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Welcome to the Gift of the GAB for the month of May! As always, we are keen to hear your thoughts on what you would like to see in future editions – it’s your newsletter! |
Give the Grants Design Team Your Feedback! - The feedback may be given at any time.
- Any feedback is good feedback – it lets us know how we are tracking.
- Send suggestions for Grants Design content, improvements and any grants design topics you want to learn more about to: grantdesign@niaa.gov.au
- We want to hear from you!
Our Front Door survey reveals: - 48% of respondents said they didn’t search the GAM or Knowledge Base before submitting a query.
- Among those who did search, over half reported they couldn’t find the info they needed or needed further clarification.
- Only 2% of requests were attributed to gaps in GAM/KB content—suggesting we have the material but need to make it easier to access.
- We’re continuing to analyse the full feedback picture and will share a summary report soon.
| Look what our Front Door Survey revealed… To better understand how Grants Services Branch is tracking against its core objectives, we continue to seek your feedback on our service offerings. 
GAM Update Project – Your Feedback in Action The Grants Administration Manual (GAM) continues to undergo updates to ensure it aligns with current Standard Operating Procedures and remains a reliable, user-friendly resource. Content owners across NIAA are reviewing and updating existing materials, supported by a document update protocol and improvements to the GAM folder structure to make documents easier to identify and replace. We recently gathered feedback via the Slido and Front Door surveys, and your insights are helping to guide the next steps. What we heard: - Navigation & Search – Users struggle to find information quickly.
- Content Clarity – Preference for shorter, clearer, more intuitive content.
- Structure & Organisation – Requests for an A–Z index, clearer lifecycle structure, and consolidated templates.
- Currency & Accuracy – Outdated templates and broken links are a concern.
- Training & Awareness – Many weren’t introduced to the GAM when joining.
- Usability – Strong preference for dropdowns, flowcharts, and downloadable tools.
- Coverage – More guidance requested on non-standard processes and roles.
- Trust & Consistency – Users want greater alignment between the GAM, advice provided by Front Door, and actual practice.
Despite the challenges, the GAM is widely seen as a valuable concept—with strong support for it becoming a central, trusted source of truth for grants processes. Want to help?
If you have suggestions for the GAM or would like to join future focus groups or testing activities, we’d love to hear from you. Email us at GAMFeedback@niaa.gov.au — and feel free to let us know if any recent updates have made a difference! |
Have you ever struggled with preparing a Grant Agreement for publishing with your GOGs? Now you don’t have to. Grants Design has published a new Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to help you on your way.  Standard Operating Procedure for Publishing a Draft Grant Agreement on GrantConnect.
This SOP will guide you through the process of developing and publishing the draft grant agreement that will accompany your GOGs on your GrantConnect listing. You can check out a range of other new or updated documents that we have published recently on the Grant Design Intranet Page New | Publishing a Draft Grant Agreement SOP | Updated | NIAA SARA Template (includes EM24/36 updates) | Updated | SARA Information Guide | Updated | GDS Template | Updated | NIAA GOGs template |
You can find all these documents, and more, on the NIAA’s Grants Administration Manual, also known as The GAM | 
Discover the benefits of self-service!
Looking for a template? Need an answer to a question?
Check out the useful content and helpful resources on the Design page of The GAM - Need a template to progress your Grant Opportunity?
- Have you checked out the Design page on the GAM?
- Still can’t find what you’re after?
- You can always ask the Grants Design team at grantdesign@niaa.gov.au
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Grant Facts – Did You Know? MERIT-BASED PROCESSES What does it mean? - Competitive, merit-based selection processes should be used for all grant opportunities unless a minister, accountable authority or appropriate delegate specifically agrees that another selection process is appropriate [CGRPs, 11.5].
- In some circumstances, it may be appropriate to use a selection process other than an open competitive process. [CGRPs, 11.6]. However, officials must consider the other key principles of grants administration when choosing a selection process.
Why does it matter? - This principle reflects the fact that competitive, merit-based selection processes can achieve better outcomes and value with relevant money.
- Following merit-based processes provides confidence that funds are being spent in accordance with their intended outcome, e.g. Where a method other than a competitive, merit-based selection process is used, officials should document the reason for using that approach and explain this in the grant opportunity guidelines.
- Officials should choose selection methods that promote open, transparent and equitable access to grants.
- For more information on the two new principles, see DoF resources here: CGRPs New Principles
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- On 1 October 2024, two new principles* were added to the Commonwealth Grants Rules and Principles or CGRPs (formerly Guidelines or CGRGs).
- The two new principles are: Merit based processes; and Consistency with grant guidelines and established processes
- The changes address recommendations made by the Australian National Audit Office and Joint Committee of Public Audit and Accounts.
* The term "principles” helps to distinguish between the contents of CGRPs and the other guidance materials that the Department of Finance (DoF) has developed to help officials implement the CGRPs. See link to the overarching Australian Government Grants Framework, covering relevant policies and legislation. Other Grants administration guidance is contained in DoF’s Resource Management Guides (RMGs) |
FUSION Reminder All FUSION Resources are available on the Grants Front Door. | 
See in particular: | 
See also: |
Everyone loves a good news story If you have a grant-related success you wish to crow about, Gift of the GAB is a great place to share with your colleagues. Submit your team’s good news story to: grantdesign@niaa.gov.au |
Refresher on commonly used grants terms Know the lingo? Here are a few terms we commonly use and their meanings: The selection process is the method used to select potential grantees. This may be conducted by the Community Grants Hub or in-house, by arrangement with the Program owner. The approach to the Selection process is informed by the type of Grant Opportunity that has been used. The selection may be based on eligibility criteria alone, or on applicants meeting specific assessment criteria. These criteria should specify the intended outcomes of a grant opportunity – the traits qualifications and attachments being sought in an application. The application process refers to the steps followed by potential grantees to be considered for a grant. It includes the forms, and written documentation, which contain eligibility and any assessment criteria to be satisfied. Types of selection process: - Open/ targeted-restricted/closed - these terms all refer to the allowable field of applicants
- Competitive – applications are assessed against comparative merits of other applications, in addition to meeting the assessment criteria.
- Non-competitive - applications are assessed without reference to the merits of other applications but are each assessed individually against the selection criteria. Applications may be submitted at any time over the life of the grant opportunity
- One-off ad hoc – these grants are determined on a proper use and value with relevant money basis, and usually by ministerial decision (see CGRPs 2.4c).
- Demand-driven or ‘first in first served’ processes - where applications that satisfy stated eligibility criteria receive funding, up to the limit of available appropriations and subject to revision, suspension or abolition of the grant opportunity. Demand driven processes only use verifiable eligibility criteria as the basis for allocating grants. Assessment criteria are not used. The eligibility criteria must be clearly linked to the achievement of value with relevant money.
Types of selection criteria: - Selection Criteria = refers to a combination of both Eligibility (S.4 in GOG Template) and Assessment Criteria (S.6. in GOG Template).
- eligibility criteria refer to the mandatory criteria which must be met to qualify for a grant. Eligibility criteria should be developed to enable objective validation and are either ‘met’ or ‘not met’.
- assessment criteria are the specified principles or standards, against which applications will be judged, so must align with the intended outcomes for the opportunity. They are used to assess the merits of proposals and, in competitive grant opportunities, to determine application rankings.
Upcoming Grant Opportunities Attention Regional and Program staff: Each month we will promote any new GOGs released (including by other agencies) and published on Grant Connect that may be relevant to your stakeholders. Registering on Grant Connect is easy ? In May 2025 no new GOGs with the subject area of “Indigenous” were published. |
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