Wimmera PCP’s committee of management has worked with the Ballarat Foundation for more than 18 months to develop the health and wellbeing fund, ensuring it would provide ongoing and long-lasting opportunities.
The Ballarat Foundation will manage the fund and grant-making processes, ensuring long-term sustainability for health-related initiatives in the region.
Meanwhile, a committee comprising Wimmera residents, will be established to allow local voices to lead the grant decision-making process, ensuring the funding allocations are aligned with the region’s most pressing health and wellbeing needs.
The Wimmera PCP Health and Wellbeing Fund will provide financial support to charitable and non-profit organisations for initiatives, projects and programs that will improve health outcomes, address mental health challenges, and tackle community health concerns.
Wimmera PCP was a collaborative network of health and community service organisations with a focus on improving health and wellbeing outcomes by fostering partnerships, co-ordinating services, and addressing issues such as chronic disease prevention, mental health, and social inclusion.
Wimmera PCP transition officer Geoff Witmitz said the organisation, made up of 30 member agencies, had been funding projects and programs to make a difference to health outcomes in various communities in the region.
Examples of past projects include men’s sheds, community gardens, festivals and health initiatives such as diabetes management programs.
“When they announced the decision to wind up the 20-year program of the PCPs and relocate us in the Public Health Units, we were one of two of the organisations that were independent and were self-governing as an incorporated body, so that meant we were probably more business-like in that we had a lot of provisions and therefore a sum of money at the end of it all – and we’re not quite there – we thought what would be the legacy that we could have, and that’s where Foundation for Ballarat came in,” he said.
“We’ve developed a concept around this fund that it’d be an investment through the Ballarat Foundation’s services, which they’ve done for many years and had a really great reputation, so that can be an ongoing legacy forever in a day.
“But it’s also the opportunity for others to contribute to it so that each year there’ll be funding around for amounts up to $5000.”
Mr Witmitz said Wimmera PCP envisaged between $45,000 and $60,000 a year would go into Wimmera communities through small grants.
Ballarat Foundation chief executive Andrew Eales said by continuing the legacy of Wimmera PCP, the fund would empower local organisations to drive positive and lasting change.
“We are proud to manage this fund and work alongside local voices to ensure the grant-making process addresses the region’s most urgent health and wellbeing needs,” he said.
Mr Eales said the Ballarat Foundation had more than 40 years of history in supporting funds like the Wimmera PCP Health and Wellbeing Fund in communities in Ballarat and surrounds.
“When this opportunity came up – we’ve got this incredible expertise, we’ve got the trust of our community – and we’d love to be able to use all of those mechanisms to support this community,” he said.
“I want to make the point really clearly, that while we can provide administrative support and expertise around engaging donors and community groups to apply for funds, the decision-making is really crucial that it stays within this community because we know, and we see this everywhere we operate, that local people know their local communities.”
Mr Eales said the Ballarat Foundation already managed 18 separate sub funds.
“These are legacy funds, so they’re not just funds that are donated and then we distribute back to the community,” he said.
“We utilise the services of JBWere, who have a philanthropic section, and the purpose of involving JBWere is that when we invest with them, hopefully – and we put measures around this – that delivers a return.
“That return is then invested back into the communities that the funds support so the capital that the funds start with never diminishes.
“This is a fund forever for this community because of that investment process. We’re just utilising the growth in the investment to deliver back to the community.
“This is not a one-year, a five-year, a 10-year partnership – this is going to deliver for community groups in this community for 50 and a 100 years.”
Mr Eales said people for the Wimmera-based committee would be selected in coming months, and applications for grants will open in early 2025.
People can also donate to the Wimmera PCP fund by visiting www.ballaratfoundation.org.au/campaign/18/wimmera-primary-care-partnership-health-and-wellbeing-fund.
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