Homelessness Support Grants Program
Background Information:
Under the Primary Health Networks (PHNs) Homelessness Access Program, funded by the Department of Health and Aged Care, WAPHA is seeking proposals for activities to support primary health care access for people experiencing and at risk of homelessness. Activities must address gaps in primary health service arrangements, barriers to accessing these services, health impacts of homelessness and improve service integration.
The key objectives of the Homelessness Access Program are:
- To commission services to support primary health care access by people experiencing homelessness and those at risk of homelessness in areas where there are limited or no services available in the local community through addressing service gaps;
- Identify and support services for people experiencing homelessness and those at risk of homelessness where it is demonstrated that there are physical, geographic or other barriers to accessing primary care services; and
- Promote coordination between services at a local level and support local service providers in having the skills and systems to provide effective care that integrates with the individual’s usual primary care provider.
The Homelessness Support Grants Program 2024 will provide funds to support primary health care access and will allow effective and sustainable changes to be made within organisations to better meet the needs of people experiencing, or at risk of experiencing homelessness. Successful applicants will have a 12 month period to complete approved activities.
Priority will be given to proposals that can demonstrate on-going value to the priority client population, people experiencing or at risk of homelessness, or the ongoing benefit to organisations or the primary health homelessness support sector, through elements such as service integration and improved care coordination. The long-term sustainability of activities must not be contingent on ongoing funding.
To implement the Homelessness Access Program, grants are being offered to organisations across Perth North, South and Country WA PHNs:
Perth North and South PHNs
Grants are available for sector organisations who currently work with and deliver primary care services specifically for the target population (people experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness).
Country WA PHN
Grants are available for sector and non-sector organisations, i.e. organisations that currently work with, and deliver services specifically for the target population, (people experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness), and organisations that do not currently work with, or deliver services specifically targeting this population, but provide primary care services, or are seeking to provide services to this target group.
Submission Process:
The Grants Process will be completed through a dedicated email address: 2024-82@wapha.org.au.
This email address is to be used for all communications prior to the Grants close date and for submission of your response.
To register your interest and receive updates please email 2024-82@wapha.org.au.
Queries and Responses:
Please raise all queries via email to 2024-82@wapha.org.au and WAPHA will publish responses on this webpage. The opportunity to submit queries will close on COB Friday 17 January 2025
Submissions:
Please submit the completed Grant Application/Proposal and other attachments you wish to submit as part of your application to 2024-82@wapha.org.au. Tender Closing Date is Friday January 24 2025 at 2:00PM (AWST).
RFT2024-82
Request Documents:
- Part A – Grant Guidelines (read and keep)
- Part B – Grant Application Form (please submit)
Anticipated timeframe:
At the time of issuing this Request, WAPHA anticipates the following timeframe for the completion of the process.
- Request opened to market:
Friday, 6 December 2024 - Close date for questions:
Friday, 17 January 2024 - Close date for Submissions:
Friday, 24 January 2025 - Completion of evaluation of Submissions:
Wednesday, 12 February 2025 - Negotiation, drafting and finalisation:
Wednesday, 5 March 2025 - Execution of Agreements:
Wednesday, 26 March 2025
Please check the webpage regularly for any updates in the Q&A section.
Click the question to expand for more.
As per Eligible applicants, Western Australian Local Government Authorities are eligible to submit a response to RFT2024-82 Homelessness Support Grants Program, however, under the requirements of Steam 2: Perth North and Perth South PHNs, organisations submitting proposals for services in the Perth Metropolitan area must currently work with, and deliver services specifically for the target population, i.e. people experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness.
As such, a local government authority that does not currently work with and deliver primary care services specifically for the target population (people experiencing or at risk of experiencing homeless), would not be eligible for Stream 2, unless the application is with an unincorporated organisation or community group, applying through the auspice of the local government authority.
• Where a respondent is submitting multiple applications for more than one stream and/or more than one project, individual applications for each stream and project is required with clearly identified scope and costings per application.
If a Respondent applies to provide additional or new services based on areas of unmet need, is the Respondent required to submit a new application for each individual service and/ or location within the same stream, or can the Respondent submit one application per stream, nothing the service location and demand for each?
Where a Respondent is submitting a proposal across multiple locations of need, the response including Project Scope, Plan and Budget, must be provided per Primary Health Network (PHN) region (i.e. Perth North, Perth South and Country WA PHNs). Where multiple services are proposed within one PHN region, it is expected that the submission will detail the specific need and proposed activity details per location and that a breakdown of proposed costs will be provided per service, per location.
For the purposes of RFT2024-82 Homelessness Support Grants Program, a “sector” organisation is defined as an organisation that currently works with and delivers services specifically for the target population (people experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness) and a “non-sector” organisation is one that does not currently work with or deliver services specifically to this target population but does provide primary health care services.
As such, an incorporated organisation that provides primary health care to the target population (people experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness) either directly or indirectly through a subcontracting arrangement, would meet the eligibility requirements under both Stream 1 and Stream 2.
For the purposes of the RFT-2024-82 Homelessness Support Grants Program, ‘primary health care services’ can be understood to mean healthcare delivered to people within their local community and provided outside of hospitals. This care may include services provided by health professionals such as general practitioners, nurses, allied health workers and community health workers.
A.2 As per the definition of ‘primary health care services’ provided in Q.1, RFT-2024-82 Homelessness Support Grants Program is open to organisations in Metropolitan Perth that work with and deliver primary care services specifically for the target population (people experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness), and is open in Country WA PHN to organisations that work with and deliver primary care services specifically for the target population, or are seeking to provide services to this target group. As per Eligible applicants of the Application Guidelines and Grant Conditions, this may include alcohol and other drug organisations that provide community based primary care services.
Within the context of RFT-2024-82 Homelessness Support Grants Program, activities that provide support to the priority population will be activities as defined under Q.1, and that are specifically designed for or delivered to the target population (people experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness).
Perth North: $280,000
- Perth Metropolitan Area – North
- Perth Metropolitan Area – East
Perth South: $750,000
- Perth Metropolitan Area – South
Country WA: $1,400,000
- Statewide
- Gascoyne
- Goldfields Esperance
- Great Southern
- Kimberley
- Mid-West
- Peel
- Pibara
- Southwest
- Wheatbelt
As per the advertised anticipated timeframe, it is expected that successful Respondents will be notified of the outcome of their submission in March 2025. Once contracts are executed activities may commence and must be completed within 12 months of the contract start date.
Respondents are requested to provide detail of their anticipated project commencement and completion dates, and project implementation plan within sections 6. Timeline and 8. Assessment Criteria, c) Project Planning of the Application Form.
In the grant guidelines, it states that the "[T]otal funding available is divided across the three PHNs and Proposals within these amounts will be considered.
• Perth South: $750,000.00
• Perth North: $280,000.00
• Country WA: $1,400,000.00
Can you advise whether the specified funding amounts for each stream (as above) is the total funding available for that stream? Or is that just the funding threshold per application, with the opportunity for WAPHA to award multiple grants in each stream?
The amounts listed per PHN represent the total funding available in each PHN under this Grants process across both Streams 1 and 2. WAPHA may opt to award multiple grants per PHN and/ or Stream.
• Assessment criteria 1.c. refers to “Project Planning: the extent to which the application has developed a realistic and practical implementation plan given the short timeframe”.
• The 4th item under the section “Application Checklist”, requires confirmation that “a project plan is attached”.
• Attachment 1 is “Project Scope and Details”, with the headings “Name of Project” and “Scope/description”.
Could you please confirm what is required – especially whether a project plan or implementation plan is required in addition to the Project Scope/Description required under Attachment 1.
All sections of the Application Form are required to be completed, as outlined in the “How to Apply” section of the Grant Guidelines.
Section 4 of the Application Form requires Attachment 1 to be completed. This section provides the name for your project and outlines the scope/description of what is being proposed.
The Application checklist requires a project plan to be attached to the application. This must be provided.
Section 8.1.c (Assessment criteria: “Project Planning: the extent to which the application has developed a realistic and practical implementation plan given the short timeframe”) of the Application Form must be completed. An implementation plan is not required to be submitted. The applicant should outline the extent to which they have been able to develop a realistic and practical implementation plan given the short timeframe.
As per Eligible Applicants of the Application Guidelines and Grant Conditions, eligible organisations must be:
- an incorporated, not-for-profit, primary health sector organisation
- commercial, for-profit organisations
- a Western Australian local government authority
- an unincorporated organisation or community group, applying through the auspice of an incorporated body or a local government authority
- Universities
Note, a group or organisation is not-for-profit if its governing documents prohibit distribution of profits to individual members while the organisation is operating and upon its wind-up.
As per Not Eligible to apply, entities not eligible for funding under this grant opportunity include:
- Commonwealth or State Government agencies
- Individuals
- Unincorporated, primary health sector organisations (unless applying through an incorporated body or a local government authority)
An organisation that is not an incorporated organisation or community group, and as such does not meet the above criteria, may consider collaborating with an incorporated organisation or community group, and applying under the auspice of an incorporated body or local government authority.