ages six to twelve) initiatives that address existing or emerging developmental needs (i.e., cognitive, socioemotional, speech and language, fine or gross motor skills) of children who have or are at risk of developing vulnerabilities.

SOCIAL SECTOR CAPACITY PROJECTS:
- Develop and establish shared services or other efficiencies to address operational challenges of social sector non-profit organizations, while at the same time improving the quality and availability of services for clients.

Learn More About the Program:

The Trust will be hosting information sessions to review the Program Guide and answer questions about the application, selection and contracting processes. The same content will be covered at all sessions.

Teleconference Information Meeting #2:

Date: September 18, 2019
Time: 6:00 p.m. PT / 7:00 p.m. MT
Dial-In: 1-877-806-9883
Passcode: 217886

You can also tune into our LIVE session on Facebook or Instagram to learn more about this program and ask questions on September 5, 2019 at 2:00 p.m. PT / 3:00 p.m. MT.

How to Apply

The Social Grants intake is now open. The deadline to apply is October 29 at 2:00 p.m. PT / 3:00 p.m. MT. Applications for projects with requests up to $5,000 (Small Grants) and over $5,000 (Large Grants) will be accepted during this intake.

View the Application Guide.

If you require support with your application or project scoping, you can reach out to Trust program staff to guide you in the process at socialgrants@ourtrust.org.

The application process is online for Social Grants. You will need to create an account. (If you have already created an account for a different Trust grant application, please use that one.)

Using the Online Application Site:

Click here to apply for a Social Grant.
Download the Application Guide and Worksheet from the links above to assist you in gathering the information you will need to complete the application.
If you’re a first-time user, you will need to create an account.
Click on ‘Apply Now’ to initiate your application. You may save drafts and submit your completed application at any point before the deadline.
Once your application is complete click ‘Submit’.
You will receive a confirmation email that your application has been received once you have clicked ‘Submit’.

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