Western Sydney First Nations Program

Program objective

The program follows the NSW Creative Communities policy and the Plan for Western Sydney Art, Cultural and Creative Industries: 2025-2028. It supports the national Closing the Gap targets for economic participation and cultural wellbeing. All activities funded through the program must respect cultural sovereignty, follow Aboriginal cultural protocols, and protect Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property (ICIP). 

The purpose of this program is to strengthen First Nations arts, culture, and creative work in Western Sydney. It aims to build skills, create opportunities, and support safe and respectful ways of working.  

The program focuses on: 

• Helping artists and arts workers develop new skills. 
• Supporting First Nations-led organisations and collectives to grow and operate strongly. 
• Building audiences so more people see, value, and engage with First Nations creative work. 
• Supporting partnerships that create long-term connections and networks. 
• Helping organisations and artists find new income sources. 
• Activating places and spaces where First Nations communities can share culture and connect. 

Through these activities, the program aims to close gaps, create fairer access to support, and help First Nations creatives thrive. 

Long-term outcomes: 

• A stronger and more connected First Nations arts sector in Western Sydney. 
• More career pathways and creative opportunities for First Nations artists. 
• Better income and financial stability for First Nations organisations. 
• Greater organisational strength to retain staff, deliver programs, and work with community. 

The program will be managed in line with the NSW Grants Administration Guide, to ensure fairness, transparency and accountability. 

Information session for First Nations applicants

To support First Nations applicants, Create NSW is offering an online information session to help community understand the program and how to apply.

Online Information Session – Support for First Nations Applicants

Join us for an online information session about the First Nations Western Sydney Program. This session will explain what the program supports, who can apply, how to submit an application, and the resources available to help you. The session will finish with a Q&A.

Wednesday 11th March 2026, 10:00 am – 11:00 am - Register here:First Nations Western Sydney Program - Information Session

Image credit: Garrigarrang Badu, Jannawi Dance Clan, ACE. Photo: Liza Moscatelli

This program is administered by Create NSW.

Eligibility

What your application needs to include

After the application is submitted

Successful applications will be decided by: Secretary, DCITHS

This grant program is an open and competitive grant program. All applications are to be submitted and assessed through the process below.  

Assessment process 

1. Eligibility Assessment 

• All applications are first checked against the eligibility rules in these guidelines. This check is done by Create NSW staff. 
• We will also check that you have completed the Creative Nations Ethical Section in the SmartyGrants form. If this section is missing or evidence is incomplete, your application may not be eligible. 
• If we need more information to confirm your eligibility, we will email you before we finish the check. If we still cannot confirm eligibility, the Director will make a final decision and seek approval from the Executive Director. 
• If your application is not eligible, we will email you within 14 days. 
• If your application is eligible, it will move to the next stage of assessment. 

2. Due diligence and other checks  

At any time during the assessment process, Create NSW may undertake due diligence or other checks on an application. This may include, but is not limited to:  

• financial checks such as ASIC searches to confirm the financial status or financial viability of the applicant  
• criminal checks  
• internal conflict checks 
• commissioning or completing research, analysis and modelling to support assessments 
• contacting identified project participant organisations.  

3. Application Assessment Process 

• Applications will be evaluated by an assessment panel of at least two internal Create NSW representatives and two external assessors with relevant expertise in First Nations arts or regional cultural development and Western Sydney.  
• Application(s) will be assessed against the assessment criteria and assessment methodology set out above under ‘assessment criteria’. 
• Assessment panel members will be provided with the application(s) and each Assessment panel member will score the applicants responses against each criterion using the scoring methodology provided, prior to a formal panel meeting. 
• Assessment Panel scores will be collated and transferred into a master spreadsheet, which will be sent to the Assessment Panel for use in the Assessment Meeting.  
• During the Assessment panel meetings, panel members will discuss and debate responses to reach a single score for each response, against each criterion, using a collaborative consensus-reaching approach. Final scores are subject to the applicant satisfactorily meeting any due diligence or other checks below.   

4. Recommendation  

• The assessment panel agrees on final scores and recommends applications that meet all criteria and demonstrate cultural integrity and accessibility.  
• Recommendations are documented and forwarded to the designated decision-maker.   

 5. Decision-making  

• The designated decision-maker will review recommendations and approve funding allocations.  
• Decisions are recorded in writing, including reasons for approval or decline, in accordance with the State Records Act.  

6. Notification  

• Applicants are notified of outcomes within the published timeframe.  
• Feedback sessions are offered to unsuccessful applicants to support future applications.  
• Complaints and appeals are managed according to the process outlined in Section 4.6.  

7. Feedback on applications 

• Unsuccessful applicants may request a feedback session. Feedback sessions will be delivered by the Department. To register for a feedback session please contact firstnations@create.nsw.gov.au.  

The Department’s decision is final. 

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 (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 funding is approved or declined.  

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

Successful grant applications

• Grant agreement

The NSW Government makes no funding or other commitment to the successful applicant until all parties have signed a grant agreement. You must not make financial commitments reliant on this grant until the grant agreement is signed and executed by all parties.   

The grant agreement can only be signed by authorised officers or delegates of your organisation.  

All applicants must provide the contact details (email address, phone number, name, and position) of the relevant authorised signatories, or their delegates, in the contracting form that will be provided to you.  

It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure signatories have the capacity and availability to understand, complete and sign documents, to carefully read the terms and conditions of their grant agreement, and for it to be signed by the correct authorised signatories. Important terms and conditions associated with the funding are attached to the grant agreement. 

• Grant payment

An invoice template is provided with the grant agreement. The grant will be paid to the nominated bank account only after the grant agreement has been executed by the relevant parties. The grant agreement will set out the milestones and conditions required for payment.  

• Variations to the grant agreement

Any variations to the funding agreement, including project scope or activities, location or timeframes outlined in the application form and Grant Guidelines must be submitted for approval by the Department. Failure to do so may result in the withdrawal of the grant offer. 

The Department has the discretion to approve or reject any variation request from a grantee where the grant agreement has already been executed.  

All requests for a variation must be submitted in writing to the Department. To request a variation, or if you are unsure if your enquiry qualifies as a variation, contact firstnations@create.nsw.gov.au.  

• Unspent funds

All grant funds are required to be spent on the approved project, and any unspent funds must be returned to the Department in accordance with the terms and conditions of the grant agreement.  

• Indicative reporting and acquittal requirements

You must submit reports as set out in the grant agreement. We may provide sample templates for these reports in the funding agreement. 

We will expect you to report on: 

- progress against agreed project milestones and outcomes 

- contributions of participants directly related to the grant 

- expenditure of the grant. 

• Acknowledgement

All recipients of NSW Government funding should acknowledge the financial support in accordance with the Funding Acknowledgement Guidelines for Recipients of NSW Government Rebates available here. 

You must seek our written consent prior to any significant public announcement, marketing, press announcements, or official launch in relation to the grant. 

The NSW Government logo should be used on all materials related to grants provided to the funded activity. Whenever the logo is used, the publication must also acknowledge the NSW Government. 

Additional information and resources

• Evaluation 

The Department regularly evaluates its initiatives to determine the effectiveness of implementation and to examine the extent to which outcomes and objectives have been achieved. Evaluations are conducted and published in line with requirements from NSW Treasury and the NSW Grants Administration Guide.  

Information from your application, grant activities and reports you have submitted may be used for this purpose. Create NSW may seek to interview you or ask you for more information to further understand your experience with the grant program, and to evaluate the effectiveness of the program in achieving its objective(s) and outcomes. All applicants, whether successful or unsuccessful, may be contacted to participate in interviews or surveys for evaluation purposes.  

You consent to the use of your information for this purpose by:  

• the Department 
• NSW Treasury  
• the Minister for the Arts office  
• the NSW Ombudsman and Audit Office of NSW  
• consultants and advisers  
• any agency or body of the NSW Government, or any other organisation or individual considered by the office to have a need or an entitlement to know that information (including any federal, state or territory agency or body), where that need or entitlement to know that information arises out of or in connection with the purpose above.  

• Complaint handling

Details on how we handle complaints, access to information and your private information is available here.

• Access to information

The GIPA Act provides for the proactive release of government information by agencies and gives The Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009 (GIPA) provides for the proactive release of government information by agencies and gives members of the public an enforceable right to access government information held by an agency (which includes Ministerial offices). Access to government information is only to be restricted if there is an overriding public interest against disclosure. 

The NSW Legislative Council has the power to order the production of State papers by the Executive Government. Standing Order 52 provides that the House may order documents to be tabled by the Government in the House. The Cabinet Office coordinates the preparation of the papers – that is, the return to order.   

The return to order may contain privileged and public documents. Privileged documents are available only to members of the Legislative Council.  

Note that documents submitted as part of a grant application may be subject to an application under GIPA or an order for papers under Standing Order 52.   

Further information on how DCITHS holds information, and how to access it, is available here. 

• Conflict of interest management - including Cultural Ethics

Conflicts of interest are any factors that could compromise the judgment, decisions, or actions of a person or group of people. For First Nations programs, this includes cultural and community obligations. 

Conflicts may arise if a party in the grants administration process—whether Department staff, assessment panel members, the applicant, or staff employed by the applicant: 

• Has a professional, commercial, or personal relationship with a party who can influence the application selection process 
• Has a relationship with, or interest in, an organisation which is likely to interfere with or restrict the applicant from carrying out the proposed activities fairly and independently 
• Has a relationship with, or interest in, an organisation from which they will receive personal gain because the applicant received a grant 
• Is involved in any other situation which could lead to an unfair advantage. 

Additional cultural and ethical conflicts for First Nations programs include: 

• Kinship or family ties with people involved in the application 
• Holding cultural authority or custodianship over stories, language, or ICIP used in the project 
• Governance roles in organisations named in the application 
• Country or language group affiliations that could benefit from the decision 
• Receiving cultural gifts or reciprocal commitments from the applicant 
• Current ceremonial obligations or Sorry Business relationships. 

What applicants must do: 

• Disclose any actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest in the application form or, if successful, as they arise during project delivery 
• Inform Create NSW as soon as you identify an actual, apparent, or perceived conflict of interest 
• If unsure, disclose it anyway—disclosure does not make you ineligible. 

What assessors must do: 

• Complete a COI declaration before assessment 
• Disclose any kinship, cultural authority, governance roles, or other relationships that could affect impartiality. 

How Create NSW manages COI: 

• Adjusting assessment panels 
• Seeking independent cultural advice 
• Confirming FPIC (Free, Prior and Informed Consent) for projects using ICIP. 

NOTE: You are advised to contact us at firstnations@create.nsw.gov.au if you are unsure whether something constitutes an actual, potential, or perceived conflict of interest.  

• Confidentiality

Successful applicants may be required to keep the outcome of the application process confidential until the Government makes a public announcement. The Department follows all requirements of confidentiality required as part of the grants administration and assessment process as outlined in the NSW Grants Administration Guide.  

Unless otherwise stated, any commercial-in-confidence provisions (as defined under the GIPA Act) provided by you as part of, or in connection with, a registration, application or negotiation process will be treated confidentially by the office. We may disclose commercial-in-confidence information provided by you to the following parties:  

• The Minister or Minister’s office.  
• the NSW Ombudsman and Audit Office of NSW. 
• consultants and advisers engaged by the Department.  
• any agency or body of the NSW Government, or any other organisation or individual considered by the office to have a need or an entitlement to know that information (including any federal, state or territory agency or body), where the need or entitlement to know that information arises out of or in connection with the office’s assessment, verification or due diligence of any aspect of your application; and  
• where authorised or required to by law. 

If we disclose commercial-in-confidence information to any of the above parties, we will inform the party that the information is strictly confidential. We will otherwise only disclose commercial-in-confidence information provided by you with your consent. 

• Privacy

The Department will collect and store the information you voluntarily provide to enable the implementation of this grant program.  

The Department is required to comply with the Privacy and Personal Information Protection Act 1998 (PPIP Act). The Department collects the minimum personal information to enable it to contact an organisation and to assess the merits of an application. Applicants must ensure that people whose personal details are supplied with applications are aware that the Department is being supplied with this information and how this information will be used. 

The Department treats your personal information in accordance with the PPIP Act and the Department’s privacy policy. This includes letting you know:  

• what personal information is collected.  
• why your personal information is collected; and  
• who your personal information is given to.  

The personal information will only be used for the purpose for which it was collected unless an exemption applies. 

Anticipated assessment outcome date is end of May 2026.

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

Support and contact