Community War Memorials Fund - Round 2025/26

The Community War Memorials Fund (CWMF) provides funding to support the conservation of community war memorials across NSW.

The purpose of the CWMF is to help conserve, repair and protect war memorials across NSW to support community commemoration, by funding projects that follow best practice conservation principles and processes. The CWMF is targeted at organisations who are responsible for the management of war memorials in NSW.

Who can apply

An organisation can apply to the CWMF if:

1. It is one of the applicant types listed below

2a. It is the owner of the war memorial, or

2b. It has received the endorsement of the owner of the war memorial to undertake the project and apply to the CWMF.

For the purposes of the CWMF, the owner of the war memorial is the entity who owns or manages the land on which the war memorial is located, or the building in which it is housed, also known as the landowner.

Eligible applicant types

• Incorporated not-for-profit community organisations
• NSW local councils operating under the Local Government Act 1993
• Incorporated organisations that are registered and approved as not-for-profit bodies by NSW Fair Trading
• Not-for profit companies limited by guarantee, registered in NSW (must have ACNC registration and/or DGR status)
• Indigenous Corporations (must be registered with the Office of the Registrar of Indigenous Corporations)
• NSW Local Aboriginal Land Councils
• Religious organisations operating in NSW
• NSW non-government organisations established under their own Act of Parliament
• NSW Government agencies who own or are responsible for a war memorial, including government schools, are eligible to apply to the CWMF
• Non-Council Crown Land Managers (Category 1 or 2)

Types of projects funded under this grant

Applications to the CWMF must align with and be submitted under one of the below categories:

• Category A: Reports and Assessments - Engaging heritage or other relevant specialists (such as engineers) to produce reports relating to the repair, protection, and/or conservation of existing war memorials and/or their precincts.
• Category B: Physical works - Engaging heritage or other relevant specialists (such as stonemasons and joiners) to undertake physical works relating to the repair, protection, and/or conservation of existing war memorials AND / OR other physical works relating to the memorial’s immediate precinct to promote its conservation, safe and accessible use, and community access for commemorative purposes.

Notes:

• The CWMF supports projects for existing war memorials. Applications cannot be submitted for the construction of new war memorials.
• Category A applicants cannot apply for Category B works in the same round for the same war memorial. This is because applicants planning physical works to war memorials are expected to have already obtained relevant heritage advice for their project, such as the kinds listed under Category A.
• Category B applicants are expected to obtain relevant heritage advice for their project before applying to the CWMF.