Sample Grant Application Scenarios
The following scenarios are provided as examples of the types of projects that may be relevant for a Bell Community Sport Fund grant application. Many projects will be very different than these examples so please submit your unique idea, please keep in mind that we are only excepting applications that address issues of access and inclusion for youth team sport programs. The information provided here is NOT sufficient for the Selection Committee to review the merit of the application. Please include as much detail as possible when applying for the Bell Community Sport Fund grant.
New Outdoor Soccer Program - Access
A community centre in the city’s central core currently runs an indoor soccer program and plans to expand it to an outdoor program. There currently are no free downtown soccer programs and the leagues in neighbouring communities are expensive and require a fair amount of travel. The community centre plans to start a free house league program for boys and girls between the ages of seven and nine years.
The league will run out of a local park in a low income neighbourhood and will attract children from several neighbouring communities. The league will be offered free of charge as the community centre will use the Bell Community Sport Fund grant to cover start-up costs, including equipment and uniforms.
Based on the success of the first year, the league will expand the following season to include children four to six and ten to twelve years of age.
The league is also in negotiations with the city to provide matching grants based on the success of the program in its first year.
Sledge Hockey Development Program – Access and Inclusion
A local parks and recreation organization has determined that it is unable to provide an appropriate hockey experience for young athletes with mobility disabilities. With the sport of sledge hockey growing in popularity across Canada and the fact that it is a wholly inclusive sport enjoyed equally by boys and girls, the organization would like to give new life to the program. The sleds in the current inventory are beyond their useful life, and need to be replaced.
The Bell Community Sport Fund grant will be used to purchase new equipment that will be made available on a regular basis to a variety of user groups including schools, community groups and rehabilitation centres. Ice time will also be sought to allow participants an opportunity to enjoy sledge hockey and ice picking.
The organization has successfully engaged the media who have written numerous stories on the program and will provide more coverage once the program is up and running.
Expansion of Existing Softball Program - Access
A low-income neighbourhood which lacks organized community-based sport leagues has successfully developed a softball league with funding from a local parks association and community centre association. With assistance from the local school board and park board staff, the program has grown from 75 children in 2001, to a program bursting at the seams with 360 boys and girls participating in 2006.
The neighbourhood now plans to expand the program to a second local park in 2007 and increase its capacity to 450 or 500 children aged six to fourteen years over the next few years. Organizers will use the Bell Community Sport Fund grant to cover the cost of training more coaches and officials as well as to purchase uniforms and other basic equipment. In addition, they will subsidize families who are unable to afford the full $30 registration fee.
To further the program, they have also focused on developing volunteer capacity in the neighbourhood which has resulted in more parents volunteering as coach assistants and program administrators.
Introductory Girls Football Program – Access and Inclusion
A local football organization has developed a series of community/school-based “Try-it Days” to reach out to girls in grades 6 to 9 across the city, particularly those in high needs areas. To maximize the impact of this program, the organizers will have local merchants/organizations donate sport equipment, coaching expertise, field time, participant give-aways, etc.
The “Try-it Days” program will provide girls with an opportunity to try football in a safe and fun environment. The Bell Community Sport Fund grant will allow this group to cover the expenses associated with hosting ten “Try-it Days”. Each day will include instruction by qualified coaches, talks by female members of the local high school football program and a pizza social to wrap up the day.
Parents will be provided with information on program access for their daughters, and on other community resources that could help them involve other family members in community sport opportunities.
The program will reduce barriers to participation and improve accessibility to the sport of football for girls by subsidizing enrolment costs and offering free access to donated equipment.
