He Iti te Toki | From Small Beginnings
This fund supports rangatahi and tamariki aged 12 to 24 to organise a community event or project to celebrate Youth Week in Whangārei, and to learn and grow through the process.
Amount: We can consider requests from $100 through to $2,000 from this Fund
You can apply as an individual or as a group, but one person will need to be the lead for the project and the funding application.
Closing date: This fund closed on 7 March 2025.
What is Youth Week?
Youth Week is a nationwide festival of events organised by young Kiwis to celebrate the talents, passion, and success of local young people.
Youth Week runs from 19 to 25 May 2025.
Find out more about Youth Week and Ara Taiohi:
Ara Taiohi Youth Week (arataiohi.org.nz)
Examples of suitable events or projects
We are keen to see events and projects that bring people together for a common purpose, which could be to share ideas, learn new things, make connections, break down barriers, celebrate, do good in the ‘hood.
Some examples include:
- workshops to try something new
- talks with guest speakers
- public celebrations and socials (e.g., silent disco, festival)
- expos and swap-meets
- community clean ups
- activities that support our diverse communities and offer opportunities to connect and create understanding (e.g., sharing circle)
- activities that address social challenges like addiction, poverty, violence, inequality, and mental wellbeing
- arts, sports, environmental, health and wellbeing.
Eligibility
To be eligible to apply:
- you must be aged between 12 and 24 and live in the Whangārei District
- your event or project must happen in the Whangārei District and during or around Youth Week (16 to 25 May 2025)
- the event or project must be youth-led. You can have support from an older adult, but the idea and the mahi must be yours.
- your event or project must provide a positive impact for local young people or the wider community.
Community organisations wanting to organise an event for Youth Week (or any time of the year) are not eligible to apply to this Fund, but can apply to the Whangārei Communities Fund or Creative Communities Scheme (if arts related).
Our criteria
Your event or project must also meet at least one of our Community Funding Priorities:
- Arts, Culture, and Heritage: To support and celebrate the history, language, culture, and arts of our diverse communities.
- Recreation and Sport: To support and deliver a variety of recreational and sporting opportunities for all ages, abilities, and life stages.
- Environment: To support initiatives that:
- make a positive difference to our environment
- enable kaitiakitanga of our taiao
- raise environmental awareness
- support resilience to climate change impacts.
- Community Wellbeing: To support initiatives that:
- enable equitable outcomes
- raise community resilience, participation, and connection
- help create safe, healthy, thriving communities.
We will seek to distribute the funds across these four areas.
In making our funding decisions, we consider the:
- uniqueness of your idea
- quality of your plan and budget
- potential impact and benefits of your project for the participants and the community
- equitable share of the funding amongst the four Funding Priorities, our diverse communities and across the district.
How much funding can I apply for?
You can apply for funding to help pay for the things that you need to deliver your Youth Week event or project. We can consider requests from $100 through to $2,000 from this Fund.
If you are planning a much larger event and need more than $2,000 then either the Whangārei Communities Fund or Creative Communities Scheme might be a better option for you. Talk to us about putting an application in to either of these.
You can use the funds for most costs involved to deliver your project including:
- venue and equipment hire – like a stage and sound system
- materials and consumables – like stationery and rubbish bags (but aim for zero waste)
- marketing – like printed posters or social media boosted campaigns
- koha for performers, speakers, helpers.
What can't I use the funds for?
There are some things that we can’t provide funding for, and we’ve provided some examples below. We’ll let you know if there is anything on your budget that we can’t support.
- buying of equipment – like computers or phones
- merchandise – like event t-shirts (unless it is for an arts workshop)
- prizes and give-aways (try sponsors for these)
- alcohol, cigarettes, vape, or drugs
- sponsorship funds for individuals
- events or projects that are for fundraising purposes
- events or projects that support, endorse, or promote any commercial, political, ideological, or religious viewpoint or entity
- events or projects that may cause harm to people or property or pose a reputational risk to Council or other organisations.
Apply for Youth Week Fund