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You are encouraged to contact our National Office to discuss these procedures before submitting an application.
Email: lotterygrants@dia.govt.nz or Freephone: 0800-824 824 (New Zealand only) or 04 495 7200 if calling from the Wellington free-calling area.
Assessment Criteria
The committees which fund community organisations take the following factors into account when considering applications:
(i) whether the application complies with the committee’s policies, and would contribute to the achievement of the Board’s and the committee’s mission;
(ii) the applicant’s level of compliance with the approved purposes, terms and conditions of any previous lottery grant, and the quality of the expenditure of that grant;
(iii) an assessment of the merits of the project, the need for it, and the extent to which the community would benefit;
(iv) the extent to which the community supports an application - demonstrated by funds raised, voluntary labour, donated materials and discounts;
(v) an assessment of the organisation’s ability to achieve the project - in particular, the adequacy of its structures (e.g. experienced and well-organised voluntary and/or paid staff, effective networks, access to all necessary equipment and other resources), its financial and management practices and track record on past projects;
(vi) the financial situation of the group;
(vii) any independent assessment or comment obtained from relevant government or community agencies;
(viii) past precedents for funding such applications and/or any precedents which would be set by funding a particular application;
(ix) other sources of funding available and the applicant’s fund-raising capabilities;
(x) compliance with all relevant legislative requirements, such as the Disabled Persons Community Welfare Act, and standards of good safe practice.
Notes:
1. Some committees use additional criteria, which are set out in their policy statements.
2. The criteria of the Health Research Committee and the Individuals with Disabilities Subcommittee are set out in their policy statements.
3. A group may apply to more than one lottery committee within any year and committees accept more than one application per group per year.
4.The Lottery Grants Board and the committees reserve the right to vary from their policies in exceptional circumstances.
Legal Status
These comments apply to all committees. Some committees do not accept applications for salaries, and only the Welfare Committee and the Individuals with Disabilities Subcommittee accept applications for vehicles.
1. Applications for amounts over $5,000 are accepted from non-profit or charitable organisations with legal identity (e.g. an incorporated society or a registered charitable trust) or from legal identities established by a Court or under an Act of Parliament which are authorised to receive and administer charitable funding.
2. Non-profit making groups with no legal identity may apply for amounts up to and including $5,000 in total for any purpose, except salaries and vehicles, in any one financial year (1 July - 30 June), from one or more lottery committees.
3. Umbrella Applications
Umbrella applications are not accepted. A group must apply in its own right for a grant. No group can apply on behalf of another group.
4. Church Groups
(i) Anglican, Catholic, Methodist and Presbyterian church groups that are not legally incorporated:
Applications
(ii) Other unincorporated church groups: see paragraph 2 (above).
Financial Information - Minimum Requirements
All Lottery Environment and Heritage, Lottery General, Lottery Marae Heritage and Facilities, Lottery Seniors, Lottery Welfare and Lottery Youth clients, and some Lottery Community Facilities and Lottery Health Research clients must provide:
1. Past financial information: annual accounts that meet both Lottery Committee requirements and your own group’s constitutional requirements.
2. Current financial information: a statement of income and expenditure covering the period between the date of your group’s last annual accounts and the time of completing the application. This statement DOES NOT need to be prepared by a suitably qualified person - it can be prepared by the person who prepares the financial information or accounts within your organisation. You will need to include details of any new contingent liabilities which have arisen since the date of the annual accounts provided. (A contingent liability refers to a future event with an unknown outcome that is not part of the normal operation of the business. An example is a Court case for the hearing of an employee’s personal grievance.)
3. Projected financial information: the application form asks for a budget for your project. If your project does not cover all aspects of your annual operation, the Committee requires a budget for your group’s overall operation showing both income and expenditure. This should ideally cover the period for which you are applying for funding. However, if the timing of this application means that your group has not yet prepared its budget for this period, then the current budget that your group is working with will generally be acceptable. Groups applying for $50,000 or more may be required to provide an independent opinion on the adequacy of the project budget from a Chartered Accountant (CA) holding a Certificate of Public Practice. You will be advised if this is required.
4. A signed declaration: two officers of the organisation must complete and sign the declaration in the application form to confirm that:
(i) the statement of income and expenditure includes any financial changes since the date of the annual accounts and a written explanation of any significant financial changes;
(ii) the Committee will be advised of any significant change to the organisation’s finances between the date of application and the date of the Committee’s meeting;
(iii) at least the following set of minimum internal controls is in place:
Past Financial Information - Minimum Requirements
| Applying for $5,000 or under | Groups that are not incorporated or have been incorporated for less than 16 months (at the closing date): a bank statement less than 1 month old at the application closing date.
Groups that have been incorporated for more than 16 months (at the closing date): your most recent annual accounts which must meet the requirements of your Constitution or Trust Deed. |
| Applying for $5,001 to $24,999 | Groups that have been incorporated for less than 16 months (at the closing date): a year to date statement of income and expenditure. This DOES NOT need to be prepared by a suitably qualified person**.
Groups that have been incorporated for more than 16 months (at the closing date): your most recent annual accounts EITHER NB: your accounts must meet the requirements of your Constitution or Trust Deed. |
| Applying for $25,000 and over | Groups that have been incorporated for less than 16 months (at the closing date): a year to date statement of income and expenditure. It DOES NOT need to be prepared by a suitably qualified person**. The minimum financial requirements for groups applying for $25,000 or over have been amended. The person auditing your accounts no longer needs to be a “Chartered Accountant (CA) holding a Certificate of Public Practice”. If your group is applying for more than $25,000, your group will still need to provide audited accounts, but those accounts can now be audited and signed by a “suitably qualified person”. A “suitably qualified person” is a: bank manager, accounting graduate, retired accountant, accounting technician, CA, ACA or a person with specific or auditing experience (details must be provided). Please note: These are minimum requirements. The accounts and the status of the auditor must meet the requirements of your own constitution. |
Age and date of accounts
Accounts must be no more than 16 months old at the application closing date. For example, if your balance date is 30 June 2001 and you are applying to an August 2001 meeting, then your 1999/2000 accounts are acceptable. However, if you are applying to November 2001 meeting then your year ended 2000/2001 accounts are required. The accounts must state the period covered and the auditor’s qualification/s. In exceptional circumstances an application may be allowed to go forward with a written explanation from an organisation explaining why accounts which are over 16 months old are all that can be supplied.
A suitably qualified person
A suitably qualified person is a: bank manager; accounting graduate; retired accountant; Accounting Technician; CA or ACA; or a person with specified or auditing experience (details must be provided).
The following areas are normally excluded from receiving funding from lottery distribution committees:
While some committees impose specific conditions (which are set out in their respective policies), the minimum accountability requirements imposed on all lottery grants are as follows:
(i) the grant must be used only for the approved purpose and in accordance with any terms and conditions imposed by the committee;
the grant may be recalled if these are not complied with;
the committee’s authorisation must be obtained before grant monies are expended on any other purpose or are held by the recipient for longer than two years; any funds which are not required for the approved purpose or which have not been spent within two years of uplifting the grant must be returned to the Lottery Grants Board;
(ii) the recipient is required to agree to:
(iii) the grant income must be shown as a separate entry in the recipient’s annual accounts;
wherever practical, the audited accounts should contain an audit note indicating how the grant money has been spent and detailing the amount and source of any other funds use for the project;
(iv) the Lottery Grants Board’s support must be acknowledged in all publicity material, annual reports and similar documents;
where a community building project involves grant funding of more than $30,000, the Board provides a brass plaque, which must be prominently displayed on the facility;
plaques are available to other grant recipients upon request;
(v) grants for capital works, equipment and similar items may be made payable in instalments or on receipt of a GST receipt or invoice only;
(vi) grant recipients are required to sign and return a client agreement form indicating their agreement to all grant conditions before the grant is uplifted;
(vii) grant recipients, except as detailed below in (viii), are required to complete an accountability report outlining the benefits to the community of grant expenditure;
this report is to be provided at the completion of the project, when the grant has been fully expended or 15 months after the grant was approved, whichever is the soonest;
the latest set of annual accounts is to be attached to the accountability report, where this set of accounts covers the period in which the grant was spent;
where the latest set of accounts does not cover the period of grant expenditure, an updated (unaudited) income and expenditure account must be provided;
an updated balance sheet is also required where the grant is for capital works or for an asset;
(viii) where a grant is paid on supplier’s invoice, is for less than $25,000 and is for either equipment or a feasibility report, no accountability report is required.
Payment on Invoice
Where payment is to be made on invoice, these grants will be paid either directly to the supplier on the unpaid supplier’s invoice or as a reimbursement to the applicant on receipt of invoices that have been paid. Where grants are paid directly to the supplier, each invoice must be signed by two office holders of the organisation. Where grants are paid directly to the applicant, a receipted copy of each invoice for reimbursement must be signed by two office holders of the organisation.
All distribution committees make grants exclusive of GST. However, the payment of grants will include GST if the payee is registered for GST.
You can ask a Committee to review its decision. You will need to provide additional information to support your request for a review, as the decision will have taken into account all the information originally provided.
If you wish to ask for a review of a Committee’s decision, you are encouraged to do so within four weeks of receiving notification of the Committee’s decision. It would be useful to discuss this with a Funding Advisor first.
Interface Between Lottery Seniors, Lottery Welfare and Lottery Youth
1. Lottery Youth considers applications where at least 75% of the project’s client base are young people (in the age range 0-25 years). Lottery Youth funds projects that have a developmental or preventative focus. Projects that have more of a welfare and support focus are considered by Lottery Welfare.
2. Lottery Welfare considers requests from groups offering a welfare or support service to the whole family including any young people. Lottery Welfare also considers requests from groups providing welfare services to young people.
3. Lottery Seniors funds organisations where 50% or more of the client base is over the age of 60 years. Lottery Welfare considers the remainder.
National Bodies With Branches Or Affiliates
Legal Status Of Branch Applications
Where a branch of a national organisation, with no legal status of its own, is applying for sums of over $5,000, the application (and subsequently the Client Agreement and Accountability Reports) must be co-signed by the branch’s national body. The Financial Information Requirements (see page 8) apply to the body with the legal identity. Church groups should also refer to page 7 as the Lottery Grants Board has signed agreements with major church denominations.
In addition:
Lottery Seniors accepts collated applications to a nominated meeting during the year from:
Other organisations with branches can choose to apply either in collated form to any of the four Lottery Seniors meetings during the year or for each branch and the national body to apply in its own right to any meeting during the year. For those national organisations who submit a collated application, the Committee prefers that applications from all branches/affiliates are considered at the same meeting.
Lottery Welfare accepts collated applications to a nominated meeting during the year from:
Other organisations with branches can choose to apply either in collated form to any of the four Lottery Welfare meetings during the year or for each branch and the national body to apply in its own right to any meeting during the year. For those national organisations who submit a collated application, the Committee prefers that applications from all branches/affiliates are considered at the same meeting.
Lottery Youth accepts collated applications to a nominated meeting during the year from:
Other organisations with branches can choose to apply either in collated form to any of the four Lottery Welfare meetings during the year or for each branch and the national body to apply in its own right to any meeting during the year. For those national organisations who submit a collated application, the Committee prefers that applications from all branches/affiliates are considered at the same meeting.
Contact Us
You are encouraged to contact our National Office to discuss these procedures before submitting an application.
Email: lotterygrants@dia.govt.nz or Freephone: 0800-824 824 (New Zealand only) or 04 495 7200 if calling from the Wellington free-calling area.
