Spring is here, and we have plenty happening at Gift Collective this September!

This month we have some practical opportunities to help you with funding and budgeting, as well as a pretty exciting milestone to celebrate.

We know budgets can sometimes be one of the trickier parts of putting together a funding application, so we’re kicking off September with a practical webinar focused on budgeting with Duncan Matthews from Good Numbers. 

We’ll look at how to put together a clear and realistic budget, what funders are looking for, and some of the common questions that come up when preparing budgets for funding applications.

Lottery Community Fund 2026/27 – Round 2 opens on Wednesday 2 September (today) and closes on Tuesday 29 September 2026. The funding options available are listed below (screenshot,) and you can find full details for each on the Community Matters/Lottery Grants website. Please take some time to read through the requirements and eligibility criteria for each fund to determine which one best fits your project.

If you’re planning to apply using Gift Collective as your fundholder, please get your application to us by 5pm 22 September.

This gives our team time to read through your application, check everything is in place and advise you on any changes before the Lottery deadline. 

If you wish to apply to this fund - decide which fund you wish to apply for, we will download the questions for you from the Lotteries funding portal and send them to you - please email us for these - [email protected] 

One area to pay particular attention to is your budget. We saw quite a few requests for additional or clarified budget information during Round 1, so it’s worth taking the time to make sure your budget is clear and includes everything Lottery is asking for (Come to the Budget Webinar for tips and support)

Have a funding question? Not sure about an application? Want to talk through an idea or something happening with your Collective?

We’re introducing a lunchtime drop-in session with Trish and Katie - an informal monthly hour where you can pop in and ask questions, talk through funding opportunities or get some help with anything Gift Collective related. We will be focussing on answering questions for the Lotteries funding this month. 

No need for a formal meeting or agenda- you can drop in for 5 minutes or 15 minutes, just join in for a chat.

 Here is the link. We will send reminders the week/day before as well.

We’re delighted to share that Gift Collective has distributed more than $2 million in the past 365 days. That’s $2 million going out to support the incredible mahi happening across our Collectives and communities throughout Aotearoa.

Behind that number are projects, people and ideas making a difference and we’re really proud to be able to help make that mahi possible.

Thank you to all of you who are part of Gift Collective, and to the funders and donors who support the work of our Collectives.

A quick reminder to please submit your expenses by Tuesday each week.- but the earlier you submit the better if we need to come back with any questions or if edits are needed.

This helps ensure:

• Processing on Wednesday

• Payments made on Thursday

If you need any support, please get in touch with us at [email protected].

Chloe is away for a few weeks during September (Tues 1 - Mon 21 Sept), but the Gift Collective team is still here to help.

If you need support while Chloe is away, please get in touch with Katie or Trish  we are here to help or point you in the right direction - email [email protected]

Thanks everyone for all your hard mahi - we know it is a very uncertain time for funding and that is a challenge for everyone. Please do reach out if you need advice or want to have a chat about things - we are here to help. Have a good week and keep warm.

💚