North Burnett Grant Writing Workshops
2024 Recap: Grant Writing Workshops in the North Burnett
According to the Grants in Australia report (2018), 62% of grant applicants don’t hit the ‘submit’ button after they start an application. I’m on a mission to change this!
In this (long overdue) post, I’m pleased to share my recap and reflection on a recent series of grant writing workshops held across the North Burnett region in regional Queensland. My Grant Writing for the Arts workshops are designed to empower local artists, creative practitioners, arts workers, festival organisations and community groups with the skills and confidence needed to hit ‘submit’, and put your best foot forward to secure vital funding for your next creative project.
Grant Writing for the Arts workshop in Biggenden, 10 July 2024. Image supplied by North Burnett Regional Council.
North Burnett Workshop Locations and Dates:
Thank you to North Burnett Regional Council for inviting me to your region and partnering with me on this workshop series (with thanks to funding support through the Regional Arts Development Fund). We delivered six comprehensive workshops across the six main townships of the region:
Biggenden: 10 July 2024
Monto: 30 July 2024
Eidsvold: 31 July 2024
Mt Perry: 9 August 2024
Mundubbera: 2 September 2024
Gayndah: 11 September 2024
Each 3-hour workshop covered the essential aspects of crafting compelling grant applications, including but not limited to the following topics:
Understanding grant terminology
How grants are assessed
Developing effective budgets and timelines, including paying artist fees
Identifying relevant funding opportunities
Finding and using data and evidence to support the need for your project
and more!
Grant Writing for the Arts workshop in Monto, 30 July 2024. Image supplied by North Burnett Regional Council.
Workshop Feedback and Impact:
Workshops were attended by 42 community members from across the North Burnett, with 23 attendees providing valuable feedback about the workshop content and presentation. Here are some of the key insights from the post-workshop survey process:
74% of attendees were ‘extremely likely’, and 26% ‘likely’, to recommend this workshop to a friend or colleague.
87% of attendees rated the facilitator as ‘excellent’, and 13% as ‘very good’.
65% of attendees rated the workshop overall as ‘excellent’, and 35% as ‘very good’.
Feedback and testimonials provided by workshop attendees included:
“Thank you for a comprehensive workshop. I feel like we have some more tools and comfort in approaching what can be a daunting task. Your workshop information was relevant and presented in an easily digested format. You made what could be a very dry subject feel like an interesting and productive adventure. Thank you Olivia.” - Workshop Participant, Monto.
“Olivia is a very competent facilitator whose workshop was relaxed and friendly while being informative and very helpful.” - Workshop Participant, Biggenden.
“I found this Workshop very informative and very well presented.” - Workshop Participant, Biggenden.
“Olivia's workshop is informative, engaging and well presented. It is backed up by her academic achievement and grounded practical knowledge/experience of a wide-range of subject matter, scenarios and applicant behaviours. Well worth attending with no question left unanswered backed up by supporting reference material.” - Workshop Participant, Mt Perry
Thank you to everyone who attended and who provided feedback!
Grant Writing for the Arts workshop in Mundubbera, 2 September 2024. Image supplied by North Burnett Regional Council.
Thank you!
Thank you again to the Community Development team at North Burnett Regional Council for inviting me to your beautiful region and making these workshops possible through the Regional Arts Development fund. It was an absolute pleasure to meet so many driven and community-minded people during these workshops and learn more about the vibrancy and aspirations of the arts and cultural community in the North Burnett.
If you’re interested in hosting a grant writing workshop in your community, you can contact me at any stage to discuss your needs. You can also download a copy of my 2025 workshops guide to share with your local Council and arts groups:
