Necessitous Circumstances
Project
ABN 55 739 455 789
Necessitous Circumstances refers to financial necessity.
​
Being in necessitous circumstances means that a person does not have enough financial resources to have a modest standard of living in Australia, but it not mean just being without luxuries.
​
An indicator of necessitous circumstances could be where a person's level of income is such that they are eligible to receive income-tested government benefits; or health needs (such as sickness or disability) and family responsibilities that are causing financial necessity.
​
The circumstances giving rise to financial necessity don't have to be permanent either - often cyclones, floods and other disasters can cause people to be in short-term financial need.
​
Necessitous Circumstances Projects can distribute funds or goods directly to a person in need, or to other organisations caring for persons in need (i.e. The Salvation Army). These goods or funds must be for the relief of necessitous circumstances.
​
When setting up a project, ask yourself:
​
- who is the project intended to help?
- why do these people need help?
- what help does this project provide to these people?
- how will we determine who receives assistance from our project?
​
​
An example of a Necessitous Circumstances Project could be...
​
Josh is 17 years old and was permanently incapacitated while playing football. He will need full time care for the rest of his life. He had no insurance and his parents are struggling to meet the rising costs.
The local community jumps on board and, spearheaded by his football coach and teammates, they set up a project with the QLG Necessitous Circumstances Fund so they can raise funds for Josh, and make sure that it's easy and quick for people to give.
The money raised by the community pays for necessary modifications to his parents' home, and for the services of a carer...all of which helps to alleviate the financial burden on Josh and his family.
​
​
Another example:
​
Kerryn and her mums group meet weekly in a range of different settings with their young children: Monday at Mainly Music in the local town hall, Wednesday at playgroup at the primary school, and Thursday evenings for small group at one another's homes. These women come from a variety of backgrounds, and they've been chatting about helping others in their community who are doing it tough this winter. One of the mums saw the Homeless Survival Packs on the LCAQD website and thought it'd be a neat way to provide immediate help before the cold set in. Each pack cost around $100, so the mums figured they could run a couple of bake sales and canvas for donations within their wider support networks, with the aim to raise enough for 50 survival packs.
Kerryn contacted QLG to see if she could set up a project on behalf of her mums group, so that any donations made to the group could be tax deductible. Kerryn set up a project online under the Necessitous Circumstances Fund and began to raise funds. Though money given at the bake sale wasn't tax deductible, the donations received from their wider community were tax deductible, and QLG provided a receipt template for Kerryn so she could hand out receipts easily and quickly.
Together, the mums group raised over $6000 within their support network. This money was used to purchase 60 Homeless Survival Packs which were then taken to their local Salvation Army and homeless shelter to be distributed just before winter set in.