2-Year Multi-year Funding

Successful applications will be decided by: Minister for the Arts

Applications will undergo a staged assessment process, including assessment against eligibility and essential criteria, as outlined below.

Assessment process

Once your application has been submitted, you will receive an email confirmation from our secure online grants system, SmartyGrants. Applications will be initially reviewed by Create NSW staff to ensure they meet eligibility requirements, and all application materials are acceptable.

After eligibility is confirmed, the application will be evaluated by members from one of the 10 Artform Boards. Applications will be assessed with organisations of similar type, against the published criteria and consistent with these guidelines. Presenting organisations that program activities and events across multiple artforms are encouraged to select 'multi-arts' as their secondary artform in the application form menu. These applications will be assessed by a subcommittee of members drawn from across the relevant Artform Boards.

Please note that funding allocation follows a competitive process. Evaluations by the Artform Boards will consider the assessment criteria, the demographics, distribution, organisation type, range and scale of applications. This may include prioritising programs and organisations with outcomes that address ACFP Strategic Priority Areas, geographical spread, artform spread and the Visual Arts, Craft and Design Framework to ensure equity across the state and the best outcomes for NSW Government investment. Create NSW will consolidate evaluations and finalise recommendations based on the quality of the applications as assessed by the Artform Boards, demand by artform, availability of funds, distribution across the state, the Visual Arts, Craft and Design Framework and ACFP Strategic Priority Areas.

Notification of application outcomes

All applicants will be notified within one week of the final approval of funding commitments by government. The anticipated assessment outcome timeframe is eight weeks after closing date. Feedback will be provided to unsuccessful applicants only. Successful applicants will meet with Create NSW at the contracting stage.

Assessment Process Considerations

Applicants should note that:

• The NSW Government typically receives far more applications than it can support.
• You are not guaranteed funding even if your application meets the published criteria.
• If you are successful, your application may not be funded to the amount you requested.

Create NSW may, at its sole discretion and at any stage of the application process, do all or any of the following:

• Require additional information from an applicant.
• may request applicants to provide clarification or additional information regarding the Eligibility Criteria
• Change the scope of the requirements of these guidelines.
• Vary, amend (including by replacement), or terminate the application process.
• Re-open an application after the closing date, provided it doesn’t give the applicant an advantage over other applicants.
• Consider any non-conforming or late application.
• Allow cross-board consultation on applications.
• Request further advice and/or clarification from applicants during the assessment process. 

Artform Boards:

• May set aside an application if it is assessed as below acceptable in any one of the published criteria.
• May consider whether an application needs to be reallocated to another board for assessment.
• May ask for a Cultural Review from Create NSW First Nations staff or the First Nations Arts and Culture Artform Board for applications with First Nations content and engagement.

Publication of grants information

The Grants Administration Guide (Guide) requires that certain information is published in relation to grants awarded no later than 45 calendar days after the grant agreement takes effect (see section 6.5 of the Guide and Appendix A to the Guide).

This information is also open access information under the Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009 (NSW) (GIPA Act), which must be made publicly available unless there is an overriding public interest against disclosure of the information.

In accordance with these requirements, relevant information about the grants awarded will be made available on the NSW Government Grants and Funding Finder as soon as possible after the grant agreement is executed.

However, due to the commercial-in-confidence nature of the information provided, the amount of funding provided will not be published.

All records in relation to this decision will be managed in accordance with the requirements of the State Records Act 1998 (NSW).

Successful grant applications

Successful applicants for 2-Year Multi-year Funding will need to: 

• Enter into a two-year funding agreement for 2026-2027
• Provide Key Performance Indicators and evaluation data.

Reporting

Reporting requirements will be subject to awarded grant amounts:

• All successful applicants will be required to meet with Create NSW each year to discuss KPI outcomes, artistic program delivery and financial health.
• Provide audited financial reports in Year 1 *
• Provide an artistic and financial acquittal at the end of year 2.

*Financial reports must be audited or externally reviewed (note the reporting period for these reports will be 1 January to 31 December).

Grant Agreement

• If your application is successful, you will be sent a funding agreement (contract). This outlines the conditions of funding, how you will be paid and your grant reporting requirements.
• Prior to contracting, successful applicants will need to provide Key Performance Indicators and evaluation data. This includes the special condition that 10% of allocated funding per annum supports collaboration with collaborative activities negotiated with Create NSW to ensure agreed outputs are met.
• Successful applicants may be asked to provide a reference letter from First Nations peers or community groups, as well as adherence to ICIP and Aboriginal Protocols, if appropriate.
• Successful applicants will be asked to provide an active ABN, bank account with the same name or details of the organisation prior to contracting.
• Funding agreements will not be issued, and payments will not be made, until all Create NSW outstanding acquittals have been submitted.
• Create NSW staff will review required reporting and may contact you for additional information as part of this process.

Successful applicants must acknowledge Create NSW funding in all publicity materials. The detail of this will be outlined in the funding agreement.

Program Evaluation

From time to time, the ACFP will be evaluated to measure how well its outcomes and objectives have been achieved.

We may collect and use information from your application and reports for this purpose. We may also interview you or ask you for more information to help us understand how the program impacted your organisation and to evaluate how effective the program was in achieving its outcomes.

We may contact your organisation up to three years after you receive the final grant payment associated with the program for more information to assist with this evaluation. Create NSW and the NSW Audit Office reserves the right to undertake an audit of program funding and support within seven years.

Tracking, reporting and an independent audit will be a requirement of the funding agreement. 

Anticipated assessment outcome date is within one week of the final approval of funding commitments by government. The anticipated assessment outcome timeframe is eight weeks after submission.

Anticipated date for funding deed execution with successful applicants is within one month of successful notification.