CONGRATULATIONS AND WELCOME

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2 CONGRATULATIONS AND WELCOME You are now a part of the Australian Sports Foundation family and are ready to start your fundraising efforts with us. So, what happens now? You have been assigned a Sports Partnership Manager (SPM) who is available to guide you through the various steps and answer your questions along the way. To help you further, this Welcome Guide explains more about working with us - how donations work, the allocation and acquittal of funds, using your portal, how to set up new projects and much more. Feel free to use it throughout the course of your fundraising, and we encourage you to pass it on to your successor if you move on from your organisation. Before you get started, there are a couple of requests from us: please keep in mind that we currently work with over 1,000 organisations across Australia and this is growing every week. We will always try to respond to requests for help as quickly as possible, but please bear with us if delays sometimes occur. Please also keep us in the loop with any important changes, be responsive to our requests for further information, and be respectful of deadlines this will help us to help you get the best results possible. Together, let s get fundraising! This guide provides you with information to make the most of your fundraising partnership with us. You may choose to read it in its entirety, or jump ahead to particular areas of interest. 2

3 CONTENTS GENERAL INFORMATION 4 YOUR FUNDRAISING PROJECTS 5 WAYS TO FUNDRAISE 10 USING THE ONLINE PORTAL 13 DONATIONS 14 GRANTS PAYMENT PROCESS 20 ACQUITTAL PROCESS 22 RESOURCES 23 3

4 GENERAL INFORMATION Who is my Sports Partnership Manager (SPM) and what do they do? Your SPM will oversee your registration, meaning they approve new projects, review your acquittals and will help you with your fundraising strategy, if needed. They are the best person to contact if you have any issues with your projects or if you would like to discuss your fundraising ideas. NATIONAL ACT/NSW/WA VIC/SA/TAS QLD/NT Ryan Holloway Marcia Wallis Jaime Firman Chris Bond (m) (p) (m) (p) (m) (m) How we like to communicate Most communication will come via from your SPM or our finance team, and will be directed to the primary and/or secondary contact nominated in your initial application. If you need to get in touch with us please contact your SPM or our office via or call Changes to our policies and procedures Our processes are continually being refined to make it easier for you to work with us. Changes will generally be communicated via to the primary contact, or by messages uploaded to your portal as appropriate. 4

5 YOUR FUNDRAISING PROJECTS Fundraising structure Whether you want to setup a general fundraising program for your organisation, a single specific fundraising project or a combination of both, we can accommodate your needs. We encourage our fundraising partners to setup an overarching fundraising program which also gives you the ability to create specific projects/campaigns sitting underneath as needed. Priorities often change in sport, and this allows your organisation to explore new fundraising projects and ideas without the need for additional registration. It also gives your donors a choice in where they give their gifts. To help you manage your projects and your fundraising easily, you will have access to our Partner Portal. In our Partner Portal you can access and change details and images and copy for your projects and view up to date donor reports. You can also use the portal to view financial information related to your projects such as money that has been granted. Funds raised through the Foundation can be spent on the development of sport. Examples include: team travel participation facility development social inclusion in sport equipment heritage / hall of fame major sporting events sports awards nights sport scholarships high performance needs coaching officiating 5

6 Fundraising project structure The following diagram demonstrates the Fundraising4Sport project structure. OVERARCHING GENERAL FUND Example Target: $250K This is your base fundraising platform which allows you to fundraise for anything that helps develop sport. People can donate to this fund directly or to a specific subproject/fund (below). SPECIFIC SUB- PROJECT FUND A Target: $25K p.a. Example: a. Running coaching clinics and come and try days to: increase junior participation and b. provide development opportunities and pathways for talented players SPECIFIC SUB- PROJECT FUND B Target: $200K Example: a. Construction of a new clubhouse and oval lighting SPECIFIC SUB- PROJECT FUND C Target: $25K p.a. Example: a. Ongoing equipment needs such as balls or uniforms 6

7 Creating new projects/campaigns Once an agreement is signed off for your organisation, you can add as many new projects as needed. This can be done in the My Projects section of our Partner Portal - see Portal User Guide for detailed instructions. If you are setting up a facility development project, you will be asked to provide the following information: Who is the landowner? Do you have landowner consent? Do you have development/building approval? Estimated construction timeline How do I close a Project? Your projects can remain active indefinitely, however if you wish to close a project, please contact your SPM. PROMOTING YOUR PROJECTS Setting up an online donations page As part of your registration with us, we will host a fundraising page for you on our website that includes an online donation facility. The information and images submitted in your application will provide the initial content for your page. You can change this content at any time through the online portal. Each project page has its own unique url; this will be provided to you upon registration and can also be accessed at any time in your portal. This url can be pasted onto your website or into s and newsletters to help you direct your members and contacts straight to your donation page. 7

8 Creating a donate button for your website To make it easier for you to promote your donations page, you can download a donate button and share it on your website, e-newsletters, via your social media and all other online marketing efforts. The buttons are available in a range of sizes and colours. Ask your web manager for further help on incorporating these buttons on your website, as each site is configured differently. In the Resources section of our website we have included some donation buttons and instructions for adding them to your website. 8

9 Developing your fundraising story Perhaps the most important part of any fundraising campaign is developing a story that tells your supporters what your CAUSE is, how much money you NEED and what the IMPACT of these funds will be. Your fundraising story should also include an ASK so everyone is clear on what they need to do to support your project in a meaningful way. For more information on developing your fundraising story, please see the Resources section of our website. Formal/legal language about the Foundation and the tax deductibility of donations We often get requests for formal or legal language to share with potential donors who may wish to know more about our status or the basis on which donations can be tax deductible. If your supporters want to know how their donation to your project can be tax deductible, we suggest using the following text: This project is run in partnership with the Australian Sports Foundation (Foundation) so our donors can receive tax deductions for their donations. The Foundation (ABN ) was established by the Australian Government to raise funds through public and corporate donations for the development of sport in Australia. The Foundation s listing in the Income Tax Assessment Act (1997) (Subdivision30-B, s30-90) means donations to our project of $2 or more are tax deductible. Media and PR We are always on the lookout for projects with great stories and outcomes that we can share to promote fundraising and provide to local and national media. If you are hosting an event, launching a campaign or have some great outcomes that you have been able to deliver as a result of your fundraising please let your SPM know so that we can help you tell people! The important thing to remember is to give as much notice as possible and tell us all about what you're planning. 9

10 WAYS TO FUNDRAISE There are many ways to fundraise. However, there are two main options you can consider: Major Gift fundraising - i.e. sourcing large amounts of funds from a small number of donors Mass Market fundraising - i.e. sourcing small amounts of funds from a large number of donors. A good fundraising strategy will focus on what will work best for your organisation or a specific campaign, and may include a mix of both. Below are some fundraising opportunities you can now start to think about when planning your next tax deductible fundraising campaign. For more information, visit the Resources section on our website, or get in touch with your SPM. MAJOR GIFT FUNDRAISING EXPLAINED: Corporate Donations: Many businesses in Australia love supporting sport- and through your registration with us you can offer something that most other clubs and organisations cannot tax deductibility! Refine your fundraising story and put together a targeted ask to local businesses in your area, don t be afraid to visit in person and let them become aware of what you are trying to achieve. Most bigger corporates in Australia will have a CSR (Corporate & Social Responsibility) budget which is used to donate funds to worthy causes every year. The catch is that these funds are usually mandated to give only to organisations with tax deductible status fear not! Your registration with us means your organisation is eligible to receive funds from these sources, so don t be shy about approaching the big end of town. 10

11 Individuals: Is there somebody within your networks that is a high net-worth individual, a known philanthropist and is aligned with your organisation, sport or community? A targeted approach to these individuals may be rewarding beyond measure. Donor Groups: Legacy, prestige and reputation are all important to members of a sporting club, school or another non-profit sporting organisation. Donors can be recognised for their financial contributions as part of an inner sanctum group or given patron status as part of a philanthropic donor group. Bequests: Donors may wish to leave a donation to your project in their will. We can manage these gifts and provide you with peace of mind that bequeathed funds will be spent on their intended purpose. The following wording is suitable for bequests I give, free of all duties and taxes [insert either: The whole (or...%) of the residue of my estate. The whole (or...%) of my estate. The sum of $(amount). (Details of a particular asset such as shares or property)] to the Australian Sports Foundation (ABN ) of Leverrier Street, Bruce, ACT 2616, with a preference that the Australian Sports Foundation expend the gift for [insert project name]. An authorised receipt from the Australian Sports Foundation will be a sufficient discharge for the executor(s) or trustee. Donated property or goods: We have a formalised approach to provide a tax deduction for donated goods towards your project. MASS MARKET FUNDRAISING EXPLAINED: Direct mail: A quick and easy way to spread your fundraising message and ask for donations is through s and newsletters. Electronic Direct Mail (EDMs) can make this even easier. Seasonal appeals: Want to engage your prospective donors but also don t want to put them off with the same message? Think about peak times people will be thinking about making a donation to your cause (membership time, end of financial year, Christmas etc.) and make a targeted themed ask. 11

12 Transaction add-ons: Tax deductible donations can be made to your organisation as part of another financial transaction. For example, capturing donations during membership renewals, through event bookings or when selling merchandise can be a good way to bring extra funds into your project (see donations section for more information). Community Fundraising: Do you have passionate people who love your organisation and want to help you fundraise for a worthwhile cause? Individuals/teams/schools/companies can all sign up to raise money for your project on your behalf. See a great example of this here Social media / website: Does your organisation have a strong following through your social media channels? Tailor your fundraising story to one or two sentences and share the link to your fundraising page to the world. Likewise, if your own website has a lot of traffic, build in some fundraising content with a donate button linked to your project. Auspicing grants: Once your organisation is registered with us, you can use our deductible gift recipient (DGR) status to apply for grants from philanthropic trusts and foundations. Workplace giving: Together with our partners Good2Give, we now offer a workplace giving platform so that businesses who use Good2Give for other employee deductions can also offer their staff the opportunity to make tax deductible contributions to your project through us. Events: Do you already hold an event each year or are thinking about creating one? Integrate fundraising into your events to create more awareness for your cause and capture donations on the day/night. Capturing donations at the front end during ticket purchases is a great way to increase your donor base and reach your fundraising target (see Transaction Add ons). 12

13 USING THE ONLINE PORTAL What is the online portal? It s your one stop shop to manage all of the projects you set up with us. You can manage your webpage content, create new projects, keep track of all donations received, and manage your grant acquittals. How do I login? Once you have successfully registered your organisation with us you will receive an with instructions on how to access the online portal with your unique login and password. If you already have portal access you can find the portal at: Who has access to our organisation s portal? The primary and secondary contacts you provided in your initial application will be given access to the portal, but other members of your organisation can be added if required. How can new/additional contacts be given access to the portal? An organisation can have as many portal users as needed, so to add a person a current authorised contact simply needs to their SPM the following details: 1. Full Name. 2. Position/Title within organisation. 3. Daytime contact phone number. 4. address. For more detailed instructions on how to use the portal, please see the Portal How to Guide in the Resources section of our website. 13

14 DONATIONS ONLINE Our website has its own online donation capability and we encourage all of our fundraising partners to utilise this and direct your donors to donate online using the unique url (provided upon registration and always available in your portal). Alternatively, potential donors can visit and search for your organisation or your project/s. Benefits to online donations include: They are quick, easy and hassle-free Payments can be made by credit card or direct deposit Donors can make set and forget regular donations by credit card (direct debit coming soon) Donors receive instant notification of their donation and a prompt tax deductible receipt A reduction in the administrative burden for both project contacts and us OFFLINE Offline donations are any donations not made using the online functions. They include manual forms and add on donations (i.e. membership or event). All manual forms should be ed to us via donations@asf.org.au (shortly you will be able to upload the forms into the portal). All add on donations should follow the add on donations protocol outlined in the following section. IMPORTANT: Please allow 5-7 business days for the processing of all offline donations. 14

15 Who do the donors make the cheques out to? As instructed on the manual donation form, all cheques must be made payable to the Australian Sports Foundation. How do we transfer cash or cheques? If you wish to collect offline donations, a deposit summary sheet can be provided by your SPM to help you with banking cash and cheque donations into our donations bank account. You will see a space for a banking code. This is your six-digit project number. Please note that every project has a unique project number, so please ensure you use the correct project number, which can be found in the my projects section of the online portal You will need to collate all donation payments you receive on our behalf and deposit them into our donations bank account, as detailed below: Westpac Petrie Plaza, Canberra Australian Sports Foundation Donations Account BSB ACC A bank date stamped copy of the deposit summary sheet must accompany original donation forms and be forwarded to us via at donations@asf.org.au (preferred) or mailed to: Australian Sports Foundation PO Box 176 Belconnen ACT Please note: An address is required from your donor as they will be ed a receipt directly from the ASF. If we are not provided with the address, your donor will not be issued with a receipt. 15

16 DONATIONS AS A TRANSACTION ADD ON These are donations collected as an add on to another financial transaction between you and your member/supporter/customer. This could include when they are renewing or paying for their membership registrations, purchasing tickets for events, buying merchandise etc. Providing your customer with an option to add a donation to your project when they are making this transaction is extremely effective and efficient, as the donor is already in the process of paying you for something; you are simply asking them to top up in support of your cause. However, there are some key features you must include for us to process these add on donations. They include: 1. The donation must be voluntary, so the member must be able to proceed with their transaction without being required to make a donation. 2. You must include the required legal declaration we provide and the donor must agree to it. Do you have any templates or samples for "add ons"? We suggest before launching any add on campaigns you first share your proposals with your SPM. This way we can help ensure that your donations can be processed, and tax deductible receipts issued to donors without any hitches. How do we collect add on donations? When you collect a donation that is added on to other fees or costs, we request that you collect all the donations and transfer the money to us promptly (within 14 days of receipt) in one lump sum. You will need to provide us with a list of all the donor details (a template spreadsheet can be found in the Resources section of our website) including confirmation that the donor has agreed to the required legal declaration. This will enable us to issue tax deductible receipts to these donors. 16

17 What if we are using a third-party service provider and have fees taken out of donations, is it okay to transfer less than the donation amount? We can only issue receipts for the amount of money received by us. Therefore, if your service provider takes out fees from transactions you will need to cover this amount for the donor and remit it to us if the donor wishes to receive a receipt for the full amount given. Alternatively, we can issue a receipt for the net donation amount received by us (however this will need to be communicated to donors at the front-end.) REGULAR GIVING What is regular giving? Regular giving is when your donor commits to a giving to your project on a recurring basis. Donors can select to give monthly, quarterly or annually. These donations can be made online or via a manual form, however the only payment method currently available for regular giving donations is credit card, with direct debit coming soon. What if my donor wants an end date to their regular giving? If your donor only wants to donate for a specific time period (e.g. $1,000 annually for three years) your donor can contact us at info@asf.org.au and we can add an end date to their regular giving schedule. DONATIONS OF PROPERTY OR GOODS Our unique status means we can provide a tax deduction for property and goods. We can accept donations of the following: a. Trading stock, including anything produced, manufactured or acquired that is held for the purpose of manufacture, sale or exchange in the ordinary course of business; b. Property purchased by the donor during the 12 months prior to making the gift; and c. Property valued by the ATO at more than $

18 DONATION REPORTS Under My Reports in the portal you can run several reports that will help you manage your projects, upload donor information into your own systems and thank your donors in a timely fashion. These reports include: 1. Run monthly, weekly and financial year donation reports these reports are in real time so you can see when a donor has given. You will see two different statuses: (1) paid and (2) reconciled. If the donation is paid it means that a donation has been pledged but has not cleared through our system yet. If the donation is reconciled it means the donation has been cleared, processed and a receipt issued to the donor. 2. Failed donation reports these reports let you know if for some reason we were not able to process a donation for example if a credit card has expired, or is refused. Please check this regularly as we do not contact donors if their donation fails. If our organisation has multiple projects, how do we track donations for each project? Donation reports break the donations down by project, so it is extremely easy for you to track which project the donor wanted their donation to go to. What if the donor accidentally donated to the wrong project? Please have your donor call us or us at info@asf.org.au as soon as they can and we will endeavour to allocate the donation to the correct project. HOW CAN I RECOGNISE DONORS? There are some restrictions on how you can recognise donors for their generous support, however there are a lot of ways you can thank your donors. Please see the thanking donors section in our toolkit to learn the dos and don ts. 18

19 HOW DO DONORS GET THEIR TAX DEDUCTIBLE RECEIPT? Donors will receive their receipt once their donation has been reconciled. It is ed to the address provided on the donation form. If the donor is worried about not receiving their receipt, first ask them to check their junk/spam folder and if they still cannot locate it, please ask them to and we can reissue the receipt and/or ensure the address we have on file is correct. Can parents or other relatives donate to projects where their child or relative is benefiting? Yes, and in most cases they will be able to claim a tax deduction based on the receipt we issue. However, there are some circumstances where a donor may not be able to claim a tax deduction. This is most likely to affect donations by relatives to support individual athletes or for projects raising funds to support team travel and where a relative is included in the travelling party. For more information, please see: Can membership fees be paid through the Foundation? No. In order for a donation to be tax deductible it must be voluntary and the donor cannot receive a material benefit in return for their gift. Generally, membership fees are not considered tax deductible donations because members receive benefits such as insurance, provision of competitions, uniform etc. WHAT DOES IT COST TO FUNDRAISE? We are a non-profit organisation and receive no government funding. As such, we retain a small amount of all donations in order to cover our operating costs: Online donations we retain 5% of all donations Manual donations we retain 6% of all donations 19

20 In addition, where donations are made by credit card, bank processing fees are incurred and deducted from grants issued to projects (currently 1% for Visa and MasterCard, 2% for American Express.) We do offer a top up function on the online donation form to enable donors to round up their donation to cover credit card fees, and we suggest you include this option on your manual donation forms. This will encourage the donor to increase their donation so that more money goes to support your cause. GRANTS PAYMENT PROCESS We distribute the funds raised through grants issued to actively fundraising organisations every two months. When are grants processed? January (includes donations reconciled 1 November to 31 December.) March (includes donations reconciled 1 January to 28 February.) May (includes donations reconciled by 1 March to 30 April.) July (includes donations reconciled 1 May to 30 June.) September (includes donations reconciled 1 July to 31 August.) November (includes donations reconciled 1 September to 31 October.) What happens when a grant payment has been approved? You will receive an from your SPM notifying you of the grant approval, including a breakdown of the amount for each project (if you have multiple projects) Our finance team will you a remittance advice after the payment has been transferred into your nominated bank account For GST registered organisations, a Recipient Created Tax Invoice (RCTI) will be available in your portal shortly after payment 20

21 How do I know which donations are included in my grant payment? Generally, your grant payment will include donations reconciled in the previous two months (e.g. September grant will include July and August donations). There will be a grants report available in your portal to assist you, however if you are still having trouble reconciling your grant please contact your SPM. Are there any circumstances where we will not issue grants? Yes. We may not issue a grant if: 1. Your total donations balance at the time of the grant round is under $250. In this case, monies will be held by us until the next grant round when that minimum threshold is exceeded. 2. You have a facilities project and we don t have the necessary development/building permits on file. 3. You have breached the terms in your Grant Agreement 4. You have failed to complete and submit your most recent acquittal by the due date Some organisations prefer us to hold funds for other reasons for example, until a specific target is reached. If this applies to you, please let your SPM know. Will our grant payments include Goods and Services Tax (GST)? If your organisation is registered for GST, we will add 10% to your grants when remitting the funds to your bank account. While there is no GST applicable to donations, the grants we issue are deemed to be a taxable supply because there are conditions placed on these payments (e.g. your organisation must acknowledge and promote the Foundation s role in your fundraising efforts). 21

22 ACQUITTAL PROCESS To ensure that donated money has been used for its intended purpose, you must periodically complete an acquittal report which is located in your portal. Acquittal reports need to be completed twice a year, generally for the following periods: 1 May 31 October (report completed in November), and 1 November 30 April (report completed in May). What s involved in completing the report? You ll be provided with more detailed instructions for completing the acquittal report in the portal, however generally there are three scenarios when it comes to acquitting your grants: 1. Your organisation did not spend any money: If you have not spent any of the funds raised, you simply need to provide us with a copy of a current bank statement showing a balance of at least the amount you have told us you are holding. This will show us that the grant funds are still in your account, awaiting expenditure on future project costs. 2. Your organisation spent all the money: If you have spent all of the funds, you ll need to provide expenditure items in the online report that detail how the funds were spent. You don t need to submit receipts unless your SPM requests it, however if you have a single expenditure item that equals more than 50% of your total project expenditure in the period, we suggest uploading the receipt when submitting your report in order to save time. 3. Your organisation has spent some of the money and is holding some of the money: If you only spent some of the money, you will need to provide us with both a copy of your bank statement and expenditure item details. 22

23 Do I need to spend grant funds in a certain time? No. You can hold the money as long as you would like. You will just be required to keep submitting a copy of current bank statements as evidence you are holding funds. Are loan repayments an acceptable way of spending grant funds? Yes, as long as the loan relates to the purpose you have collected donations for. Contact your SPM if you have any questions about fundraising for loan repayments. Will I need to keep receipts for proof of expenditure? Yes, it is advisable that you retain receipts relating to your project expenditures (you will be required to retain these in any event for other purposes, such as your annual audit or for tax reasons). The acquittal report is a risk-based audit and your SPM may request proof of expenditure for significant expenditure items or unusual costs. What happens if I don t complete our acquittal by the due date? If you don t complete your acquittal in the requested time period, you will not be eligible for future grant payments until it is completed. In some circumstances if the report continues to be outstanding for a period of time, we may close your registration and request that the un-acquitted funds be returned. RESOURCES We have almost 30 years experience in sports fundraising, and in that time we have raised more than $300 million for Australian sport so it s safe to say we re pretty good at it! We are here to help all our partners with many resources to assist you with fundraising. Our resources include planning tools, guides, snapshots, marketing tips and tricks, plus much more. Check out our Resources page on our website for loads of useful info. This will be a tab in the portal soon. 23

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