We work with the local community to identify the most pressing community issues and needs in Ballarat and the surrounding region.

We do this by continually engaging with our Community Partners and conducting a bi-annual Community Needs Analysis.  This enables us to respond quickly and effectively to changing community issues and direct our resources where the greatest community need exists.

We work with our corporate partners to raise funds and volunteer resources to address these community needs.

Allocating Funds

Since 1983, when the Ballarat & District Community Fund began, more than $3 million has been donated to over 100 local health and wellbeing programs.

The decision about which programs to fund is always difficult, as there are far more worthwhile local causes than there are funds available.

The United Way Ballarat Community Fund conducts an exhaustive selection process to ensure that available resources are put to maximum use.  From start to finish, the process takes some months and involves Board members, volunteers from the health sector and corporate partners as well as United Way staff.

The allocations process opens in early July with applications for funding being invited from the health and wellbeing sector in the Ballarat and surrounding district, with the closing date being mid-August.

Community Engagement

United Way Ballarat encourages our corporate partners to participate in a suite of community engagement opportunities that are available.

We work together to build a Corporate Community Engagement program that delivers maximum benefit to our community, whilst helping business achieve their Corporate Social Responsibility objectives.

We have a 4-stage process that makes it easy for our corporate partners to get active and engaged.

• partner discovery
• program development
• program implementation
• evaluation

Partner discovery

We spend time with you to learn more about your company, culture, current community activities and aspirations for the future.  We also engage with staff to understand where their community interests lie and how we can respond to them.

Program development

With this knowledge we develop a program  that:

• is tailored to meet you and your staff's needs
• includes a range of staff engagement channels (Workplace Giving, Corporate Connect volunteering and Seeing is Believing Education programs)
• is supported by a team of Ambassadors that we can help select, train and support
• may extend to our national network so that your staff become involved in the community in which they live and work 
• includes diverse means to interface with your pay system to save your resources when processing Workplace Giving donations

Program implementation

We will work with you to:

• launch the program throughout the company for maximum visibility
• roll out a series of Corporate Connect volunteering and Seeing is Believing programs

Program evaluation

At regular intervals we evaluate the program to:

• ensure that all our aspirations are being achieved
• identify areas for improvement
• plan for future years