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Who can apply

This page explains:

Eligibility

To apply, you must meet all the eligibility criteria found below.

Applicants

*Provincially/territorially funded institutions are eligible with the agreement of the provincial/territorial government.

Note to organizations located and operating in Québec

If your project proposal is selected for funding, you may be required to obtain approval from the Quebec government before you can accept our funding. Please consult the Act of respecting the Ministère du Conseil exécutif

Note on proposals that include multiple locations within an overall organization

  1. ESDC will accept multiple applications from organizations with the same CRA Business Number and same governance structure, as long as the total amount requested from ESDC does not go over $25,000
  2. If the applicants who share the same CRA Business Number can demonstrate that they operate under a different governance structure (such as submitting proof of operations), then multiple applications could all be eligible for funding, for a maximum amount of $25,000 per location that demonstrated that they operate independently

Projects

Your project must meet all of the following criteria:

* If your proposed project is requesting capital assistance, it must meet at least 1 of the 4 other program objectives.   

Activities

Applications must demonstrate the active participation of seniors in the eligible activities. Activities must be confirmed and described when the application is submitted and cannot be determined by a committee after the project has been approved for funding.  

Examples of eligible activities:

Examples of ineligible activities include, but are not limited to:

What the funding can be used to pay for

Eligible costs

To be eligible, all costs must be reasonable and directly related to project activities and their development and implementation. It should also be outside of project administrative costs.

Projects costs must be tied to projects that are designed by seniors and/or delivered for seniors. These costs must support seniors to be connected and active members of their communities and contribute to improving their health and well-being.

Requested funding cannot exceed $25,000 (including taxes and shipping, if applicable).

Examples of eligible costs:
  • capital asset linked to eligible project activities which will continue to exist after the funding period
  • staff wages to prepare, present and deliver content of direct project activities by staff already employed by the organization
    • this includes salary, wages and mandatory employment related costs (MERCs)
  • professional fees for a professional not already employed in your organization, for example:
    • instructor
    • presenter(s) for topics in a lecture series
    • external facilitators
  • costs related to event planning and implementation (For example: ticket costs, membership fee or other “nominal fees” should clearly link to the event)
  • shipping costs for equipment, materials or supplies
  • honoraria to express gratitude or to symbolize respect
  • capital expenditures (facilities)

Notes:

  1. Should your project require renovations, you must provide a minimum of 1 quote and must be dated within one (1) year
  2. Administrative costs for the administration of the project can be up to 25% of project costs (for example, office supplies and utilities, bookkeeping)
  3. Costs for internal staff to facilitate and deliver project activities should not be included as administrative costs as they are direct project costs
Ineligible costs

Ineligible costs include, but are not limited to:

  • core operational expenses of an organization, such as:
    • salary dollars unrelated to project activities
    • utilities
    • day-to-day maintenance of facilities including general operating costs of your organization that are not related to this project
  • activities where the role of seniors is minimal or not clearly described
  • salaries for caregiving services for seniors
  • purchase of items of a personal or medical nature such as:
    • wheelchairs
    • scooters
    • cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)
    • first aid equipment
    • automated blood pressure monitor
    • defibrillators
    • hearing aids
    • medical or therapeutic treatments
  • purchase of gift cards
  • purchase of vehicle(s)
  • purchase of land or buildings
  • purchase of alcohol, tobacco (outside of specific cultural rituals), etc.
  • repairs or renovations to a building or the purchase of equipment for the new building that your organization does not yet occupy
  • repairs or renovations to a building you do not own
  • vendors who work for your organization or are related to members of your organization
  • new construction, including physical expansion of an existing structure that would increase its overall square footage/footprint
  • decorating and beautification costs, such as:
    • painting
    • landscaping for aesthetics purposes
  • unexpected costs, planned contingency costs, or costs for potential price increases
  • programs or services that fall within the responsibility of other levels of government
  • transportation costs for leisure activities (for example: sightseeing trips) that do not have a clear educational or social engagement of seniors with other groups
  • travel/touristic costs constituting the main expenses in a project proposal
  • costs incurred to prepare and submit the application for funding, such as:
    • costs used to pay for third parties assisting the applicant in obtaining Government of Canada funding usually seen under professional fees (for example: lobbyists)
    • grant writer costs to submit the application
  • costs incurred before the agreement has been signed by ESDC and the organization
  • any other cost that does not directly benefit seniors

How ESDC assesses your application

ESDC will refuse applications that are incomplete or contain errors.

ESDC will only contact you for administrative information

ESDC will not contact you to request missing/unclear:

  • letter of support(s)
  • quote(s)
  • budget
  • activities
  • project details

ESDC will review your application in 2 steps. They are:

Step 1: Screening for eligibility

ESDC will screen for eligibility based on whether the:

It is important to submit a complete application. ESDC will assess your project only if all the eligibility requirements are met.

Things that may impact your eligibility:

Step 2: Assessing on program objectives

ESDC will assess your application based on the following criteria:

National priorities: 10% of overall assessment

Senior involvement: 10% of overall assessment

Benefits to seniors: 15% of overall assessment

Benefits to the community and community support: 15% of overall assessment

Cost effectiveness: 10% of overall assessment

Project activities: 10% of overall assessment

Consideration for new recipients or not recent recipients: 10% of overall assessment

Your organization is considered new if you have not received any NHSP funding before, or if you have received funding prior to 2020.

Priorities for funding allocations: 20% of overall assessment

Funding is distributed as equitably as possible with reach across all provinces and territories in Canada. Funding may be prioritized for projects that:

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