Workplace Health and Safety and Consumer Protection sponsorships are now completed for 2023-24 financial year. Check back on this website for advice on future sponsorships in these areas.
Key information
- Status: Closed
- Grant amount: From $2,000 to $25,000
- Application opened: 1 March 2023
- Application closed: 30 April 2023, 5:00 pm
Program objective
This sponsorship program is administered by the Better Regulation Division (BRD) within the Department of Customer Service (DCS). BRD’s purpose is to help make NSW safer, fairer and more productive for consumers, workers and businesses.
This program aims to form mutually beneficial relationships between organisations and BRD. Sponsorship funding may be provided for initiatives that align with SafeWork NSW or NSW Fair Trading priority areas, which raise awareness and improve:
- work health and safety to reduce serious injuries, illness, and fatalities in NSW workplaces
- consumer protection to promote a fair marketplace, and rights and responsibilities for consumers and traders.
NSW Fair Trading and SafeWork NSW are the joint funding providers for the sponsorship program.
This program is funded and administered by NSW Department of Customer Service.
Eligibility
Who can apply
- not-for-profit and non-government organisations
- local councils
- industry associations.
Priority areas
Your application must outline how your initiative aligns to SafeWork NSW or NSW Fair Trading priority areas.
While we will consider all areas of work health and safety and consumer protection, preference will be given to applications that align to one of the following priorities.
- Work health and safety – find a description of these priorities at SafeWork NSW
- Consumer protection – find a description of these priorities at NSW Fair Trading.
Examples of initiatives we will sponsor
Some examples of the types of initiatives we will sponsor include:
- industry information, guidance material or programs
- a work health and safety or industry-specific app, podcast or video
- training programs that benefit the broader community or industry
- seminars about how to prevent bullying and respect diverse groups in the workplace
- a community event with resources about consumer rights; for example, information about refunds, lay-bys and returns
- in-language resources for community groups about the latest scams.
If the initiative is seeking sponsorship for an awards event, you must:
- have BRD representative/s being a member/s of the judging panel and/or judging the sponsored award category
- have a BRD representative presenting the award
- give BRD the right to promote the award and distribute promotional materials to guests before, during and after the event.
Why we can't sponsor everyone
Your application may meet the eligibility and assessment criteria but may not be funded. This is because many requests for sponsorship are received each round and it is not possible to support all of them. All applications are assessed in a consistent and transparent manner and ranked by merit.
If your organisation is sponsored in one round, it is not guaranteed to be approved for the same activity in a future round. Nor does it mean that an application denied in one round will be denied in future rounds.
What your application needs to include
Prepare your application with this checklist
Your application should:
- align to either a SafeWork NSW or NSW Fair Trading regulatory priority
- describe how the objectives will be achieved
- provide a cost breakdown for each activity in your proposed initiative, representing value for money
- outline the direct benefits for BRD as a sponsor
- target a priority audience for one of the below categories:
- work health and safety: workers from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds (especially workers new to Australia), Aboriginal people, food delivery riders, itinerant workers, young workers or workers living with disabilities
- consumer protection: older people, people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, people escaping domestic and family violence, Aboriginal people, people living in strata, product safety for children, young people or people living with disabilities
- promote activities with a broad reach e.g. across the community of an industry sector
- demonstrate long-term self-sustaining benefits.
Review terms and conditions
There are terms and conditions you must agree to on behalf of your organisation when submitting your application. These terms and conditions are outlined below.
Your organisation must:
- not operate for commercial or financial gain
- be based in and/or provides services in NSW and where applicable, have a current ABN
- not have previously received a BRD sponsorship in the current financial year
- not submit more than one sponsorship application in a single round
- include BRD in branding and profile-raising opportunities, where applicable
- use the NSW Government 'Waratah' logo for all promotional opportunities
- not be multiple applicants from multiple related organisations seeking sponsorship for the same initiatives, nor have already received sponsorship funding from another government agency or co-sponsors for the same initiative or component
- not be subject to compliance or enforcement action or situations breached or are under investigation for possible breaches of legislation (whether or not a prosecution is pending)
- (if required) comply with NSW public health orders and follow the COVID-19 business rules that align to their industry/organisation
- not have any legal interest, investment or relationship to the services or other activities proposed to be funded by the BRD Sponsorship
- not be claiming this Sponsorship on behalf of another organisation or seeking to pass on funding to a third party in the form of a sponsorship or financial grants, subsidies or rebates
- not be planning to develop material that promotes political, religious, or other ideologies/agendas such as devaluing message or content
- not be aware of, nor carry out any sponsored activity that has any actual, potential and/or perceived risks or conflicts of interest, or adversely affect your ability to carry out your obligations under the Sponsorship and will immediately notify BRD in writing if such a conflict or risk of such a conflict arises
- have the appropriate administration, management, governance expertise and financial stability to deliver the activities proposed in the application.
- understand that:
- a summary of sponsorships may be reported publicly through BRD’s associated websites and/or included in annual reports
- your organisation needs to maintain current insurances/licences (if applicable) for the term of the Sponsorship, including but not limited to, workers compensation policy, professional indemnity and public or association liability insurances.
- your organisation is required to submit an acquittal report to BRD within six weeks of completion of the sponsored initiative. (Template to be provided)
- the initiative should not damage or compromise, or be perceived to damage or compromise BRD's reputation or ability to exercise its purpose
- the initiative is not seeking funding for research or scholarship programs
the initiative is not seeking funding for workplace and consumer safety obligations that would be reasonably deemed to be the organisation's responsibility e.g. outsourcing staff training
failure to comply with the terms of the award agreement may result in future preclusion and/or return of funds.
- not seeking funding:
- for activities for which government bodies have primary responsibility
- to develop, promote, or provide unfair competitive advantage to any commercial item, product, or service, or purchasing or selling goods or services for value
- to cover retrospective costs, or costs incurred in the preparation of a sponsorship application or related documentation
- for recurring, infrastructure, or capital expenditure, or operational or associated costs (e.g. permanent staffing salaries)
- in relation to enforcement activity or compliance e.g. for penalties, licences, fees, certification, fines, premiums, return-to-work, rehabilitation, counselling or vaccination programs or equipment and/or diagnostic, testing or auditing services (including consultants)
- for activities that do not meet all relevant standards, approvals, and government legislative requirements
- for activities that include recreational, entertainment or social purposes.
Start the application
You can submit your application for sponsorship by using our online form.
After the application is submitted
Successful applications will be decided by the Department of Customer Service.
What happens after submission
Sponsorship applications take time to consider. They are assessed to ensure benefits for both BRD and the wider community.
Once your application is submitted you will receive an automatic email confirming receipt.
The typical timeframe for sponsorships to be awarded is up to eight weeks after applications close.
What happens if my application is successful
An email is sent confirming you have been successful in receiving a sponsorship. Attached will be a formal award letter and agreement for you to sign, detailing the obligations of each of the parties. A BRD representative will be allocated to your sponsorship as a point of contact and to provide support where appropriate.
As part of your award agreement, you must complete an acquittal report. This is due six weeks from completion of your initiative. It is important that you review this document to understand your reporting requirements.
Please note not submitting this report will preclude you from future sponsorships through this program.
The acquittal report asks you to demonstrate:
- what you did during the event/activity
- what the key achievements or results of your initiative were
- whether any of your plans changed since your initial proposal
- what broader impact your project had or continues to have
- how you spent the sponsorship money.
The BRD Sponsorship team will send this template to successful applicants at the start of their sponsorship.
You will also need to ensure:
- regular communication with your allocated BRD representative
- any deviations from the award agreement are approved in writing
- the BRD representative is updated about any changes or issues with the delivery of the sponsorship.
Support and contact
Contact us for more information about eligibility criteria, timeframes, or questions about the application process.