Congratulations to the recipients of the Volunteer Management Activity Project-Based Grants.
The grants are delivered as part of the Volunteer Management Activity (VMA) program, which is a national collaboration between volunteering peak bodies. It enables organisations to expand their reach and enhance the volunteer experience for everyone.
Ultimately, the goal of the VMA program is to create an inclusive and diverse volunteering culture where everyone can thrive. The grants are just one vehicle to achieve this.
Funded by the Australian Government Department of Social Services, the grants aim to help volunteer involving organisations (VIOs) break down barriers to volunteering within one or more of the six identified priority groups. This year, a total of $300,000 in grant funding has been allocated to four innovative projects across WA.
VOLUNTEER MANAGEMENT ACTIVITY FUNDING RECIPIENTS
Organisation | Project | ||
Kimberley Aboriginal Women’s Council | The Ripple Effect Target Group/s: First Nations, Vulnerable Women The Ripple Effect is an Aboriginal-led initiative designed to strengthen and grow culturally meaningful volunteering by Aboriginal women across 11 regions of Western Australia. Aboriginal women have always volunteered — mentoring young people, caring for families, responding to crises, and leading community action. This project recognises and builds on those strengths, offering relational support, regional engagement, capacity building and peer connection to help women grow local leadership and create change on their own terms. Support will be tailored to each region. In places where women’s groups already exist, the Ripple Effect will offer mentoring, skill development and deeper connection. In areas where groups do not yet exist, women will be supported to explore and lead local volunteering initiatives that reflect their priorities, values and ways of working. Rooted in care, kinship and self-determination, the Ripple Effect honours Aboriginal women’s leadership and helps build stronger, more connected communities of volunteers across the state. | ||
Volunteer South West | Empower Target Group/s: Vulnerable Women EMPOWER supports Volunteer Involving Organisations (VIOs) in engaging vulnerable women volunteers by helping volunteer managers assess current strategies, identify gaps, and create tailored volunteer roles. The project provides training to refine volunteer management practices and align them with National Standards, making VIOs more welcoming and accessible. EMPOWER offers a safe, supportive space for women to learn about volunteering and gradually practice roles at their own pace. It focuses on addressing challenges like low self-confidence, isolation, and lack of connections, which often contribute to poor mental health, particularly for vulnerable women. By having a safe space to practice transferable skills like communication and teamwork, participants improve their confidence, mental well-being and soft skills. This project demonstrates how inclusive volunteer recruitment benefits all volunteers and VIOs, enhancing the diversity, capacity, and sustainability of the volunteer sector. | ||
Umbrella Multicultural Care Services | Bridge to Belonging Target Group/s: New Migrants, Unemployed, Vulnerable Women Bridge to Belonging: Peer-Led Multicultural Volunteering Hub for CALD & LGBTIQ+ Volunteers is a 12-month initiative supporting Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) and LGBTIQ+ volunteers, with a focus on newly arrived migrants, vulnerable women, and unemployed individuals. Building on insights from the Empowered Connections project (Dec 2024 – May 2025), where 40% of participants engaged in volunteering, this new hub addresses barriers such as isolation, language challenges, and lack of recognition. It features peer-led sessions, tailored training, and the dedicated support of a Volunteer Wellness Officer to build confidence, wellbeing, and belonging. The project will also produce volunteer stories, case studies, and videos to showcase success and inspire wider participation. By creating a safe, inclusive space, Bridge to Belonging empowers diverse volunteers, strengthens peer networks, and enriches the broader community through supported and meaningful engagement. | ||
Mettle Inc | Mettle Together Target Group/s: Vulnerable Women Mettle Together is a pilot peer-mentorship volunteer program that allows women that have graduated from Mettle’s employment pathways program and into stable work, to return as peer mentors to support women currently experiencing homelessness due to family and domestic violence. Mettle Together is unique in that the traditional one-on-one mentoring model will be replaced by a group model, enabling mentors and mentees to build connections, trust and support systems in the safety of a group. Mentor & mentee group activities will include volunteer days that will expose participants to the vital work of different community organisations and showcase potential future employment pathways in the not-for-profit sector. Critically, these activity days will be intentionally designed with activities that foster connection, positive wellbeing and support structures for women who are taking the steps to build the self-determined lives they deserve. As a pilot project, Mettle intends to test out new strategies and create robust feedback mechanisms to assess the viability of ongoing lived-experience mentorship programs. |
