On behalf of the Trustees it gives us great pleasure to share with you the Tim Fairfax Family Foundation Annual Report for 2018/19.
The Foundation has continued to demonstrate our strong commitment to providing capacity support for organisations working for the benefit of communities in rural, regional and remote Queensland and the Northern Territory.
Interestingly, of the ten new commitments approved this financial year, seven were directed towards increasing the capacity of organisations, representing a total of $4.716 million across five years. Three of the seven organisations are based in the regions which they support – Emerald, Mackay and Townsville.
The Foundation understands the value of financial support over consecutive years to enable organisations to best address the needs of the communities they serve. In line with this, the Foundation supported seven new multi-year commitments of between two and five years.
The largest commitment made was $1.166 million of capacity support over three and a half years to Outback Futures. This significant contribution will assist Outback Futures to increase their internal resourcing, consolidate their model and deepen their work supporting individuals, families and communities throughout rural Queensland, especially in drought and flood affected areas.
For the first time the Foundation brought 24 organisations together to engage in a unique professional development opportunity. Fifty six individuals attended a half day workshop on measurement and evaluation facilitated by the USA-based Centre for Evaluation Innovation. The Foundation will continue to investigate future opportunities to add value to the financial support we provide.
During the year Foundation staff and Trustees travelled far and wide to connect with our organisations and see their work in action in Cairns, Emerald, Longreach, Barcaldine, Lockhart River, Darwin and Alice Springs. In an effort to understand the needs of communities and explore areas for future support, Foundation staff and Trustees also visited the communities of Peppimenarti, Milingimbi Island and Bathurst Island in the Northern Territory.
Thank you to the Foundation Trustees and staff for their support, vision and willingness to take risks to support new ideas, explore new partnerships and embrace exciting opportunities.
Tim Fairfax AC Chair | Sam Jorgensen Executive Officer |