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Administered grants

An administered or auspiced grant is one where a third party takes responsibility for financial management of a grant. For all administered grants the Australia Council’s primary relationship is with the grant recipient, not the administering body.

When should a grant be administered?

Recipients of Australia Council grants who have no legal status must nominate an administering body to take responsibility for management of their grant. An unincorporated association or a group of artists that form together to work on a project are examples of bodies that have no legal status. Grant recipients that do have a legal status may also choose to have their grants administered if they do not wish to manage the grant themselves.

Who can administer a grant?

Any legally recognised entity can administer a grant. A legally recognised entity is one that can enter into contracts, acquire property and can sue or be sued in their own right. Examples of such entities are:

  • Incorporated associations
  • Incorporated Aboriginal associations
  • Companies limited by guarantee.

The administering body must have an ABN in their legal name. An individual can also administer the grant. This means an individual can administer another individual’s project. It also means an individual who is a member of a funded group can administer that group’s grants. To do so, that individual must supply their own ABN, or the group’s ABN if they are listed as a member of that group.

Example: a member of a musical group can administer the grant for the group.

What are administering bodies responsible for?

Administering bodies are responsible for:

  • Counter-signing the Administered Grant Agreement sent by the Australia Council to the grant recipient
  • Agreeing to administer the grant on behalf of the grant recipient
  • Paying funds to the grant recipient (usually in instalments over the course of the project)
  • Ensuring, to the best of their ability, that the grant is used for the purpose for which it was provided
  • Providing the grant recipient with an itemised financial statement at the end of the project, which clearly shows how the grant was spent
  • Ensuring that funding of $50,000 or more is audited and certified by a qualified accountant in public practice.
An administering body is not responsible for the artistic direction or the artistic quality of the project for which the grant was provided.

What is the grant recipient responsible for?

The grant recipient is responsible for:

  • Negotiating the level of service the administering body will provide
  • Signing the Administered Grant Agreement, which is sent by the Australia Council, ensuring it is counter-signed by the administering body and returning the signed copy to the Australia Council
  • Overall management and artistic direction of the project
  • Advising the Australia Council of any proposed changes to the purpose of the funding or artistic or other personnel, the timing of the project or major changes to the budget during the course of the project
  • Providing the administering body with the necessary information to allow them to complete an accurate financial report at the end of the project
  • Completing and submitting an artistic or acquittal report that meets Australia Council guidelines, at the end of the project
  • Making sure that the financial report is completed by the administering body and is submitted to the Australia Council, along with the artistic or acquittal report, as part of the formal funding acquittal procedures.

Choosing an administering body

If your grant is to be administered, you should choose an administering body before submitting an application or proposal to the Australia Council, as the name and signature of the administering body must be included on the proposal.

When choosing the person or organisation to administer the funding, you should discuss with them, and agree upon:

  • The level of involvement the administering body will have in the project (ie is it only the management of finances or will their involvement be broader?)
  • The roles and responsibilities of other people involved in the project
  • Whether a fee is to be charged for their services, and if so, what that fee will be
  • What services will be provided.

These might include:

  • Payment of wages to professional artists and other personnel through the administering body’s payroll system
  • Arrangement of insurance and other legal requirements for the project
  • Use of office space and equipment
  • Financial and budget advice during the project, and
  • Marketing, promotion and publicity expertise for the project.

If the grant application or proposal is approved, you should draw up a written agreement listing the services the administering body will provide. This agreement should be signed by the grant recipient and the administering body before the project starts. This helps to avoid misunderstandings and disagreements developing during the project.

What happens if something goes wrong?

During the project:

  • If an administering body has concerns that the Council grant is not being spent for the purpose for which it was provided, they should notify the grant recipient and try to resolve the problem
  • If an administering body is unreasonably withholding payment of the grant to the grant recipient, the grant recipient should notify the administering body and try to resolve the problem
  • If the problem cannot be resolved, both parties should contact the relevant contact officer at the Australia Council to discuss the situation.

After the project:

The grant recipient is responsible for providing the Australia Council with the artistic/project and financial reports (which together make up the Acquittal Report) at the completion of the project. If both the financial and artistic/project reports are not received within twenty weeks of the project’s completion, the grant recipient automatically receives an ‘unsatisfactorily acquitted’ status with the Australia Council. This means that the grant recipient is not eligible to apply for further funding until such time as this matter is satisfactorily resolved.

Other issues

An individual or organisation may be the administering body for as many Australia Council grants as they see fit. Administering bodies may submit project funding proposals in their own right. In these instances, the grant(s) they administer on behalf of others do not count as part of the two applications which may be submitted in a year.

Both the grant recipient and the administering body will be ineligible to apply for further funding if the grant is not satisfactorily acquitted.

If you or your group or your organisation has been a grant recipient in the past, but you have not satisfactorily acquitted that grant, neither you nor your group nor your organisation can administer another recipient’s grant until your own grant has been satisfactorily acquitted.

Further information

For further information on administering a grant please contact Australia Council staff directly. Further information relating to contractual issues between the grant recipient and the administering body may be sought from the Arts Law Centre on 1800 221 457 (toll-free) or (02) 9356 2566.

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