Foundation Focus
The Foundation supports a broad range of community needs. We will consider applications for funding from not-for-profit organisations that support projects, initiatives and causes in the following areas:
- Medical and Health
- The Arts and Culture
- The Environment
- Community Support
- Youth Development
While the focus of the Foundation is broad, we are not able to support all requests for funding. The following are not eligible for funding:
- General sponsorship and fundraising activities
- Small contributions to large appeals or large capital projects
- Grants to political and religious groups
- Contributions to work that should more properly be the responsibility of local authorities or government departments
- Requests for wages or salaries for new or existing positions and other recurrent costs such as rent and utilities
- Requests to support individuals
Message from the Foundation Chairman
As a mutual, Newcastle Permanent's core philosophy is to provide support to the community. This incorporates the provision of high quality, value for money retail financial services combined with an active and long standing program of sponsorships and community program support.
It was recognised that commercial corporate sponsorship could never adequately address an increasing demand for sponsorship and community program support. As a result the community would not benefit from the many worthwhile causes and initiatives not able to attract commercial funding and support.
The Newcastle Permanent Charitable Foundation ('Foundation') was launched to address this need.
It was conceived as Newcastle Permanent's 100th anniversary gift to the people of the Hunter and Central Coast to thank them for their long term support.
The Foundation is a purely philanthropic vehicle. Its purpose is to provide support for the community through financial assistance to charities, community groups and other worthwhile causes in the Hunter, Central Coast, Mid North Coast and more recently New England and Northern Rivers regions.
Since its launch in 2004, the Foundation has made donations to more than 190 local community projects. $6.5 million has been distributed to a wide range of applicants, ranging from small organisations that provide support for specific groups of disadvantaged people and are reliant solely on volunteers and donations, to larger entities whose programs and projects benefit a wider cross section of our community.
The recipients of Foundation funding operate in a variety of fields including providing support to the underprivileged and disabled, delivering projects in medical and health areas, as well as cultural, youth, social and environmental projects.
In every case, irrespective of the amount of funding that was received, the recipients have noted that without the Foundation's assistance, their project would not have been possible. Consequently, the true beneficiaries of the Foundation’s support are the people in our community.
The Foundation was officially launched by the then Premier of NSW, The Hon. Bob Carr, who said in his speech:
"The Charitable Foundation is a concrete addition to the common good".
"It will change and improve the lives of thousands of families across these regions for years to come".
That observation has proven accurate and will continue to be in the years to come through the support that the Foundation provides to the communities in which Newcastle Permanent operates.
Michael Slater
Chairman - Newcastle Permanent Charitable Foundation