2025-27 Aboriginal Cultural Heritage

You are eligible to apply for the Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Grants category if you:

• are the owner, manager, long-term lessee or custodian (or have written support from all custodians/owners) of an Aboriginal Place declared under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974
• are a Local Aboriginal Land Council, local council, business, non-government organisation, community group or individual, with your operations and headquarters in NSW (if you are a business or incorporated entity)
• have legal responsibility for maintenance and repair of the declared Aboriginal Place.

This grants category is for:

• owners, managers, long-term lessees or custodians (who have written support from all custodians/owners) of an Aboriginal Place declared under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974
• Local Aboriginal Land Councils, local councils, businesses, non-government organisations, community groups or individuals, with all operations and headquarters in NSW (if you are a business or incorporated entity)
• applicants who have legal responsibility for maintenance and repair of the declared Aboriginal Place. 

You can apply for funding if:

• it is for a heritage management document or works within the boundary of a declared Aboriginal Place
• there are no active NSW Heritage Act 1977 or National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974 compliance issues at the site
• you have the support of Aboriginal custodians
• the project will be delivered between July 2025 and May 2027.

The funding for this grant category is committed to the 2025-26 and 2026-27 financial years. Therefore, the project must be delivered between 1 July 2025 and 1 May 2027. Extensions beyond this date will only be considered under exceptional and/or unforeseen circumstances.

The project must commence within 3 months of executed funding agreement and be completed within 2 years.

The project should be started by 1 July 2025 and the project must be completed by 1 May 2027.

The expected outcomes are projects that support better management, maintenance, conservation and activation of declared Aboriginal Places under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974. 

Below are examples of eligible project costs for this grants category:

• heritage consultant costs, including costs for a specialist to oversee the project for compliance purposes
• purchase of materials including delivery to the Aboriginal Place
• specialist tradespeople
• consultation with cultural knowledge holders, custodians and communities
• obtaining any permits of approvals required, such as an Aboriginal Heritage Impact Permit (AHIP), including application fees.

A contingency amount should be included in the budget, noting that costs may change over time. The payment of any approved grant will be based on actual expenditure up to the approved amount only.

Funding caps include:

• administration costs are capped at 10%
• contingency capped at 10%.

You are not eligible to apply for the Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Grants category if:

• you are a State or Federal government agency
• the Aboriginal Place is owned, managed or there is a responsibility for protecting Aboriginal Cultural Heritage on the site by a State or Federal government agency. This includes:
  • Travelling Stock Reserves, where NSW Local Land Services is responsible
  • National Parks and State Conservation Areas, where the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service is responsible.
• your business or entity is located or incorporated outside of NSW
• your application is incomplete or does not provide sufficient information to assess against the eligibility criteria.

We will also consider any whole-of-government policy or guidelines that restrict an applicant’s access to grants programs.

Below are examples of project costs not allowed under this grants category:

• any project associated costs, purchases or commitments, not including pre-planning, that occurs before 1 July 2025
• ongoing employee positions or in-house project management by salaried officers as either voluntary or cash contributions
• purchase of or relocation costs of cultural items
• new commemorative monuments or headstones
• purchase of equipment, such as lawn mowers, tools, computers, touch screens, audio-visual equipment, etc
• routine maintenance, such as gardening, gutter cleaning, carpet cleaning, etc
• catering costs, except for an opening event and community consultation
• business set-up or operating costs
• insurance costs, other than public liability insurance
• programs, festivals or events to be run at the site
• projects that will rely on ongoing funding
• funding from other NSW Government Grant programs cannot form part of your co-contribution if you are a local government/council.

Below are examples of projects not allowed under this grants category:

• any project works and associated costs, not including pre-planning, that occurs before 1 July 2025
• activities or works that have high levels of negative impact to the Aboriginal cultural heritage values of the site
• keeping place: a place where artefacts or remains can be held in a culturally appropriate manner while awaiting repatriation
• ongoing employee positions or in-house project management by salaried officers as either voluntary or cash contributions
• construction of new buildings
• purchase or relocation of cultural items
• new commemorative monuments, works or headstones
• purchase of equipment, such as lawn mowers, etc
• business set-up or operating costs
• projects that will need to rely on ongoing grant funding
• routine maintenance, such as gardening, gutter cleaning, carpet cleaning, etc
• heritage management documents required for statutory or legal purposes. For example, Aboriginal cultural heritage assessments relating to environmental impact assessments
• projects that are exclusively:
  • to make safe immediately following a disaster that is led by NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS) or other emergency services and agencies
  • for revegetation, erosion or land management
  • cultural burning.

Below are examples of projects that you can do as a part of this grants category.

1. Develop a heritage management document for a declared Aboriginal Place. Examples are listed below:

• Plan of Management
• Conservation Management Plan
• Conservation Management Strategy
• condition survey
• disaster recovery and preparedness plan.

2. Works within the boundary of a declared Aboriginal Place. Examples are listed below:

• physical conservation works, including restoration, reconstruction and preservation
• works to enable activation
• interpretation activities
• maintenance and repair
• works, including fire, services and access upgrades, to allow compliance with the Building Code Australia, Disability Inclusion Act 2014 and Work Health and Safety Act 2011
• works for disaster recovery and preparedness.

You do not need to contribute to the project financially unless you are a local council.

Local councils must match any funding they apply for. They must contribute the same, or more than, the grant amount received. For example, if a council successfully applies for a $30,000 (ex GST) grant then they must also contribute $30,000 (ex GST) or more to the project. This means the total project cost will be $60,000 (ex GST) or more.

Councils may include reasonable in-kind contributions, such as realistic hourly rates for relevant activities, but not in-house project management by salaried staff.

All other applicant types, who are not local government agencies, do not need to match funding for their project.

Before you start any work, you'll need to confirm if you need:

• a permit under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974
• approval by your local council.

If the Aboriginal Place is also listed on the State Heritage Register (SHR), or if there is an impact on non-Aboriginal archaeology, you must also consider other permits, approvals or exemptions under the Heritage Act 1977.

You should avoid any harm done to declared Aboriginal Places. If harm can't be avoided, you must minimise or mitigate the impact. If this is the case, you will need to apply for an Aboriginal Heritage Impact Permit (AHIP). You must get your finalised AHIP before you start any project work.

If you do need an AHIP, then you will also need to do formal Aboriginal community consultation. There are guidelines available to help you understand your obligations under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974 for work on Aboriginal heritage sites.