Looking back at acquittals from recent years, a clear pattern emerges. The most valuable outcomes are the skills, relationships and confidence that remain long after the fundraising campaign. 

Over the years, I've read a lot of Plus1 and MATCH Lab acquittals. The fundraising result is usually the first thing people look at, and understandably so. Raising more private income is an important outcome of these programs.  

What I've always found more interesting is what people talk about after the campaign ends.  

Those details stick with me because they're often the things that make the next fundraising campaign easier. 

What campaigns make possible  

Looking back at acquittals from Plus1 and MATCH Lab over the past few years, a few participants stand out because they highlight something I've seen repeatedly. Their projects, fundraising approaches and goals were very different, but each came away with something that lasted beyond the campaign itself.  

Sunshine Coast Chamber Music Festival is one example. Through Plus1, the organisation was fundraising to support the first Sunshine Coast Chamber Music Festival in 2021, a new five-day regional music festival. They exceeded their fundraising target, but what stood out in their acquittal wasn't the final total. It was the donor relationships they built, and the way the campaign helped establish a group of donor champions who later became the foundation for a more formal donor program. The campaign supported a successful festival, but it also strengthened their fundraising foundations for the future.  

In 2023/2024 Heaps Decent highlighted something different. The organisation was fundraising to support its youth arts and music programs. Through the campaign, they developed a fundraising pitch document that brought together their story, impact and case for support. What stood out was the work involved in sharpening how they communicated their value to supporters. Having a clear and repeatable way to explain why your work matters can make future donor conversations much easier. The value wasn't the document itself. It was the clarity that came from the process.  

Ben Francis and The 60 Four offer an artist perspective from MATCH Lab. Their 2025/2026 campaign raised funds for the group's international debut at Edinburgh Fringe. While the campaign raised more than $20,000 and attracted 230 new donors, what interested me most was the longer-term thinking behind it. Fundraising wasn't simply a way to support a tour. It was also a way to build a donor base, develop stewardship practices and explore how fundraising could become an ongoing part of their practice.  

Reading acquittals like these has reinforced that artists and organisations don't all need the same support. Some are building their first donor relationships. Some are learning how to communicate their value. Some are working out how fundraising fits alongside everything else they need to deliver. Others are looking for ways to turn campaign activity into a more consistent fundraising practice.  

How these lessons shaped our new programs  

These observations have shaped the redesign of Creative Australia's matched funding programs.  

One of the lessons from Plus1 and MATCH Lab is that artists and organisations need different support at different stages of their fundraising development. Rather than creating a single program for everyone, we've designed different opportunities for different parts of the sector.  

For organisations, we've focused on two points where matched funding can have a catalytic effect. At the beginning of the fundraising journey, where it can help establish the foundations for future fundraising. And at a more advanced stage, where it can help organisations accelerate growth, unlock larger ambitions and strengthen long-term sustainability. 

Our new Beginner stream is designed for small to medium organisations that are establishing fundraising foundations and building the systems, skills and relationships needed to support private investment.  

The new Advanced stream is designed for small to medium organisations with established fundraising capability that are ready to use matched funding as a catalyst for growth. The focus is on extending established fundraising practice across the organisation, from multi-year strategy and supporter stewardship to new or higher-value private income streams. 

This means we are not attempting to support every stage of organisational fundraising development through matched funding. Instead, we've focused on the points where we believe matched funding can have the greatest long-term impact and where it can act as a catalyst for meaningful change. 

For artists and artist groups, the need is different. Through MATCH Lab, we consistently saw artists looking for support to move beyond immediate personal networks and develop more structured fundraising approaches.  

The Intermediate stream has been designed specifically for artists and artist groups at that stage. It reflects where we believe matched funding can have the greatest impact for artists who are ready to build a more sustainable fundraising practice.  

Not every opportunity is intended for every applicant. The redesign recognises that artists and organisations face different fundraising challenges and require different types of support at different times.  

The most important question all along 

The value of a matched funding campaign is not only in the amount raised, but in what it makes possible afterwards. 

Looking across years of acquittals, I'm not convinced the most important question was ever, "How much did they raise?"  

The more revealing question is what they are able to do next.  

Did the campaign help them speak more clearly about the value of their work? Did it strengthen supporter relationships? Did it build confidence, sharpen systems or make future fundraising feel more possible? 

These are the central questions we’ve kept in mind as we've designed the next generation of matched funding programs.  

Our ambition for these redesigned programs is that participants leave with more than matched funds: with the confidence, clarity and momentum to keep building support for their work.

Matt Morse, Director, Private Investment Capability