Creativity and Wellbeing for Young People Program

Creativity and Wellbeing for Young People Program is sponsored by Cook Government and Healthway (Western Australian Government). This program supports creative programs in Western Australia aimed at supporting mental, social, and emotional wellbeing, as well as strengthening community connections for young people.

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Creativity and Wellbeing for Young People The Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries and Healthway recognise the importance of providing opportunities for children and young people to engage in authentic creative and artistic experiences, promoting positive social and emotional wellbeing.

The program will support the engagement of creative practitioners to use the arts as a vehicle to reach priority communities and increase opportunities for young people to engage in continuous creative activities to encourage agency, creativity, connection and resilience.

The program also supports activities to build preventative health initiatives aimed at supporting participants’ mental health and fostering social and emotional wellbeing. Stage 1: Expression of Interest To be invited to apply for a Creativity and Wellbeing for Young people grant, you will first need to submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) via the Department of Creative Industries, Tourism and Sports online grants portal.

This EOI will form the basis of your grant application should your application be approved to progress to Stage 2. Expressions of interest are due no later than 4:00pm Thursday 11 December 2025. Stage 2: Invitation to apply Applicants who are successful in Stage 1: Expressions of Interest will be invited to apply to either the Department of Creative Industries, Tourism and Sport or Healthway through an invitation only grant round.

Applicants will be advised of the submission deadline upon notification of the outcome of their expression of interest. Provide opportunities for participation and engagement in arts and creative activities for young people in Western Australia. Foster positive social, emotional and mental wellbeing outcomes for young people participating in arts and creative activities.

Increase the long-term sustainability of employment opportunities for artists delivering and creating work with young people. Increase accessibility and engagement of creative experiences for young people with a particular focus on those who identify as: Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CaLD), LGBTIQA+, or are impacted by a level of socio-economic disadvantage.

Competitive projects will demonstrate alignment to all program objectives. Deliver a series of recurring creative/artistic workshops for children and young people (up to age 19) that support social and emotional wellbeing through preventative engagement. Demonstrate how the activity supports mental, social and emotional wellbeing of participants.

Engage with a target group who identify as one or more of the key priority areas: early childhood and their guardians adolescent (ages 13 to 19) Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander reside in rural, remote or regional Western Australia experience a level of disadvantage (physical, mental impairments, low-socio economic and educational disadvantage) young people considered as ‘at risk’ CaLD and/or minority groups Take place outside school environment/after school hours (i.e. not aligned to curriculum) .

Engage a Western Australian-based arts organisation and/or an artist or creative practitioner to deliver programming. Offer a full subsidy, or low-cost participation fee for participating young people.

Applications are open to: Western Australian-based * arts and/or cultural organisations Western Australian-based * creative practitioners Western Australian-based* not-for-profit community organisations and/or not-for-profit community service organisations. * Must have a Western Australian office, or be currently residing in Western Australia, with a Western Australian address. Proposed activity start dates must be from 1 July 2026.

The key dates calendar has opening, closing and activity start dates. You are encouraged to submit your expression of interest before the submission date. How much can I apply for?

Eligible applicants may request up to $75,000 for projects and/or programs. The amount requested should take into consideration: the number of engagements across the project quality of arts programming the number of young people engaged across the project and equity of access This program may fund up to 80% of your activity costs.

You must demonstrate at least 20% income (either in-kind or cash), or your expression of interest will be ineligible. Creativity and Wellbeing for Young People supports preventative projects and/or programs that provide opportunities with repeat participation and engagement in arts and creative activities for young people in Western Australia.

artist residencies/workshops programs attending arts and/or cultural experiences with demonstrated links to extended engagement term based programs or school holiday intensive programs activity that will be academically assessed activity that is aligned to the Western Australian curriculum, and/or takes place during school hours activity already funded by the Department of Creative Industries, Tourism and Sport (CITS) activity already funded by Healthway projects that are a continuation of an already existing work in progress events (including but not limited to festivals, fetes and productions) projects or activities that do not involve or benefit Western Australian based practicing artists, creatives or arts or cultural workers purchase of capital equipment (including instruments, computers, tablets (iPads) and/or uniforms, including technical website development costs) capital works such as construction, modification or purchasing of studios, workspaces or gallery spaces digital games development activities activities relating to podcasts and audiobooks that do not involve creative arts practitioners activities relating to radio broadcasting travel outside of Western Australia (incoming and outbound) fundraising, competitions, prizes and trophies the work of State or Federal government departments sitting fees for committees ongoing organisational and staffing operational costs.

What will make my application ineligible?

start the activity before the eligible start date submit an application late request funding that exceeds the funding cap do not meet the budget requirements including requesting more than 80% of your project costs have any key personnel with an overdue acquittal apply for activity that is delivered as part of an educational institution’s curriculum or will be academically assessed your activity does not engage with one or more of the target groups are a portfolio organisation of the department How many times can I apply?

You may submit 1 expression of interest for consideration. Your project must be completed within 12 months of receiving the funds. Please submit your Expression of Interest using the Online Grants web portal .

We strongly suggest speaking to a Project Officer prior to commencing your expression of interest. Components of your application The core components of your application: application questions, alignment to objectives, financial information and support material. Each plays a significant and distinct role in creating a whole picture of your activity.

Your answers to the core application questions should give assessors a concise overview of your activity. Each question has a 1500-character limit. 1.

What is the project you are proposing? Provide a summary of the activity and the key elements and what gaps does this project address? Consider including evidence of consultation or previous delivery outcomes within support material.

2. Who is the priority group you are targeting? Clearly outline the target group of young people you propose to work with and why.

Include a clear outline of the intended reach of your project detailing the number of young people involved and their repeat engagements. 3. How will your project support the creativity and the social, emotional and/or mental wellbeing of participants?

Consider what activities and/or processes you will undertake to create and build social and emotional wellbeing for participants. Consider how your project will create creative opportunities and skills development for participants. 4.

Who will deliver your project? Identify the key project coordinators (organisations and/or individuals) and creative professionals responsible for delivering the activity. Describe their roles and relevant expertise.

5. How do you plan to undertake and evaluate the project? Outline the key processes and stages of your project.

Include consideration of how you will market and promote your project, and how you intend evaluate your project. Expressions of interest are required to complete an indicative expenditure overview to be completed in the online budget template. The financial information in your budget helps to demonstrate that all elements of your activity have been considered.

A good budget also provides confidence that your activity will be a sound investment for the State of Western Australia. Your funding request is the difference between your expenditure minus your income.

To ensure this amount is calculated accurately, seek quotes for all expenditure items (whether or not you intend to include these as support material) and include all costs associated with the activity, even if they are supplied in-kind. Expenditure items can vary significantly from one activity to another. Any legitimate expense that is eligible may be included in the budget.

Make sure you check the list of what you can't apply for. This program does not fund 100% of your activity costs so you must demonstrate at least 20% income, which may include in-kind support, or your application will be ineligible. You are not required to provide relevant project outputs for your Expression of Interest.

Stage 2 Applications only need to provide outputs for the categories and items relevant to your project. If your application is successful, you will be required to report against your planned project outputs in your acquittal report. Registered for Goods and Services Tax If you are registered for GST, you must show your expenditure items exclusive of the GST component.

Not registered for Goods and Services Tax If you are not registered for GST, you must show your expenditure items inclusive of the GST component. Support material is central to demonstrate the value of your proposed activity. Mandatory support material Recommended support material evidence of past projects letter of support from project collaborators (if relevant) How will my application be assessed?

Applications to this program are reviewed and assessed by the Department of Creative Industries, Tourism and Sport, Healthway and an external peer assessor. A moderation meeting will be held taking into consideration a balance of policy objectives, artform, size, geographic spread and community reach. The core components to your application include: application questions, financial information, support material.

Each plays a significant and distinct role in creating a whole picture about your activity and tells a story about what you want to do. All applications are assessed against the 4 criteria: financial responsibility. Each has a weighting and a subset of dimensions with definitions.

More information about the dimensions and definitions, which have been developed by artists and creatives representing their sector, can be found in the application manual. Assessors will consider your application against the relevant dimensions and definitions and allocate a weighted score for each of the four criteria.

Final approval of successful applications depends on available budget and approval by the relevant Minister or delegated authority. Quality refers to the level of artistic and cultural significance of the activity, and alignment to program objectives. You must consider the project concept and how it relates to the program objectives.

Quality may also be demonstrated through the skills and experience of the people involved in the activity, and the alignment of those skills and experience to deliver the project Reach refers to the level of impact the activity is likely to have. Reach may be demonstrated by including information such as the number of participants and depth of engagement, detail as to the extension into the wider community, and legacy of the activity.

Good planning — weighting 20% Good planning refers to the level of consideration which has been given to practically undertaking the activity. Good planning can be demonstrated by, but is not limited to; carefully considered preparation, confirmation of key personnel, a realistic timeline and achievable outcomes, documented research and/or consultation, and a process of evaluation.

Financial responsibility — weighting 20% Financial responsibility refers to the sound management of the budget. Financial responsibility can be demonstrated by, but is not limited to, efficient use of resources, reasonable expenses and an accurate and comprehensive budget, including use of budget notes.

Assistance for applicants Grants Officers are available via telephone and email to answer queries about the process and suitability of activities to specific programs. If you need extra assistance due to disability, language barriers or any other factor that may disadvantage you in completing your application, please contact us. The advice provided by Grants Officers does not guarantee the success of your application.

Due to the high number of applications received, each funding round is highly competitive. All applications are considered on their own merits and against the assessment criteria and program objectives. Assistance for people with disability The department is committed to supporting applicants with disability.

Information can be provided in alternative formats (large print, electronic or Braille) upon request. If you require special assistance in preparing your application, please call 61 8 6552 7400. Family, friends, mentors and/or carers can attend meetings with you.

If you are deaf or have a hearing or speech impairment, please contact us through one of the following: National Relay Service (NRS) then ask for 6552 7300 TTY users phone 133 677 then ask for 6552 7300 Speak and Listen users phone 1800 555 727 ask for 6552 7300. For interpreting assistance in languages other than English, telephone the Translation and Interpreting Service on 13 14 50 and ask for a connection to 61 8 6552 7400.

For enquires relating to this funding program, including advice or assistance with your application, contact a Grants Officer: Email grantsprogramsca@cits. wa. gov.au Page reviewed 16 June 2026