Aboriginal organisations are being encouraged to apply for a share of $1.25 million in Western Australian government funding for projects that protect, preserve and promote significant Aboriginal heritage sites throughout Western Australia.
Grants of up to $50,000 will be made available through the 2025-26 Preserve, Promote and Protect our Aboriginal Sites Program, which will support on-the-ground works at Aboriginal sites, promote Aboriginal cultural heritage and provide social and economic benefits to local communities.
Funding is available to restore Aboriginal cultural heritage sites, protect Aboriginal burial areas, install interpretive signage and deliver small-scale works such as fencing or removal of rubbish to support management of the land and the site.
In 2024, the Bibbul Ngarma Aboriginal Association received grant funding to undertake site cleanup, install signage and put wooden logs in place to prevent unauthorised access by vehicles at Mandoon Biyla (Helena River).
Other recipients from last year's funding round included Warlayirti Artists Aboriginal Corporation who will install shelter, fencing and public signage at the Women's Law Ground in the Balgo community of the Kimberley region.
The WA government said its Preserve, Promote and Protect our Aboriginal Sites Program is part of a "commitment to support Aboriginal people in managing their cultural heritage".
A fourth consecutive increase of government investment in this grants program has seen the funding pool grow from an annual allocation of $250,000 to a new total of $1.25 million each year to support the conservation, protection and awareness of Aboriginal heritage.
Aboriginal Affairs Minister Don Punch since the program began in 2014, the WA government has committed $4.25 million to support around 162 Aboriginal cultural heritage projects across Western Australia.
"Importantly, we have increased the annual allocation from $250,00 to a record total pool of $1.25 million this year - and every year thereafter - providing more opportunities for Aboriginal people to play anactive role in how their cultural heritage is managed and find new ways to engage and educate visitors," he said.
"Cultural heritage sites connect Aboriginal communities with their past, present and future, and help to foster stronger economic and social benefits for Aboriginal people. For more than 60,000 years, First Nations Australians have cared for this country, and we want to ensure that we continue to protect Aboriginal cultural heritage for future generations."
Applications close 30 September 2025. More information on the grants and the application process is available at www.wa.gov.au/government/document-collections/grants-preserve-and-protect-aboriginal-sites.
