RSL & Services Clubs Association (RSL&SCA) has announced a shift in how it can better support veterans and their families.
Speaking at the RSL&SCA 24th annual conference in Hobart on Monday, CEO Margot Smith confirmed that the Veterans Benevolent Fund, the association’s charitable arm, will transition to a donation-based model.
“This will strengthen our commitment to our core purpose and make it all the more meaningful,” Smith said.
“This model will sit outside the ClubGRANTS framework, and it will highlight the authenticity of our commitment to veterans and their families. This is not to undermine the support through ClubGRANTS, but to complement it.”
According to Smith, the pivot follows insights from the association’s recent veteran and community engagement, which revealed that fewer veteran organisations are applying for ClubGRANTS funding and that there are limitations in how funding is being pooled. In addition, the LGA focus of ClubGRANTS presents challenges.
“The need for veteran support is not evenly distributed across the state in the same way that our clubs are,” she said.
“There is a mismatch with funds available in areas where there are fewer veterans, and conversely, there is not enough funding in areas with larger cohorts of veterans and their families. We’ve highlighted this misalignment with stakeholders and proposed an alternative view. It remains to be seen if this will form part of the ClubGRANTS review as it gets rolled out.”
The NSW government is currently reviewing the ClubGRANTS scheme. ClubGRANTS was established to enable eligible registered clubs to contribute a portion of gaming machine tax revenue to local community services, projects and infrastructure through grants, and receive a tax rebate in return.
Smith added the new fundraising model for the Veterans Benevolent Fund will ensure clubs can continue to provide ongoing support for ex-services organisations, such as Defence Community Dogs, Frontline Labs, Gallipoli Scholarship Fund, The Younger Heroes, Saltwater Veterans, RSL LifeCare, Swiss8, Horse Aid and more. She is optimistic that this new model will also allow the Veteran Benevolent Fund to continue to hit donation targets.
“In 2021, the VBF set a target to raise a million dollars over three years … so we’d like to be able to contribute $333,000 each year in order to have that three-year $1 million contribution,” she said.
Club Management attended the RSL&SCA annual conference as a guest.