For individuals

Julia Farr MS McLeod Benevolent Fund has a new name – we are now the JFM Fund. In addition to our new name, we’ve also given our brand and website a vibrant makeover – we hope you like our new look!

What we support
How to apply
Funded projects
Stories
FAQs
Other grants

What we support

We fund individuals with disability, to support them to develop a great idea that has the potential to make a significant step forward in inclusion of people with disability.

You will already have taken steps to develop or implement your idea, and now you need additional resources, knowledge or skills to take your idea forward. For example, you might have developed a detailed plan, a prototype design or a test version of your innovation, but you need more resources to get it to the next stage. You may already have something up and running, but now you need to be able to replicate or scale your idea so you can reach more people.

Who it’s for

Adults (aged 18 and over) with disability who live in South Australia are eligible to apply for this program.

Funds available

We will make grants of up to $20,000.

What we fund

Professional advice, consulting and services, production costs, and professional development.

Application submission

This is an open program. You can apply at any time, as long as we have funds available to make new grants.

Young woman in wheelchair having a conversation with coffee

What our grants can fund

Professional advice, consulting and services – for example legal advice to understand the regulations relating to your innovation or to protect your intellectual property; marketing services to help you reach more people.
Production costs to take your innovation from an idea to a reality, or from a draft or prototype to the final product.
Professional development – so you can develop your skills, knowledge and experience in support of your innovative idea. This could include technical training and mentoring.

Your grant must have the potential to benefit South Australians with disability.

We will not fund standard welfare services, disability supports, or activities that should be funded by government. This includes supports that should be funded under NDIS and individual advocacy services.

We will not fund ideas that contribute to the segregation of people with disability from mainstream communities or other communities of interest, or ‘segregation by stealth’ where people with disability are grouped together because of their disability, rather than due to shared interests with others in the broader community.

How to apply

Adults (aged 18 and over) with disability who are resident in South Australia are eligible to apply for this program.

Check the guidelines

Our guidelines explain who is eligible for funding and what we will fund. Read the guidelines.

Reach out to discuss

Collect information

Prepare the information you need to complete your application. This will include your plan for your project and your budget.

Apply

Complete our online application form. The form is available in other formats, or contact us if you need to apply by video or over the phone.

Apply now

Project

Magic Carpet

The Magic Carpet is a motorcycle trike designed for wheelchair users who want to get around quickly and spontaneously without transfers. This invention has the potential to benefit different groups of wheelchair users, for example, the ex-motorcyclist who wants to ride socially again.

See the project

“It would be a lot easier without Australia’s overprotective legislation. Disabled people have different requirements that suffocate the development of disability-specific vehicles.”
Tom Carr, Magic Carpet inventor See funded project

FAQs

To be eligible for a grant for individuals you must:

Be an adult aged 18 or over.
Live with disability.
Reside in South Australia.
Have a great idea that has the potential to make a significant step forward in inclusion for the disability community.
Have taken steps to develop or implement your idea and now you are in need of additional resources, knowledge or skills to take your idea forward.

The JFM Fund will not award grants for:

Standard welfare services, disability supports, or activities that should be funded by government.
Ideas that contribute to the segregation of people living with disability from mainstream communities or other communities of interest.
Ideas that contribute to ‘segregation by stealth’, where people with disability are grouped together because of their disability, rather than due to shared interests with other people in the broader community.

We will make grants of up to $20,000 per grant. You can only have one grant at a time.

Our Innovations in inclusion grant for individuals with disability is an open annual grant program. Applications are considered throughout the year, subject to available funds. Grant applications are considered every two months when the Trustees meet.

The JFM Fund provides support to applicants whilst you are developing your application and (if you are funded) during grant management.

Our method of assessment for grants to individuals depends on the size and complexity of your application. Larger or more complex applications will be assessed independently, by an assessor with a strong background in disability inclusion.

Our board of trustees, which includes people with disability, makes the final decision to award a grant.

Applications will be considered against the following filters:

Is the grant for a new idea which will genuinely advance the opportunities for people with disability to grow authority over their own lives and actively participate in the communities of their choice?
Does it fit with the trust deed?
How well does the application address the needs identified by the community?

The board works to manage any conflicts and perceived conflicts of interest.

We will ask you to sign a grant agreement. This will describe what the grant is for and how much grant we have awarded. It will explain the terms and conditions of the grant. It will also describe what information you have to send us – for example, reports and receipts – to show us you have used the grant as agreed, and to show what difference the grant has made. Depending on the size of your grant, we may pay the grant in a lump sum, or in staged payments, based on the reports you send us. If we make staged payments against reports, this will be explained in the grant agreement.

See other FAQs

Other grants

JFA Purple Orange offer small grants to support people with disability eligible for our programs to improve their quality of life. This is usually through the purchase of items that provide people with more independence in their day to day lives or increase engagement in the communities of their choice. Previous grants include household appliances, digital devices, equipment for hobbies and exercise, and support for holiday travel and accommodation. Eligibility for these programs is limited so please check before you apply.

Person on smart phone accessing services

General Purpose Distribution Fund

Grants of up to $3,000 per applicant per financial year to assist people with an eligible disability who are on low income to access items that will improve their quality of life.

Learn more

Person with disability in wheelchair smiling outside under fairy lights

Short Stay Holiday Distribution Fund

Grants of up to $1,000 per applicant per financial year to assist people with an eligible disability who are on low income to access short stay holidays at a mainstream location, with people of their choice.

Learn more

Mother and daughter hugging with christmas hats on

The JFA Noske Christmas Fund

Grants to assist adults with an eligible disability to celebrate Christmas by funding items and expenses such as gifts for loved ones, food for celebrations, travel costs, and clothing linked to Christmas.

Learn more