Grants and Funding | Township of Severn

Severn is committed to supporting various community organizations and other groups in the municipality, as they provide important programs, activities, services, and events for residents. By providing grants, Council can enable community organizations to fundraise, leverage other funding, and support important volunteer contributions.

Community Grant Policy

Our Community Grant Policy provides decision making criteria for Council when responding to requests for funding. View the policy for details on eligibility, conditions of assistance, and reporting requirements before you apply online.

Community Grant Policy

Key requirements and eligibility

The following outlines basic principles that must be met and demonstrated by each applicant:

promote and enhance the well-being of the Township and its residents
aligns with the Township’s Strategic Plan and supports the needs of the community
ensure that the requested service, activity, or program is open to the community
encourages more active involvement in community organizations, programs, and activities
ensure that the funds will be administered by a competent body and that there is an adequate administrative system of review, oversight and accountability implemented with groups or organizations making requests
funding provided is not transferable between projects or groups without prior Council approval and must be used for the specific purpose detailed in the application
applicants will be eligible for funding annually; however, applicants are encouraged to become self-sustaining
in the event that the project or event does not proceed, the grant recipient shall return those funds in full
the grant shall not be the primary source or sole source of funding for the project, event, or organization
grants shall be supplementary to the main sources of funding

An applicant organization must meet the following general criteria to be considered for a grant:

only one grant request per organization per year will be considered
the organization must be in existence for a minimum of one year
have a volunteer board consisting of three or more members (in the event that there is no volunteer board, applicants (community organizations or ad-hoc groups) are eligible for a maximum of $2,000 in funding)
grant applicants should be able to demonstrate active fundraising efforts to support the continuation of a program, project, or service (a Township of Severn grant should never be considered as the only source of funding for the applicant)
funding requests can be defined as events/projects/programs that support, sustain, promote, inform, educate, celebrate, preserve, and/or provide access to the arts, culture, environment, heritage, and recreation and/or health activities
financial assistance for events of municipal, provincial, or national significance which are expected to bring economic and public relation benefits to the Township of Severn
granting assistance in any one year or over several years is not to be interpreted as a commitment to future years funding
the applicant organization must spend grant funding on the sole purpose for which it was awarded within the current fiscal year

The following are not eligible to apply for a grant:

an organization that acts as a funding body or provides grants to another organization
commercial businesses, for-profit organizations, or individuals (commercial businesses that have received grants prior to the adoption of this policy in April 2025, shall have a two-year grace period where they will continue to be eligible so they may re-organize to qualify)
an organization that is the responsibility of a higher level of government or precluded under the Municipal Act
grants cannot be used:
- to cover deficits of the organization
- to fund an organization’s debts
- to fund activities that serve the membership or purposes of religious or political organizations
an organization who receives 75 percent or greater of their funding from the federal or provincial government or County of Simcoe would disqualify the organization from a grant or would result in a reduction in the amount of the grant that is awarded
organizations who have received funding and failed to provide the required financial report as to the success of the previous year and specifically with respect to the allocation of grants funds, will not be eligible for grant funding until documentation is remitted and evaluated.
consideration will not be given to requests for grants from recreational sport groups
grants will not be approved to sponsor an individual athlete or team for a competition or to subsidize participation in a sports event
Board of Directors shall not in any way benefit from receiving a municipal grant, and there shall be no personal gain from any member of the governing board of the organization

Types of grants

Council will consider grants that meet the eligibility requirements outlined in our Community Grants Policy and that fall within the following categories.

Arts and Culture

Arts and Culture grants should strengthen the arts and culture community within the Township by providing strategic investment to local or regional organizations. The overall goal is to provide support for the creation, presentation, preservation and/or dissemination of arts and culture activities within Severn.

Community Project

Grants can be submitted to

request one-time assistance for an organization or project
request funds for a short-term undertaking with a start-up and completion date

Capital projects will not be considered.

Community Event

Grant applications can be submitted for recurring events that Council deems has some significant benefit to the community and is open to all members of the public.

Examples include:

parades
tree lightings
festivals

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Funding can be requested for new or ongoing initiatives that promote diversity, equity, and inclusion within Severn.

In-Kind Contribution

Applicants can request the use of municipal property, municipal facilities, materials, or resources such as the waiving of rental fees, use of garbage cans for an event, traffic barriers, etc.

Operating

Operating funding can be requested that will assist with the general operating expenses of an applicant, including administrative costs and program-related expenses (e.g., website, promotional materials, printing costs, etc.).

Special Event

Requests will be considered for one-time or first-time events that are of cultural, historical, social, environmental, or recreational significance to the community. Eligible events can include the participation of more than one organization (e.g., Canada 150, one-time dedication event).

How to apply

Applicants can apply starting August 1 for a grant of $1,500 or less, or a grant of $1,501 or more using one of two online grant application forms.

Apply for a grant of $1,500 or less

Apply online

Apply for a grant of $1,501 or more

Apply online

Grant applications are accepted annually from August 1 to September 30 and are considered as part of the Township's budget process that takes place in November. Grants are no longer accepted outside of the annual budget process. Applicants will be notified in December of each year on the decision by Council regarding their grant request.

Final grant report

All grant recipients are required to submit a report outlining:

how the funding was used
the impact of the funding
volunteer hours contributed by those involved in project or event

This report must be submitted to the Township by September 30 of the following year or the applicant will be ineligible to apply for the next year’s grant.

Submit the grant report