New Horizons for Seniors Program

Capital Assistance Funding Guide

This guide will help you understand the eligibility criteria and application process for New Horizons for Seniors Capital Assistance Funding.

Table of contents

Capital Assistance Funding

The New Horizons for Seniors Program helps to ensure that seniors are able to benefit from and contribute to the quality of life in their community through their social participation and active living.

The objective of the New Horizons for Seniors Capital Assistance funding is to provide grants of up to $25,000 to non-profit organizations for improvements to their facilities and/or replacement of furniture and equipment that are needed for existing programs and activities for seniors.

This helps to ensure that organizations can provide programs and activities that enable seniors to continue participating and leading active lives in their communities.

Who can apply?

The New Horizons for Seniors Program will only accept applications for Capital Assistance funding from non-profit organizations that have been delivering community programs and activities for seniors for the last two (2) years. This includes seniors clubs, seniors’ centres, ethnocultural organizations, service clubs, and Aboriginal organizations.

Eligible Activities

Eligible activities involve the repair or renovation to existing seniors’ community facilities, or the purchase of replacement equipment and furnishings required for community programs and activities for seniors.

For the purposes of the New Horizons for Seniors Program, community programs and activities refers to programs and activities that are primarily for seniors and that are available to seniors in the broader community.

Examples of eligible activities include, but are not limited to:

• Repairs to wells or septic systems, heating and ventilation systems, foundations, roofs, walls and floors.
• Upgrades such as new insulation, windows, wiring/electrical panels and plumbing.
• Building code compliance upgrades.
• Replacement of furnishings and equipment such as tables and chairs, appliances, sport or craft equipment.

The following activities are NOT funded with New Horizons for Seniors Capital Assistance funding:

• The delivery of your seniors’ programs and activities;
• The development of new programs and activities
  (see Community Participation and Leadership Funding on our Web site Community Participation and Leadership);
• Activities that are limited to residents of a building (e.g., nursing homes and
  seniors’ independent living residences);
• Construction of new buildings;
• Renovations and/or repairs to buildings owned, operated and maintained by municipal, provincial or territorial governments;
• Activities that take place outside your province or territory;
• Activities for the sole purpose of improving accessibility
  (e.g., wheelchair ramps and lifts, or other adaptive aids);
• Renovations and/or repairs to a building that your organization does not yet occupy; and,
• Activities for the sole purpose of making cosmetic improvements to a facility
  (e.g., works of art, landscaping).

Eligible Project Costs

• Maximum $10,000 for the replacement of furniture and equipment projects.
• Maximum $25,000 for renovation and/or repair projects, of which no more than $10,000 is for the replacement of furniture and equipment.

Your application must demonstrate how your project costs are directly required for your community programs and activities for seniors.

Eligible costs for renovation and/or repair projects include:

• Construction materials, supplies and related costs.
• Fees paid to outside experts and trades people.
• Costs for surveys and architectural drawings.
• Delivery costs for building materials and supplies.
• Dumping and disposal fees.

Eligible costs for replacement of furniture and equipment projects include:

• Purchase of replacement equipment and furnishings and related costs
  (e.g., installation).
• Delivery costs for furniture and equipment.
• Dumping and disposal fees.

The following costs are NOT funded under the New Horizons for Seniors Program for Capital Assistance funding:

• Retroactive funding (i.e., costs incurred before the approved project start date);
• Purchase of land;
• Items of personal/medical nature (e.g., wheelchairs, scooters, CPR/First Aid equipment, hearing aids, walkers);
• Core operating costs of your organization (e.g., rent, utilities, property taxes, insurance, wages, staff equipment, office supplies);
• Contingency funds (e.g., incidental fees); and,
• Feasibility studies.

Calls for Proposals

Once or twice a year, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada will issue a Call for Proposals on its Web site New Horizon for Seniors. Be sure to check the Web site to find out the dates for the Call. Applications postmarked after the deadline will not be considered for funding.

Staff are available in each region to discuss your project proposal (see the “Contact Us” section of this document).

Application Review Process

There are three stages in the application review process: screening, assessment and final decision.

1. Screening

Your application will be checked to ensure that it meets the basic eligibility requirements for Capital Assistance funding.

An application could be rejected at the screening stage for the following reasons:

• Your application is late (i.e. postmarked after the deadline).
• Your organization is not eligible (e.g., it is a for-profit organization or has not been delivering programs and activities for seniors for the past two years).
• Your project does not meet the Program objective.
• The activities are not eligible (e.g., core funding).
• Requested funding does not fall within program guidelines (e.g., the total funding requested from New Horizons for Seniors is more than $25,000).
• Your application is incomplete and/or not signed by the authorized representatives of the organization.
• The required attachments are missing.

2. Assessment

Your application will be assessed on a number of factors, including:

• How well your project responds to the needs of seniors and your community.
• Value for money.
• Technical feasibility.
• The strength of community support for your project.
• The positive impact on seniors and your community.
• Your organization’s track record of delivering community programs and activities primarily for seniors, and the nature and breadth of those activities
  (e.g., frequency of activities, "variety of activities offered).

3. Final Decision

Our Commitment to You

You will be notified by mail that we have received your proposal. Acknowledgment letters will be mailed within eight (8) weeks of the closing date of the Call.

You will receive a letter indicating whether your proposal has been approved. These decision letters will normally be mailed within five (5) months of the closing date of the Call.

If you have any questions, you may contact us by phone or by mail. Enquiries will be answered within five (5) working days of receipt of the enquiry.

Final Report

If your project is approved, a template for the final report will be included in the decision letter. Within two (2) months of the end of your project, you must submit a final project report detailing the impact your project had on the seniors in your community. You are encouraged to submit “before” and “after” photos with your final report. Reporting on time shows good project management and may help if your organization applies for funding for other projects from Human Resources and Skills Development Canada in future.

How to get an Application Form

You can find the application form for the New Horizons for Seniors Program on our Web site New Horizon for Seniors when a Call is open. If you would prefer to receive an application by mail, please call 1-800-277-9914 and select “0” to speak to an agent. If you use a TTY, call 1-800-255-4786.

Contact Us