Hills & Coast Business Grant 2025

2025 Grant Guidelines Overview

Grant Guidelines

1. The Fund

The Hills & Coast Business Grant has been established by RDA AHFKI to provide funding that will be a catalyst for business establishment and growth.

Grant amount:

• Minimum single grant: $2,500
• Maximum single grant: $20,000

2. Purpose

The 2025 round of the Hills & Coast Business Grant aims to support the productivity and growth of manufacturing businesses through:

1. Procurement of new equipment that improves productivity, and/or;
2. Addressing challenges and/or barriers to business growth.

Exclusions:

• Replacement of existing equipment that does not improve productivity.
• New equipment solely for reducing costs (eg; solar installations or more power efficient equipment) rather than increasing manufacturing productivity.
• Furniture.
• Standard software applications such as accounting software.
• Marketing costs including e-commerce investments.

The Hills & Coast Business Grant is not intended for
business-as-usual projects, but for cases where limited funds are restricting an ability to progress productivity and growth.

3. Eligibility Requirements

3.1    The proposed project must meet the Purpose of the grant outlined above.

3.2    This grant is open to manufacturing businesses with an ABN. For the purposes of this grant, a manufacturing business is a business undertaking a process of value-adding and/or the processing of raw materials or parts into finished goods.

3.3    Grant funding must be matched dollar for dollar (1:1). Matched funding greater than 1:1 will be viewed favourably.

3.4    Costs incurred prior to signing of a grant agreement are not eligible. This includes deposits on equipment.

3.5    Eligible expenditure is not defined but must clearly show in your application, how they are specific to your proposed project.

3.6    Your project will benefit the economy and/or liveability of the Adelaide Hills, Fleurieu Peninsula or Kangaroo Island.

3.7    An application from a consortium is welcome, however one organisation will need to submit the application form and be the lead party that enters into a grant agreement if successful.

3.8    The proposed project must be completed in time to complete a project report and grant acquittal (refer Funding Agreements and Summary of Key Dates below).

Acquitting a grant means accurately reporting on the funded activities and the expenditure. You are required to demonstrate the funding has been used for the purpose intended in the application and ensure the terms of the funding agreement have been met.

Recipients unable to acquit grants on time by the Project Report/Funding Acquittal Date may be asked to refund their Hills & Coast Business Grant.

3.9    The following documents are mandatory application attachments:

1. Business Plan
2. Current Profit & Loss Statement
3. 2-year Financial Forecast

3.10  Previous recipients of this grant with outstanding acquittals are ineligible to apply for this funding round.

3.11 Previous recipients of this grant in the last two (2) years are ineligible to apply.

4. Application

4.1    All applications must be completed using the online application form.

4.2    Completed applications must be submitted by: 5:00pm, Friday 02 MAY 2025.

4.3 Late applications will not be accepted.

APPLY TODAY!

online application form →

5. Assessment of Applications

5.1    Eligible applications will be assessed against:

1. The Assessment Criteria in the grant application form.
2. Completeness and quality of the application.
3. Value (level of productivity and growth versus funding request).

5.2    All applicants will be advised of the outcome of their application.

5.3    The selection panel may, but is not obliged to, seek further information or clarification from applicants.

5.4    All decisions are final and there is no appeal process for applicants.

6. Funding Agreements

6.1    Funding agreements will specify the funding provided and commit the applicant to any funding conditions including timeframes, outputs and outcomes, and matched contributions.

6.2    Successful applicants will be required to provide a project report and grant acquittal.

6.3    The Funding agreement may contain other conditions.

7. Summary of Key Dates

Further Information

Got questions or need help?

For more information or clarification around eligibility or the grant process, please contact our Director, Steve Shotton.

EMAIL STEVE →

Thank you to our corporate partners for their generous support of the Hills & Coast Business Grant 2025!