SALUTING THEIR SERVICE COMMEMORATIONS PROGRAM
GUIDELINES – COMMENCING 1 July 2014
What is the purpose of the grants program?
The Saluting Their Service (STS) grants program is designed to preserve our wartime heritage and
to involve people throughout the nation in a wide range of activities and projects that highlight the
sacrifice and service of Australia’s servicemen and women in wars, conflicts and peacekeeping
operations and promote appreciation and understanding of the role that those who served have
played in shaping the nation.
Two categories of grants are available under STS:

Community Commemorative Grants
These are modest grants of up to $4,000 which are available for projects that assist people at
a community level and enable small communities to build memorials and preserve wartime
memorabilia that is significant locally but is not necessarily nationally significant.

Major Commemorative Grants
These grants are available for significant projects, usually at a national or state/territory level
that contribute to Australia’s understanding of its wartime heritage and honour the service and
sacrifice of its servicemen and women.
When can applications be submitted?

Community Commemorative Grants
Applications can be submitted to the Department of Veterans’ Affairs at any time and will be
considered at the next available meeting of the Commemorations Grants Advisory Committee.

Major Commemorative Grants
There are two rounds a year for Major Commemorative Grants:
-
Round 1: Applications close on 1 July for projects commencing no earlier than 1 October
in the same year.
-
Round 2: Applications close on 3 January for projects commencing no earlier than 1
April in the same year.
Important: Applications not received by DVA by the closing date will be returned.
Who can apply?

Community and ex-service organisations

Schools and other educational institutions

Museums and cultural institutions

State/territory and Local government authorities

Other non-profit community organisations
Individuals are not eligible to apply for funding under this program unless supported by an eligible
organisation or institution.
What is eligible?
Proposed projects and events must be directly commemorative of the involvement, service and
sacrifice of Australia’s servicemen and women in wars, conflicts and peace operations.
Community Commemorative Grants
Types of projects eligible under the Community Commemorative Grants category include:
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
the public commemoration of significant military anniversaries. Only one anniversary should
be commemorated as it is considered that events to commemorate multiple anniversaries have
the potential to diminish the significance of the anniversaries. The event must be held within a
month of the anniversary being commemorated;

significant military unit reunions. For example, 40th or 65th anniversary;

new war memorials, honour boards or plaques;

the restoration of existing war memorials, honour boards and plaques;

flagpoles, where none exists to fly the Australian National Flag;

the preservation, interpretation and display of wartime and military memorabilia and artefacts;
and

relevant school projects, such as research with a focus on military involvement and social
impacts, and the products of research, e.g. written material, documentaries etc.
Major Commemorative Grants
Types of projects eligible under the Major Commemorative Grants category include:
new national/state/territory or otherwise significant war memorials;
the restoration of existing national/state/territory or otherwise significant war memorials;
significant (national/state/territory level) commemorative events; and
nationally significant cultural/educational/research projects with a military heritage focus.
What is not eligible?
Community Commemorative Grants
Types of projects not eligible under Community Commemorative Grants include:

projects commemorating the post-war deaths of servicemen and women;

projects exclusively commemorating animals;

expenditure already incurred or ongoing expenditure;

construction and repair of buildings, including museums, memorial halls and sporting facilities;

recurring activities, for example, Anzac Day, Remembrance Day, Vietnam Veterans’ Day,
National Service Day;

salaries, travel and accommodation;

sporting events;

purchase of military hardware or memorabilia;

catering/refreshments;

purchase of vehicles and equipment;

hire of vehicles;

memorials or events commemorating the achievements of individuals;

memorials located overseas;

educational materials where DVA projects already provide resources for schools;

honour boards or plaques acknowledging membership or service with an ex-service
organisation; and

events to mark training, enlistment, graduation, the formation or anniversaries of associations
or ex-service organisations.
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Major Commemorative Grants
Types of projects not eligible under Major Commemorative Grants include:

community based projects;

projects which have already received funding under the ACLGP;

projects commemorating the post-war deaths of servicemen and women;

projects exclusively commemorating animals;

expenditure already incurred or ongoing expenditure;

construction and repair of buildings, including museums, memorial halls and sporting facilities;

recurring activities, for example, Anzac Day, Remembrance Day, Vietnam Veterans’ Day,
National Service Day;

salaries, travel and accommodation;

sporting events;

purchase of military hardware or memorabilia;

catering/refreshments;

purchase of vehicles and equipment;

hire of vehicles;

memorials or events commemorating the achievements of individuals;

memorials located overseas;

educational materials where DVA projects already provide resources for schools;

honour boards or plaques acknowledging membership or service with an ex-service
organisation; and

events to mark training, enlistment, graduation, the formation or anniversaries of associations
or ex-service organisations.
Assessment Criteria
The following criteria will be used by DVA when assessing applications for funding. Applicants
should use the Assessment Criteria to assist them in developing their proposals.
1. Level of support for public events/projects and the accessibility of these events/projects to the
community/nation.
2. The relevance/connection of the project to Australia’s wartime heritage and/or the proximity in
time to a significant anniversary of a military event.
3. The applicant’s capability to deliver and implement the proposal within the specified timeframe
and budget.
4. The proposal provides value for money (refer to 11.3 of the Commonwealth Grants Guidelines –
Second Edition).
5. The level of in-kind and/or financial support of the proposal from other sources, including the
applicant.
The first four criteria have equal weighting. The fifth criteria is less important.
Proposals will be assessed by DVA against the Assessment Criteria with reference to the
application and supporting documentation.
How much is available for each project?
Community Commemorative Grants
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Up to $3,000 is available for:

restoration, preservation and interpretation of Australian wartime memorabilia for public display
(e.g. the purchase of cabinets, lighting, restoration of military hardware);

ceremonies commemorating significant anniversaries of battles, other military operations and
significant reunions provided the event takes place within a month of the anniversary (e.g.
wreaths, chair and PA hire, printing of orders of service etc). Please note, funding is not
available for refreshments/catering;

publishing wartime histories, where none exist. For example, unit histories, local wartime
histories and letters from servicemen and women; and

schools initiatives (e.g. research projects involving local veterans or recording visits to
commemorative sites overseas).
Up to $4,000 is available for:

restoration and upgrading community war memorials and improving access and safety to the
immediate surrounds;

restoring vandalised memorials and improving security;

constructing new community memorials where none exist and where the new memorial will be
the focus of community commemoration;

restoration of commemorative plaques and honour boards for public display; and

new commemorative plaques and honour boards for public display.
Up to $500 is available for:

a flagpole, where none exists, for nursing homes, schools and other organisations to fly the
Australian National Flag.
Major Commemorative Grants
Grants in excess of $4,000 are available for:

new national/state/territory or otherwise significant war memorials where none exists and
where the new memorial will be the focus of community commemoration

significant (national/state/territory level) commemorative events;

the restoration of existing national/state/territory or otherwise significant war memorials;

nationally significant education/research projects that add to the sum of knowledge on a
particular topic or which provide access to information about Australia’s wartime heritage to a
national/state/territory audience.
Where can I obtain an application form?
Application forms are available from the DVA website, www.dva.gov.au and DVA offices around
Australia.
Where do I send my application?
Applications should be sent to the address which can be found on the application form.
Grants and the GST
Grants are subject to the Goods and Services Tax (GST). The grant amount being sought on the
application form should be the GST inclusive amount. As a result of the GST, payment can only be
made to the grant applicant and not the supplier of the goods or services.
What is the application assessment process?
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Both Community Commemorative Grants and Major Commemorative Grants will be considered by
the Commemorations Grants Advisory Committee (CGAC) which then makes recommendations to
the Minister for Veterans’ Affairs.
The CGAC is chaired by the Repatriation Commissioner, and has representatives from the
Returned & Services League of Australia, Australian Local Government Association, Australian
War Memorial and Department of Veterans’ Affairs.
The Minister makes the decision on each application.
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Community Commemorative Grants
There is no closing date for Community Commemorative Grants. The CGAC meets several times
a year and considers the applications received to date. Applicants are advised to submit
applications several months in advance of the project for which funding is required. Applications
will be assessed against the criteria and the funding available for these grants generally allows all
eligible applications to be funded. Should the funding available be insufficient to cover all eligible
projects, applications will be ranked against each other and receive funding based on merit.
Major Commemorative Grants
Applications for Major Commemorative Grants will be assessed against the criteria and each
application ranked. Funding will be allocated on merit until the allocation is exhausted.
What happens if a grant is approved?
Once the Minister has made a decision, the applicant will be informed of the outcome.
A successful applicant (grantee) will be required to accept the grant and to sign a grant agreement.
Once the signed agreement has been received by DVA, the grant funds will be transferred to the
grantee’s bank account.
Community Commemorative Grants
For smaller grants like these, the grant agreement is a short document agreeing to various
stipulations, including:

to use the funds solely for the purpose specified in the Minister’s letter;

to bear full responsibility, including liability, for all activities carried out in relation to the project;

to retain all records relating to this grant, and the project, for which it was awarded for a period
of no less than two years from the date of the Minister’s letter of offer; and

to return the Acquittal Form, signed, certifying that the full amount has been spent on the
project for which the grant was made, or that any surplus funds have been remitted to the
Department.
The full details of the acquittal requirements, including consequences of non-compliance, are set
out in the funding agreement pro-forma. If there is a delay which prevents the timely acquittal of a
grant, an extension should be sought from DVA.
Major Commemorative Grants
For larger grants a grantee is required to sign a contract which outlines the grantee’s full range of
responsibilities. Depending on the size of the grant and the project for which funding was
approved, these responsibilities may include regular reporting to DVA.
Grantees are required to acquit the grant by the due date in the grant agreement. This is generally
set at six months after the project’s date of completion.
What happens if a funded project cannot go ahead?
If an approved proposal does not go ahead, for example other anticipated sources of funding fall
through, the grantee must notify DVA as soon as possible and arrange the return of the grant
funds.
Privacy
The information you provide on the application form is required to make a decision in regard to
your application. If successful, some information will be disclosed to your Member of Parliament
and successful grants will also be the subject of a media release.
All grant information, including the name and details of the recipient, are required to be published
on the DVA website for a minimum of two years.
Reconsideration/Feedback
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Feedback on the grants program or individual applications or requests for reconsideration of
unsuccessful applications should be directed to the Grants Team, Gallipoli and Commemorative
Grants on the phone number below or in writing to
Saluting Their Service Grants
Department of Veterans’ Affairs
GPO Box 9998
CANBERRA ACT 2601
Where can I obtain further information?
www.dva.gov.au/grants or on Freecall 1800 026 185.
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