Community Facility Enhancement Program Small

Financial assistance up to $125,000 to upgrade, expand, purchase or build public-use community facilities.

Overview

The Community Facility Enhancement Program (CFEP) Small provides up to $125,000 in financial assistance to upgrade, expand, purchase or build arts, cultural, heritage, recreational, sport or other related public-use community facilities.

CFEP has 2 funding streams. If you would like to apply for financial assistance over $125,000, see Community Facility Enhancement Program Large.

There are now 2 distinct program guidelines for each CFEP stream: Large and Small. The guidelines on this page are for CFEP Small only.

Important dates

The review and decision-making process takes approximately 6 months. The application and notification periods for the CFEP Small funding stream are as follows:

Annual application deadlinesNotification dates
January 15July (for January 15 intake)
May 15November (for May 15 intake)
September 15March (for September 15 intake)

Projects must be completed within 18 months from the date the payment is received by the organization. Notification is sent by email to the contacts listed in your organization’s application.

Eligibility requirements

To ensure that the CFEP Small funding is allocated to projects that have the greatest impacts on our communities, the following eligibility criteria must be met. For more detailed information and examples, refer to the CFEP Small Program Guidelines section 3.

Matching requirements

CFEP Small funding is only approved on a matching basis. The applicant must contribute an amount equal to or exceeding the grant request towards the eligible expenses of the project. For more detailed information and examples, refer to section 5 of the CFEP Small Program Guidelines.

How to apply

Learn more about the application process below and register for an upcoming webinar in the Upcoming webinars section.

Community Grants is updating the way we are accepting applications. This program has transitioned to Front Office, our new, secure, online application portal.

Incomplete applications will not be accepted. All decisions on grant applications are final and no appeals will be considered.

Upcoming webinars

At this time, we have no upcoming live webinars scheduled.

Refer to the Grant information sessions section below for a pre-recorded version of past webinars.

Grant information sessions

CFEP grant information sessions were recorded and are provided below. The sessions cover program criteria, notification timelines, answers to questions and tips on submitting your application.

General program information

This video provides an overview of the CFEP program, and recent updates to the program guidelines.

How to apply – Information session

This video features an in-depth walk-through of how to complete your CFEP Small application in GATE Front Office. For additional support in using Front Office, watch our tutorial videos: Preparing and applying for grants.

If you have questions regarding CFEP Small or Front Office, contact Community Grants staff at 1-800-642-3855 or communitygrants@gov.ab.ca.

Reporting requirements

Projects must be completed and accounted for within 18 months from the date the grant payment was received.

If your application was submitted through Front Office (as of January 15, 2025)

You must complete your financial accounting for the CFEP Small grant using the Front Office Portal. See section 9 of the guidelines for details.

For grant recipients that applied to any application intake before and including September 15, 2024

Financial reporting must be:

  • completed using the Final CFEP Accountability Report (FCAR)
  • submitted to program staff within the periods specified in the guidelines unless an extension of the reporting date has been approved

Additional accounting requirements are outlined in the CFEP Guidelines.

Contact our accounting team at cgaccounting@gov.ab.ca about reporting requirements or project completion issues.

Previous grant recipients

Find previous grant recipients in the Previous Grant Recipient Database.

Find approved applicants from Intake 2 (May 15, 2024) in the table Intake 2, 2024-25 Approved Applicants.

Contact

Connect with the Community Grants office:

Hours: 8:15 am to 4 pm (open Monday to Friday, closed statutory holidays)
Phone: 780-422-9598
Toll free: 1-800-642-3855
Email: communitygrants@gov.ab.ca