$30 million to help community groups hit by flooding

A new super round of Queensland’s largest one-off funding grants has been announced to support community groups impacted by the recent natural disasters thanks to changes made to the Gambling Community Benefit Fund (GCBF).

Attorney-General and Minister for Justice Shannon Fentiman said $30 million has been set aside for the next round of the GCBF to help local community groups recover from the recent flooding events.

“We know recovery for our Queensland communities following a natural disaster will take a long time,” Minister Fentiman said.

“That’s why we have combined the May and August 2022 rounds of the GCBF to create a super-sized Disaster Recovery Round.

“Any community group that has been impacted by a natural disaster in the last two years can apply for a grant of up to $100,000.

“Applications from community groups for other non-recovery related projects are still welcome in this new round, however the funding for projects not linked to a natural disaster will be limited to the standard grant amount of up to $35,000.

“The Disaster Recovery round will open in 16 May 2022 and close on 15 July, which we hope will give groups enough time to assess the damage to their facilities and equipment and work out what they need to get up and running again.”

The GCBF’s first ever Super Round for grants of up to $100,000 which opened earlier this year, has now closed after receiving close to 3000 applications.

Those groups that have applied in the Super Round and have been impacted by a natural disaster should consider their circumstances and determine whether moving their application into the new Disaster Recovery Round is more appropriate for them.

Member for Toohey Peter Russo welcomed the announcement of the new super-sized grant funding to support the long-term recovery of local community groups.

“It has been devastating to see the impact of the floods at the beginning of the year on our local community,” Mr Russo said.

“Rocklea has been one of the most flood affected suburbs in Brisbane in both the 2011 and 2022 floods.

“This funding will give a helping hand to so many of our hardworking community and not-for-profit groups to get back on their feet after suffering thousands of dollars of damage and loss due to recent natural disasters.”

Brothers St Brendan’s Club President Aaron Bollinger welcomed the opportunity to be able to seek financial assistance through the Disaster Recovery round.

“Our club was completely inundated by the flooding in Brisbane which caused tens of thousands of dollars in damage to our club house and it is going to take a lot of time and money for us to get back to where we were,” Mr Bollinger said.

“While we are a small community club we are an important part of the local community.

“Club members and the local community have been doing a fantastic job cleaning up and getting the club back up and running again as best as we can but there is still so much to be done.

“Any financial assistance we can get would certainly be very welcomed and we will be taking advantage of the opportunity the Disaster Recovery round presents.”

The Disaster Recovery Round will open on 16 May 2022 and close on 15 July 2022, more information about the Disaster Recovery Round will be available on the GCBF website in the coming weeks.

ENDS

Media contact:                                       Inga Williams          0439 949 719

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