Grants made through The Alec Prentice Sewell Gift aim to improve the opportunities available for disadvantaged children and lay the foundations for future positive health, social and educational outcomes. These grants are made through several program areas including the Arts, Community Wellbeing, Environment & Conservation and Education, reaching children of varying ages and circumstances. The common thread of the grants is that they support education and encourage an interest in the environment, or the arts and literature, to create opportunities for personal development and assist children to overcome barriers that may limit their achievement.
The largest grant made through the Alec Prentice Sewell Gift to date is $500,000 to Centennial Parklands Foundation to build The Ian Potter Children’s Wild Play Garden in Centennial Park. This will be the first children’s garden in Sydney, and will encourage children to engage in nature-based play and connect with the natural environment. The garden will be connected to Centennial Parkland’s education facilities. The Foundation awarded a total of $1.5m in support of this project with funding also coming from the Foundation’s Education program and through a 50th Anniversary Commemorative grant.
Since the Alec Prentice Sewell Gift was set up in 2003, grants valued at $4.2 million have been awarded to 49 organisations around Australia.
Direct grant applications cannot be made to The Alec Prentice Sewell Gift, grants are made via other program areas and generally only one or two grants are awarded annually.
Grants submitted within the Arts, Community Wellbeing, Environment & Conservation and Education Program Areas may be considered under The Alec Prentice Sewell Gift.
Please also refer to the Funding Principles for further information. Details of our previous Alec Prentice Sewell Gift grants can be found in our Grants Database.