Bushfire recovery funding for community groups

Council is continuing to support community bushfire recovery by selecting 19 local organisations to receive grants from the Bushfire Community Recovery & Resilience Fund (BCRRF).

The grants, ranging from $1,850 to $7000, will support a wide variety of community groups throughout the Blue Mountains, for projects ranging from environmental and land care initiatives, to music and arts activities.

“We continue to care for our community more than a year after bushfires devastated our region in the summer of 2019/2020,” Mayor, Cr Mark Greenhill said.

“We have lobbied hard to all levels of government, on behalf of our affected communities, so that they are not forgotten. 

“This significant community funding, totalling $100,000, will offer welcome assistance for a variety of wonderful local groups and organisations, to allow them to continue their valued work in recovery and resilience.”

The grants were advertised from March – May 2021. The 19 groups selected from 23 applications are:

Organisation Project Amount Blackheath Anglican Church Mainly Music - Pre-school Music Sessions $2,000 Blackheath Area Neighbourhood Centre (BANC) Caring for Country Film-making Project $6,150 Blackheath Area Neighbourhood Centre (BANC) Medlow Music in the Park $2,000 Blackheath Area Neighbourhood Centre (BANC) Satin Bower Birds Waste and Recycling Education Workshops in Schools $6,000 Blackheath Area Neighbourhood Centre (BANC) Free Propagation Workshops at Cliff view Community Farm $4,500 Blackheath Rhododendron Festival Inc Festival Choir Event $6,000 Blue Fringe Committee - Project of Belong Blue Mountains & Springwood Neighbourhood Centre Cooperative Create for Wellbeing Workshops $6,500 Blue Mountains Women's Shed Billycart Wellbeing Workshops $1,850 Dharug Ngurra Aboriginal Corporation Yanama Budyari Gumada Workshops $5,700 Greater Sydney Landcare Network Inc - auspicing Allendale Landcare Group Allendale Landcare Groups Post-Fire Recovery Study $7,000 Lapstone Out of School Hours Care (OOSH) Wellbeing and Garden Care Project for Children $5,720 Lyttleton Stores Co-Op Ltd Resilience in the Face of Natural Disasters Workshops $6,980 Megalong Valley Community and Landowners Association Inc Megalong Community Hall Outdoor Area Upgrade $7,000 Mount Tomah Residents Association - auspicing West Projects West Projects Arts Program $3,000 Mount Victoria Community Association Inc Community Parkcare Project $6,000 Mount Wilson Progress Association Inc Mt Wilson - Mt Irvine Horticultural Show $3,000 Winmalee Neighbourhood Centre Bell RFS Community Garden $6,600 Winter Magic Festival Association Community Arts Program (with the Katoomba Winter Magic Festival) $7,000 Women with Altitude Future Proof your Business Workshop Series $7,000

The Community Grants Assistance Program is one of a number of projects from BCRRF, funded by Resilience NSW.

These Community Grants and projects are in addition to the $7.9 million Council has been awarded from the Local Bushfire Economic Recovery Fund, which will fund four major bushfire recovery projects in the Blue Mountains.  

Photo: Community bushfire recovery in action