Youth Action and Wellbeing Grants
Grants from a pool of $100,000, open to groups led by young people (under 30) across the country campaigning to create change.
Expressions of interest for the Youth Action and Wellbeing Grants are currently closed.
What are the Youth Action and Wellbeing Grants?
At FYA, we back young people to make the change they want to see in the world. These grants aim to support under-resourced youth-led groups and grassroots campaigns with lived experience of injustice, by providing the resources they need to make a positive difference while helping them take care of themselves and their communities.
What Grants are available?
We are offering two types of grants:
- Youth Action Grants (currently closed):You can apply for a grant of $5,000-$15,000 (one-off) to fund actions to create structural change. We’ll fund grants up to $75,000 in total.
- Wellbeing Grants (currently closed): You can apply for a grant of $2,000-$5,000 (one-off) to support the wellbeing of youth-led groups to keep up the fight sustainably. We’ll fund grants up to $25,000 in total.
Note: there may be a limited number of multi-year grants available, and eligibility for this is assessed after shortlisting, in conversation with FYA staff.
We’ll back up the grants with wraparound support from FYA’s Youth Action Team. Youth-led groups who receive grants will be part of a program which includes:
- coaching and training in a number of valuable skills including media, digital and social media, strategy development, team culture and wellbeing, community organising, and intersectionality.
- Support to increase monitoring and evaluation skills to build the evidence base of their work, assisting with securing ongoing sustainable funding for long term change.
Grants timeline
| Expressions of interest open | 22 July – 25 August |
| Online info session | 29 July. 7 – 8 PM AEST. Watch the recording here |
| Shortlist announced | 19 September |
| Shortlisted round 2 applications due | 17 October |
| Recipients notified | 30 October |
| Funds released | December |
Grant recipients will be selected by a Youth Grants Panel of 8 young people, who will not have direct links to any of the applicants.
Who can apply?
The Youth Action & Wellbeing Grants are open to groups running campaigns led by young people under the age of 30. To view the full Grant Guidelines click here.
Frequently asked questions
Our Youth Action Fund backs young people to channel and grow their collective power to beat injustice and transform the future.
We are open to funding a wide array of activities, limited only by your imagination and the following criteria:
- The application must be on behalf of a group, organisation or community, not an individual, and based in Australia.
- Groups or campaigns must be led by young people under the age of 30 with lived experience of the issues they are campaigning on.
- The group or campaign must have a tangible goal or goals, which must be focused on structural change (eg. we will not fund awareness raising, service provision or training/education, unless as part of a campaign for structural change)
- Campaign goals must be aligned with FYA’s values.
- Funds must be spent by the end of October the year after they are granted, and can’t be used for activities that are unlawful, or promote or oppose a political party or candidate as part of an election.
- Each group can apply for only one Youth Action and one Wellbeing grant each (a multi-year grant is considered one grant).
To view the Grant Guidelines click here.
Shortlist: You’ll be notified if you have made it onto the shortlist around 19 September 2025. If you’re on the shortlist, you’ll be invited to complete a more detailed application (including a breakdown of budget and the theory of change) and/or interview. A member of our Youth Action team will get in touch to provide support and we’ll provide you with templates to make adding detail to your application as easy as possible.
If you didn’t make the shortlist, you’ll be contacted by a member of the Youth Action team who can provide feedback.
Final decision: The panel will consider your application. You’ll be notified of the outcome of your application by 29 October 2025. If you are unsuccessful, there will be an opportunity for you to meet with someone from the Youth Action team to get more feedback.
If you are successful, the funds will be released to you in December 2025.
The grants shortlist and subsequent recipients will be decided by the Youth Grants Panel. The panel consists of 8 people aged 16-29 who have been appointed by FYA and are volunteering their time. Panel members are required to declare any conflicts of interest and will be unable to make decisions on grants for any organisation or group they have a direct association with.
To view the Grant Guidelines click here.
If your application is successful:
- Funds will be distributed and must be spent by the end of October 2026
- The Youth Action team will work with you to set up a program of support based on your plans and activities.
- Support can consist of regular catch ups with a coach, and a program of workshops and training sessions that will be open to all grant recipients.
If you don’t make the shortlist or your final application to the panel is unsuccessful, you’ll be contacted by a member of the Youth Action team who can provide feedback on your application.
If you have any questions or want more information about the Youth Action & Wellbeing Grants please contact [email protected].
The following initiatives and projects were successful with their grant applications for 2024
- Common Ground First Nations $15k to expand their truth-telling work with young First Nations people across various topics.
- Yung Prodigy $16.5k for the campaign for free prison phone calls in NSW
- Rainbow Cumberland $18k to push for the ban on drag time story events to be lifted in Cumberland LGA, and to improve LGBTQIA+ rights in western Sydney
- UniMelb 4 Palestine $19.5k for the campaign to get Uni Melb to divest from weapons companies and other institutions linked to Israel’s genocide in Gaza.
- Support Network for International Students $20k for the campaign for a fair transition for Visa 485 holders and their families.
- Afghan Resource Centre $4k for wellbeing and advocacy upskilling work with Afghan youth in western Sydney.
- Anakbayan Melbourne $7k for community building, wellbeing and culture among young Filipino people living in Melbourne.