A public meeting at the Masterton Town Hall earlier this month was well-attended by representatives of organisations delivering social services in the Wairarapa. The meeting was hosted by the Wairarapa Community Organisation Grants Scheme (COGS) Local Distribution Committee. The Committee is administered and supported by the Department of Internal Affairs.
Last year the Wairarapa COGS Committee distributed $153,904 to 53 non-profit organisations. The chairperson, Marie McAnulty, said, “we should be proud that we live in a community in which so many people are prepared to give freely of their time, effort and knowledge to assist so many in a wide variety of ways.” She acknowledged that it is difficult to please everyone and at times some very difficult funding decisions have to be made.
Funding from COGS can be applied for to deliver services or projects that are initiated by local community organisations which have limited access to other government funding. Organisations must serve one or more of the COGS priority sectors, including Maori, women, Pacific communities, other ethnic communities, older people, rurally isolated people, people with disabilities, families, youth and children, and unemployed people.
The Committee has set the following local priorities for the forthcoming funding round:
mental health and well being
accessibility to employment and programmes
volunteer costs, expenses and engagement
salaries/wages/travel
programmes supporting education and social activity
Maori/Pacific programmes
operating expenses
professional development/supervision
At the meeting, local committee member Grant Howard, stressed that organisations should have a funding strategy that identifies the priorities and restrictions of each potential funding source. For example, COGS is one of the few resources available for funding overhead expenses, such as wages and electricity. The average COGS grant is around $3,000.
Applications for the COGS 2012/13 funding round opens on 1 June and close on 25 July. More information can be found on the COGS website at communitymatters.govt.nz.
