How to write a project budget for a community grant

Assessors read the budget to answer one question: is this a realistic plan, or a wish list? A vague budget signals a vague project. A clear, itemised one signals a group that knows exactly what it will do and what it costs.

You do not need to be an accountant. You need to tie every dollar to an activity, use real numbers, and stay inside the rules.

Start from the activities, not the total

Work out what you will actually do, then price each part. If your project runs eight workshops, your budget should show facilitator time, venue, materials, and promotion for those workshops. When each cost maps to an activity in your project description, the assessor can see that the money does real work.

Here is what a simple, credible community project budget looks like when you break it down:

Facilitator and staff time - $6,000

Venue hire - $3,300

Materials and equipment - $3,000

Promotion and printing - $1,800

Evaluation - $900

Example: a $15,000 request, itemised by activity. Every line is a real, quotable cost, not a round guess.

Quote the funder's exact figures

If the guidelines say the maximum is $15,000, do not ask for $15,001. If your project's total cost is $22,000 and you are requesting $15,000 from this grant, say so, and show where the other $7,000 comes from (your own funds, another grant, in-kind support). Assessors reward projects that are not wholly dependent on one grant.

Round numbers look made up. "$3,000 for materials" invites the question "based on what?". "$2,850 for 120 participant kits at $23.75 each" answers it. Where you can, price from a real quote or a per-unit cost. Specific numbers read as evidence; round numbers read as guesses.

Show value for money

Value for money is not the same as cheapest. It means the community benefit is worth the spend. You can strengthen it by:

Counting the in-kind contribution. Volunteer hours, a donated venue, or a partner's staff time all show the grant is a lever, not the whole cost. Many funders let you list in-kind support as its own line.
Showing reach per dollar. "This $15,000 reaches 300 residents across six sessions" is a value-for-money statement.
Avoiding excluded costs. Salaries for core staff, rent, catering, and prizes are commonly excluded. Putting them in your grant budget can make the application ineligible. If they are essential, fund them yourself and ask the grant to cover the eligible parts.

Make the maths add up

It sounds obvious, but a budget whose lines do not sum to the total is a red flag an assessor will notice immediately. Before you submit:

Every line is tied to an activity in the project description
The lines add up to the amount requested
No excluded costs are hidden in the budget
In-kind and co-contributions are listed and totalled separately
The request is within the round's funding range
GST is handled the way the guidelines specify

Budget questions people ask

Should the budget include GST?

It depends on whether your organisation is registered for GST, and on the funder's rules. Some councils ask for GST-exclusive figures, some inclusive. The guidelines will say. Follow them exactly, and be consistent across every line.

Can I include a small contingency?

A modest contingency (often up to about 10 percent) can be reasonable if the guidelines allow it, but label it clearly and keep it small. A large unexplained contingency reads as padding.

Grant amounts and eligible costs vary by funder. Real examples:

City of Melbourne Community Funding and Grants - programs from $2,000 to $20,000
Greater Dandenong Community Grants - small grants through to large grants

Grantzo drafts your budget justification using the figures you provide and the funder's own rules, quoting your exact total and requested amount, and flagging anything that reads as an excluded cost. Start your first draft and build a budget an assessor will trust.