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Level The Field

It’s time to Level The Field!

The Level the Field 2025-27 Grant Program (the Program) is being delivered by Leisure Networks in partnership with Sport and Recreation Victoria (SRV) to increase paid and volunteer employment opportunities in sport and recreation for people with disability in regional Victoria. The program will facilitate collaboration between sport and recreation, disability and other community sectors to support systemic and sustainable change. 

Key Dates

PROGRAM OPENS

Thursday, 8th January 2026

 

PROGRAM CLOSES

Thursday, 26th February 2026
(APPLICATIONS ARE NOW CLOSED)

 

PROGRAM TIMING

Projects must be delivered within the Program funding period (1 July 2026 to 31 December 2027). This includes financial acquittal and completion of final report.

QUICK LINKS

About the Grant Program

Sport and recreation is an exciting and rewarding sector to be a part of, with many Victorians currently in paid and volunteer roles which support our high rates of participation. People with disability living in regional Victoria are underrepresented in this workforce. This Program seeks to address this by supporting more jobs and volunteer opportunities for people with disability and strengthening inclusive workforce practices across the sector. 

The Level the Field 2025-27 Grant Program is part of the $40 million All Abilities Sport Fund and the All Abilities Workforce and Sector Support Program. The Program works alongside the Regional All Abilities Participation Grant Program and the Regional Community Sports Infrastructure Fund to address multiple barriers to participation for people with disability in regional Victoria.  

 

Level the Field 2025-27 grant funding will be made available through 2 streams: 

1. The Long Game: System and Organisational Change 2. Levelling Up: Employment Pathways and Opportunities. 

Program Objectives

The Level the Field 2025 to 2027 Program’s overall objective is to increase the number of people with disability in regional Victoria in the sport and active recreation workforce, through paid roles, training and development opportunities and volunteer positions.

The Program to be delivered in regional Victoria will:

  • Develop pathways and training for people with disability within the sports and recreation sector for employment and volunteering.
  • Increase the skills and capability of the existing workforce in the sport and active recreation sector to create more inclusive environments and lasting workforce opportunities for people with disability.
  • Embed policies, systems and approaches that lead to increased and continuing opportunities for people with disability to participate in the sport and active recreation workforce.
  • Create and deliver innovative sport and recreation workforce projects that are designed, led and run by and for people with disability in regional Victoria.

Program Outcomes

More people with disability are employed and volunteer in sport and active recreation in regional Victoria  

The sport and active recreation sector in regional Victoria has increased capacity to address barriers to employment and volunteering for people with disability. 

Eligibility

Who can apply  

Applicant organisations must meet the following criteria to be eligible:  

  1. operate or be physically located within Victoria; and  
  2. hold an active and valid Australian Business Number (ABN); and   
  3. be a legal entity that can enter into a grant agreement contract that is not ineligible

Applicant organisations could be one of the following:  

  1. A SRV recognised organisation: State Sporting Association (SSA), State Sport and Active Recreation Bodies (SSARB), Regional Sports Assemblies (RSA)  
  2. A community organisation working with people with disability 
  3. A health service entity specialising in the provision of services to people with disability
  4. A Victorian Local Government Authority (LGA) in rural and regional Victoria
  5. Another sport and active recreation league or organisation 
  6. A Victorian higher education provider (with campuses based in rural and regional Victoria). 
  7. Australian public or proprietary companies
  8. An Indigenous organisation

Applicants must be able to attest to complying with all applicable legislation and child safety requirements required for their organisation type and project content and may be required to provide relevant evidence. Refer to Legislation and Policy section in the Grant Guidelines

 

Ineligible applicants

The following are not eligible to apply as the lead organisation:  

  • Leisure Networks (as lead organisation or as a partner to an application)  
  • Disability Sport and Recreation Ltd 
  • individual sporting clubs
  • an unincorporated association
  • a company not incorporated in Australia
  • an individual or sole trader
  • an individual trustee and unincorporated trusts
  • Australian Government or Victorian or other state government agency or body
  • schools, playgroups, kindergartens, child-care centres or pre-schools. 

Partnerships

The Learning and Development Hub

The Learning and Development Hub (the Hub), created and overseen by Disability Sport and Recreation Victoria, provides resources, training and learning opportunities that reflect best practice disability inclusion in community sport and active recreation to support people with disability, place-based organisations, community organisations, sporting clubs and active recreation organisations.  Successful projects will be required to engage with the Learning and Development Hub during project implementation, to ensure any resources or training material used aligns with best practice and to support projects to access the Hub resources and training materials. 

 

Inclusion Coaches

Leisure Networks have employed regionally based Inclusion Coaches to ensure the voices of people with lived experience of disability is embedded throughout all aspects of the grant program for successful projects. Please note that Inclusion Coaches cannot assist you in the development of your grant application but will support projects in their region if they receive funding under Level the Field Program.

Information Sessions

Our live Level the Field information sessions have now finished. To learn more about the program, you can watch our pre-recorded information session, which covers key program details, the application process, available funding streams, assessment timelines and examples of eligible projects.

If you require further support or have questions, please complete the Contact Us form below.

FAQs

Looking for more information? Download the Program FAQs for answers to common questions.

Download FAQs

User Guide

Ready to get started? Download the User Guide for a step-by-step overview of how to apply for a grant.

Download the User Guide

Privacy Collection Notice

Any personal information provided for this Program will be collected and used by Leisure Networks on behalf of the Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry and Regions for the purpose of assessing eligibility, program administration, to contact you about your application, and for program review and evaluation.

Where personal information has been provided on behalf of a third party in the application, you must have notified the third party and obtained their consent to heir personal information being handled in accordance with this Privacy Collection Notice.

Any personal information about the applicant or a third party will be collected, held, managed, used, disclosed or transferred in accordance with the provisions of the Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014 (Vic) and other applicable laws.                                                                                                                                       

You can find more information about the handling of your personal information in Leisure Networks’ Privacy Policy here.  Enquiries about access or correction to your personal information can be emailed to [email protected]