Background Information

The Vancouver Police Foundation issues grants annually. The grants used for this purpose are derived from membership in the Foundation and individual donations. The amount of funding available for grants varies from year to year and is dependent on returns on investments.

Applications are called for once per year, by means of departmental bulletins. Awards are made subject to the criteria found in the Vancouver Police Foundation charter as follows:

• innovation
• encouraging public participation in law enforcement
• emphasizing the role of the police in the community
• encouraging community awareness about crime and crime prevention
• promoting programs of research and education relating to law enforcement

The grant proposal submissions will be reviewed relative to the Vancouver Police Foundation criteria. Following this process, applicants that have been selected for consideration will be invited to present their proposal at the next meeting of the Vancouver Police Foundation’s Board of Trustees.

Proposals with the highest likelihood of approval will be those that are unique and creative but which cannot be funded by means of the regular operational and/or administrative budget of the Vancouver Police Department.

It should be noted that the Foundation prefers to grant “seed money” to assist in the start up of a project, with additional funding coming from other sources such as the business community, the community at large, or the civic budget. The Trustees are unlikely to approve multiple consecutive applications for conferences or training.

Grant requests that are designed with a component to promote the Vancouver Police Foundation are also unlikely to be approved unless they are long-time, permanent items benefiting many members of the Vancouver Police Department. Examples are the VPD commemorative 125 year anniversary medal and the police officers memorial in the atrium of Graveley Street.

Funds will go to projects under the direct control of the Vancouver Police Department, or to an outside organization that has developed a strong relationship with the Vancouver Police Department.

Application Process

Applications can be completed by downloading and completing a paper form (Word DOC). You can also download an complete printable overview of the application process (PDF).

The completed grant application must include the required signatures. Once you have obtained the signatures, your application should be scanned and emailed to the attention of VPD Executive Office Assistant Laura Tempesta at laura.tempesta@vpd.ca. Any questions should be directed to Laura at 604-717-2953.