What’s in the 2026-27 Queensland State Budget for your organisation?

For not-for-profits, community organisations and social enterprises, the 2026-27 Queensland Budget papers contains a mix of opportunities and challenges.

Key funding and grant programs

Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples

• $40.5 million over two years for Queensland’s Indigenous Councils to support the delivery of services for their communities.

Community development

• $1.4 million to recognising the contribution of servicemen and women with upgrades to war memorials and commemorative events, under the Honouring our Veterans Grants
• $1.2 million over three years to empowering more volunteers, including funding for Volunteering Queensland and Volunteer Resource Centres

Education

• $2.3 billion to deliver 22 new schools including four new primary schools, three new high schools and nine new special schools
• $141.2 million over four years for $150 Back to School Boost for primary school students

Homelessness and housing

• $5.725 billion capital program for social and community housing over four years from 2026-27, and continuing to implement the $2 billion Residential Activation Fund, including doubling Round Two funding to $1 billion.
• Increasing investment to support increased delivery of social and community housing by $1.024 billion over 5 years, including youth foyers and domestic and family violence shelters and social homes in remote and discrete First Nations communities.
• $450.1 million for specialist homelessness services, and peak and industry bodies over four years to 2029-30

Public safety

• $7.2 billion is being invested to deliver stronger laws, rehabilitation and early intervention, as well as better resourced courts, more police, reform for child protection and child safety.
• Delivery of new HOPE Hub recovery centres in the continued $7.8 million investment, upgrades to safe spaces in court houses, and $31.3 million to double the capacity of Womensline and Mensline

Social enterprises

• Two new flagship impact investment initiatives will be launched before the end of 2026:
  • Ready to Launch Fund - enabling seed capital and capability support to help social entrepreneurs navigate early growth, and
  • Financing Growth Fund - facilitating concessional lending and offering capability support.

Sport and recreation

• $250 million over four years for $200 Play On! Sports Vouchers

Women

• $10 million for future funding rounds of Women’s Career Grants

What should organisations watch next?

As always, the budget papers provide high-level funding allocations, but many details about grant programs, commissioning opportunities and departmental priorities will emerge over coming months.

The months ahead will reveal how the budget’s headline commitments translate into practical funding opportunities and partnerships for the community sector.

If you’re a Funding Centre member, make sure you’re ready to act when funding opens:

• Help sheet: How to find budget grants in the Funding Centre database
• Video tutorial: How to adjust your Funding Centre alert settings

Setting up alerts can help ensure you don’t miss relevant opportunities as they are released, some programs might begin accepting applications shortly after Budget announcements.

New to Funding Centre?

Are you a council or peak body? Explore SmartySearch for an easy-to-integrate, up-to-date grants search tool for your website.

Are you a grantseeker? Join Funding Centre for access to a comprehensive grants database, tailored alerts, and Drafter, our AI tool to help you prepare applications.