Every year Westfield shines the spotlight on the many amazing individuals and organisations who are making a positive impact in their local community or environment. Across Australia and New Zealand, Westfield will provide up to $1.25M in Westfield Local Hero grants in 2025.
The Westfield Local Heroes program is always well-received within The Grants Hub community. We enjoy watching on from the sidelines each year as our members are nominated, shortlisted as finalists, and ultimately voted as a Westfield Local Hero.
We recently had the pleasure of discussing the program with Erin Schmidt, Community Engagement Manager at Scentre Group. Erin shares some great insights into the program including the impact it has made, how it helps beyond the initial grant funding, what the selection panel is looking for, and more!
Nominating a Westfield Local Hero only takes a few minutes, so if you know someone who deserves to be recognised and supported, nominate them at: www.westfield.com.au/local-heroes
Tell us a little bit about the Westfield Local Hero Program?
Community members nominate their heroes and Westfield select three finalists for each destination to go through to the community vote. The successful hero for each of the 42 Westfield destinations is awarded a $20,000 grant for the organisation or group that they represent, and each finalist receives a $5,000 grant for their organisation or group.
We'd love to hear more about the positive impact Westfield Local Heroes has made to date.
Since 2018, the Westfield Local Heroes program – funded by Scentre Group - has provided over $8.6 million* in community grants to 865 local hero and finalist organisations.
Equally impactful are the promotional and recognition elements of the program. Westfield Local Hero alumni also tell us the program helps to grow their brand awareness and broadens their community and professional networks.
* Refers to $30,000 in grants funded by Scentre Group across all 42 Westfield destinations. Total grants funded is in AUD.
Tell us about one particularly inspiring story that comes to mind.
My favourite part of the program is when we get to attend the announcement events and meet the finalists face-to-face. Learning more about their organisation and talking to them about their personal stories and the work they are doing is truly inspiring.
At every event, the finalists themselves always gravitate towards one another and we see community connections being forged that helps each of them to grow their own networks and impact.
Were there any new or emerging trends last year?
Westfield Local Heroes provides an insight into what is top of mind for our communities as they nominate and vote for those heroes and the causes that resonate the most with them. Scentre Group has contributed $8.6 million over 7 years to 865 community organisations. Some of the key priority areas include disability and access, access to basic needs & services, family support and new parents, youth support and education, mental health and wellbeing and domestic violence and child protection.
What excites you the most about this year’s program?
We look forward to discovering the new heroes every year and learning their stories of while shining a spotlight on their impactful work. This year, we are especially enthusiastic about the opportunity to see an increased number of nominations coming from volunteers and leaders who represent a wide range of diverse communities.
Westfield is a big business with a high foot traffic and an extensive network. Are there other opportunities for the grant recipients, beyond the money itself?
The Westfield Local Heroes program provides more than just grants. The program aims to discover, celebrate, and contribute to people and organisations who give back to their communities and environment.
The program’s objectives include raising the profile of our finalists and their work, helping our alumni to achieve their goals faster through the grants, promotion, and community recognition, and through ongoing partnerships, explore new opportunities for our alumni to connect with their communities.
What is the selection panel looking for when reviewing nominations?
The selection panels assess each nominee on their own merits, taking into consideration how their work positively impacts the local community or environment, their standing as a community role model, how the grant will be used to directly benefit the local community or environment and the hero and organisation’s goals to continue to build thriving and resilient communities.
What our panels are particularly drawn to are the individual stories of the heroes themselves. We look to their personal motivation and contribution to giving their time selflessly to help their communities to thrive.
What inspires you as a team running the program?
Our Westfield Local Heroes and finalists, who are the true heroes within our communities.
As a team, the best part of our job is to see the pure joy of our Westfield Local Heroes when they find out they have been able to receive a $20,000 grant for their organisation. It is our favourite time of year! To be able to motivate them to continue to create an impact in their community is what drives us to deliver this program each year.
Any advice for other funding providers looking to start or review their grant programs?
When we developed the program, we worked closely with our Westfield destinations and communities to build it. We wanted to know what they needed and how we could remove barriers to participate. In many instances grant programs are only open to registered charities and they must be aligned to specific projects. We have intentionally opened our program to community groups, social entrepreneurs, educators, welfare services, and community volunteers to remove barriers to enter.
Nominations close 13 March 2025.
Looking to learn more about grant writing?
Senior Marketing Manager at Westfield Chermside, Anne-Maree Butler, interviewed Westfield Local Hero alumni Chris Boyle from Magnolia Place and Jessie Ballantyne from The Grants Hub. The topic was Funding your Future: top tips for successful grants and awards applications.
