Creative Communities Scheme

Your project must:

• have an arts or cultural focus;
• take place within Upper Hutt City boundaries; and
• benefit our local communities.

You cannot apply if your project has already received funding from Creative New Zealand.

Your project must meet one of the following:

• Create an opportunity for local communities to engage with and participate in arts activities.
• Support the diverse arts and cultural traditions of local communities.
• Enable and encourage tamariki (kids) and rangatahi (teens) under 18 to engage with art.

Individuals or groups can apply for CCS funding.

Individuals must be New Zealand citizens or permanent residents.

If you have already received CCS funding for a project, you must complete a report on that project before making another application, unless the project is still in progress.

You can apply to get funding for:

• materials for arts activities or programmes;
• venue, costume or equipment hire;
• staff and administration costs for short-term projects;
• promotion and publicity of arts activities; and
• reasonable requests for food provided during CCS projects to show manaakitanga (hospitality).

We recommend that you look at previous successful funding applications under Related Information to get an idea of what kinds of costs have been covered in the past.

CCS does not fund:

• ongoing administration or staff costs that are not related to the specific project;
• costs for projects already started or completed;
• travel costs to attend performances or exhibitions in other areas;
• buying equipment, such as computers, cameras, musical instruments, costumes, lights or uniforms;
• entry fees for competitions, contests and exams;
• prize money, awards and judges’ fees for competitions;
• royalties;
• the purchase of artworks for collections;
• the costs of running a fundraising activity; and
• debt or interest on debt.

If you're unsure about whether or not your project could receive CCS funding support, please contact Mel Smith from our Community Partnerships team: melanie.smith@uhcc.govt.nz

Yes, you can.

At the Creative Communities Committee meeting, you can speak with committee members directly, and will have the opportunity to answer any questions they may have about your application.

To give everyone a chance to speak, please arrive on time and keep your presentation to five minutes.

The meeting date for the next CCS funding round will be set after the local government elections in October.

We will notify you about the outcome of your application within 5 working days of the Creative Communities Committee meeting.

The meeting for the first funding round of 2025-2026 was held on Thursday, 28 August 2025, at 4.30PM. 

Successful applicants will receive payment of grants within 20 working days after we contact them about the outcome of their funding application.

You must fill in and submit a Project Completion Report.

This report must be submitted within two months after your project has finished.

If you or your group are planning to apply for CCS funding again in the future, it's important that your report is satisfactory and submitted on time.