2025 Community Heritage Grant recipients announced
50 community organisations receive a 2025 Community Heritage Grant.
Recipients include the Adelaide Repertory Theatre, Cowra Japanese Garden and Cultural Centre, the See Yup Society, the Cloncurry and District Historical and Museum Society, the Royal Society of Tasmania, and many others.
Michael Lam (President, See Yup Temple Recovery Project) and Dr Sophie Couchman (Project Manager) inspecting the details of the See Yup’s dragon head. Photographer: Robert French, Museums Victoria.
Michael Lam (President, See Yup Temple Recovery Project) and Dr Sophie Couchman (Project Manager) inspecting the details of the See Yup’s dragon head. Photographer: Robert French, Museums Victoria.
The Adelaide Rep is proud and excited to be a recipient of a Community Heritage Grant to undertake a significance assessment of our collection, in partnership with a professional historian.
Our small but dedicated volunteer team was established in 2024 after we discovered a treasure trove of memorabilia dating back to 1908 crammed into our mini library upstairs at the Arts Theatre – the home of the Rep. We are now on a mission to make sure the collection is properly catalogued, preserved and shared with the public. The significance assessment will enable us to understand the national importance of the collection and to ensure it is preserved for future generations to enjoy.
The Adelaide Repertory Theatre (the Rep) is the oldest repertory company in Australia, and the longest surviving amateur theatre company in the southern hemisphere. Since its inception in 1908, the company has accumulated an extensive and unique collection of items including photographs, posters, programs and scripts. Funding for a significance assessment will also identify appropriate training for volunteers and storage and display options.
Thanks to the Community Heritage Grants, the Cowra Japanese Garden and Cultural Centre has made significant strides in preserving and understanding our cultural collection. Over the past five years, these grants have enabled us to assess our preservation needs, enhance our display and storage facilities, and deepen our knowledge of collection care.
We are sincerely grateful for the clarity and support these opportunities have provided.
Cowra Japanese Garden and Cultural Centre is a not-for-profit organisation representing post Second World War reconciliation between Japan and Australia. The garden and cultural centre pays respect to the soldiers and prisoners of war (POWs) from the Cowra POW campsite, and the breakout that occurred in 1944 – the largest prison escape of the Second World War. Alongside the Garden, the Cultural Centre houses a significant collection of Japanese art and artefacts. The Cultural Centre has received four Community Heritage Grants, completing all three program stages. Funding in the 2025 Round will support the purchase of a new display case for iconic items in the collection, improving conservation standards and staff access.
The See Yup Society was devastated by a recent fire at our temple. We are therefore particularly grateful to receive this Community Heritage Grant funding.
This grant will enable us to train our temple caretakers and volunteers to undertake basic treatments of temple items damaged in the recent fire and also give us the tools to professionally care for our objects, in a spiritually and culturally appropriate manner, moving forward. We are particularly pleased to be able to partner and provide experience to emerging conservators with Chinese-language skills from the Grimwade Centre for Cultural Materials Conservation.
The See Yup Temple in Melbourne is the oldest temple in Australia, with its contents dating back to the mid-1850s. The Temple was damaged by fire in February 2024 and 200 objects require restoration, but there is limited capacity to employ professional conservators. The grant will fund a training project for the See Yup Society in partnership with Chinese Australian Family Historians of Victoria and Grimwade Conservation Services (GCS).
The Community Heritage Grants program is currently in its 31st year of operation. It provides grants to community organisations in all States and Territories to care for Australian cultural heritage collections. Since 1994, it has provided a total of $9.7 million dollars to more than 1,750 projects across Australia.
The Community Heritage Grants program is funded by the Australian Government through the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts; National Library of Australia; National Archives of Australia; National Film and Sound Archive; and National Museum of Australia.
It is a privilege to work with the Office for the Arts and fellow national cultural institutions to support the work of local community organisations through the Community Heritage Grants program. This year the Australian Government has awarded funding of $421,479 to 50 different groups to continue their work in safeguarding their nationally significant collections, ultimately preserving the stories they tell for generations to come.
Recipients
| Organisation | Project | Funding |
|---|---|---|
| Royal Agricultural Society of NSW | Significance Assessment of the Royal Agricultural Society of NSW’s Heritage Centre Collection | $5,773 |
| Griffith City Council | Preservation Needs Assessment for The Couture Collection | $8,000 |
| Unions NSW | Significance Assessment of Sydney Trades Hall Poster Collection | $5,500 |
| Goulburn Mulwaree Council | Preservation Needs Assessment of the Rocky Hill War Memorial Museum Collection | $6,542 |
| Cowra Japanese Garden and Cultural Centre | Large display case for the Cowra Japanese Garden and Cultural Centre | $5,138 |
| Sea Heritage Foundation | Preservation Needs Assessment of the Sea Heritage Foundation collection | $5,500 |
| Wagga Wagga Art Gallery | Preservation Needs Assessment of the National Art Glass Collection | $7,740 |
| HNE Health Libraries - Hunter New England Local Health District | Preservation Needs Assessment of the Hunter New England Health Libraries Historical Collection | $6,569 |
| Hawkesbury Library Service | Preservation Needs Assessment of the Local Studies Collection | $5,500 |
| National Trust of Australia (NSW) | Preservation Needs Assessment of the Saumarez Collection | $6,194 |
| Australian Railway Historical Society NSW Division | Conservation and Digitisation of Significant Drawing Collection | $12,272 |
| The Embroiderers' Guild NSW | Disaster Preparedness Management Plan and Implementation of Storage Recommendations for the Embroiderers' Guild NSW | $10,225 |
| Forbes & District Historical Society | Paul & Hettie Wenz Collection Preservation Needs Assessment | $6,900 |
| Penrith Museum of Printing | Significance Assessment of the Penrith Museum of Printing collection | $5,500 |
| Assyrian Australian Association | Digitisation Activities and Storage and Handling Training | $15,625 |
| The Concordians | Preservation and Cataloguing Enhancement for the EM Lane Concordians Museum | $6,146 |
| Organisation | Project | Funding |
|---|---|---|
| Kadimah, Jewish Cultural Centre and National Library | Significance Assessment of the Archive Collection of Kadimah Jewish Cultural Centre and National Library | $5,500 |
| National Trust of Australia (Victoria) | Significance Assessment of the National Trust of Australia (Victoria) Dow's Pharmacy Collection | $6,030 |
| Northern Health | Significance Assessment of Northern Health Library's Historical Collection | $5,500 |
| Kaiela Institute | Significance Assessment of the Kaiela Institute Archives | $16,833 |
| Emerald and District Museum | Digitisation of Nobelius Ledgers | $6,305 |
| National Trust of Australia (Victoria) | Conservation treatment to Mulberry Hill works on paper and purchase of wireless dataloggers | $10,096 |
| Victorian Jazz Archive (trading as Australian Jazz Museum) | Digitisation of Max Hull and Mark Malle audio tapes | $6,500 |
| Australian Red Cross Society | Australian Red Cross Archives Heritage Audio-Visual Digitisation Project | $9,120 |
| Buda Historic Home and Garden | Preservation Needs Assessment of Buda Historic Home and Garden's house Collection | $5,500 |
| Civil Aviation Historical Society | Collection management activities for the Civil Aviation Historical Society | $2,921 |
| Royal Historical Society of Victoria | Collection, Rehousing and Storage of the Royal Historical Society of Victoria's Image Collection | $17,847 |
| See Yup Society | Training in collection care and handling of fire damaged See Yup Temple collections | $17,878 |
| Melbourne Art Library | Significance Assessment of the Melbourne Art Library Collection | $5,500 |
| Benalla Art Gallery | Conservation treatment for the Benalla Art Gallery Collection | $8,192 |
| Melbourne Holocaust Museum | Preservation Needs Assessment of Melbourne Holocaust Museum Audio-Visual Collection | $5,500 |
| Organisation | Project | Funding |
|---|---|---|
| South Burnett Regional Council - Kingaroy Heritage Museum | Significance Assessment of the Kingaroy Heritage Museum Collection | $5,193 |
| Cloncurry & District Historical & Museum Society | Preservation Needs Assessment of Society's Archives | $12,107 |
| Museum and Gallery Services Queensland | Museum & Gallery Skills Development Workshops in Far North Queensland | $17,998 |
| Hinkler Hall of Aviation - Bundaberg Regional Council | Conservation Treatment & Rehousing Project for the Hinkler Hall of Aviation Memorabilia Trust Collection | $11,210 |
| Organisation | Project | Funding |
|---|---|---|
| North Metropolitan TAFE | Significance Assessment of the North Metropolitan TAFE Collection | $5,500 |
| Irwin Districts Historical Society | Significance Assessment of the Irwin Districts Historical Society Collection | $5,500 |
| Royal Perth Hospital Museum | Preservation Needs Assessment of Royal Perth Hospital Museum collection | $5,500 |
| Perth Observatory Volunteer Group | Improved lighting for Perth Observatory Museum and Library | $18,040 |
| WestPride Archives | Preservation Needs Assessment of the WestPride Archives | $5,500 |
| Organisation | Project | Funding |
|---|---|---|
| Adelaide Repertory Theatre | Significance Assessment of the Adelaide Repertory Theatre Company's History Collection | $5,500 |
| The National Trust of South Australia - Robe Branch | Significance Assessment of Robe National Trust Collection | $7,290 |
| National Railway Museum | Archival storage materials for the National Railway Museum | $1,224 |
| Royal Agricultural & Horticultural Society of SA Archives | Preservation Needs Assessment of the Royal Agricultural & Horticultural Society of SA Archives | $5,500 |
| Organisation | Project | Funding |
|---|---|---|
| The Royal Society of Tasmania | Conservation of works from the Royal Society of Tasmania Art Collection | $8,120 |
| Organisation | Project | Funding |
|---|---|---|
| Australian Academy of Science | Digitisation of at-risk Magnetic Tape material | $3,351 |
| Organisation | Project | Funding |
|---|---|---|
| Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education | Digitisation of the Centre for Australian Languages and Linguistics (CALL) Collection | $18,140 |
| Artback NT | Significance Assessment of the Artback NT Collection | $10,309 |
| Barkly Regional Arts | Significance Assessment of the Barkly Regional Arts Collection | $10,800 |
| Charles Darwin University | Collection management activities and training for the Charles Darwin University Art Collection | $16,350 |
Media kit
Images for media use available for download via Dropbox
About Community Heritage Grants
Contact
Media contact
Georgia McDonald, Media Liaison, National Library of Australia
Phone: 0401 226 697
Email: media@nla.gov.au
CHG contact
Email: chg@nla.gov.au
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