Building strong, resilient and inclusive communities
The Strong and Resilient Communities – Inclusive Communities (SARC – IC) Activity provides grant funding to organisations for one-off, time limited projects that run up to 2 years. It does not assist ongoing service delivery.
SARC – IC projects are designed to help the social and economic participation of vulnerable and disadvantaged people. This includes:
- young people aged 12 to 18 years who may be at risk of:
- being disengaged or marginalised
- having limited engagement with education/training
- people with disability
- women who may be experiencing isolation or discrimination
- unemployed people who face individual barriers to employment.
Current SARC projects will be delivered until 2028. No further grant rounds will be offered.
SARC – IC evaluation
SARC – IC grants have been awarded in 143 metropolitan, regional and remote areas across Australia since 2022.
In April 2026, Nous Group delivered an evaluation of the SARC – IC grant activity. It found that the program demonstrated positive outcomes for participants, but the funding model limited its ability to achieve sustained, system-level impact.
Based on the findings of the evaluation, we have established the new Place Partnership Model, which will be supported by a Community Delivery Fund.
An earlier evaluation was conducted by the Social Research Centre in January 2020. It found SARC was effectively promoted to a diverse range of groups. It made a positive contribution to community cohesion, economic participation, service engagement, and community attitudes.
Grant rounds
- Round 1 (1 July 2022 to 30 June 2024) – 38 grants delivered to not-for-profit community organisations
- Round 2 (1 July 2023 to 30 June 2025) – 32 grants delivered to not-for-profit community organisations
- Round 3 (23 October 2024 to 30 June 2026) – 33 grants delivered to not-for-profit community organisations
- Round 4 (6 November 2025 to 30 October 2027) – 40 grants delivered to not-for-profit community organisations