Carer Breaks Funding

Application criteria 2014-15

Cheshire EastCouncil together with health partners NHS Eastern Cheshire and NHS South Cheshire Clinical Commissioning Groups arecommitted toimproving the Health and Wellbeing, and enhancing the overall quality of life, for Carers and the people they care for.

What is a Carer?

A Carer is someone who, without payment, provides help and support to a friend, neighbour or relative who could not manage otherwise because of frailty, illness or disability; this may include helping with personal care, medication, cooking, shopping, housework and giving emotional support. The term ‘Carer’ covers not only adults, butalso children who may be care for family members who are disabled or chronically ill, or adults who are misusing alcohol or drugs.

To support this commitment a Grant Fund (subject to funding agreement by NHS Eastern Cheshire and NHS South Cheshire Clinical Commissioning Groups) has been established which will support Third Sector Organisations to develop and operate ‘Carer Breaks’ services for the benefit of Carers who provide regular amounts of care for the person they care for.

What is a Carer Break?

A Carer Break can be defined as “Any time spent by a carer in pursuing an activity or interest of their choice, with or without the cared for person, that is provided to improve the carers health and their emotional and physical wellbeing, and that reduces the impact of caring and supports the sustainability of the caring role”

Third Sector Organisations are invited to apply for funding awards up to a maximum of £55,000 to support the delivery of service between 1st April 2014 and 31st March 2015, and which enable Carers and their families to benefit from the positive effects of receiving Carer Breaks.

Funding objectives

Funding is made available to support the delivery of services that enable and facilitate Carer Breaks (see above), and that meet the following key objectives (outcomes):

  1. Realising and Releasing Potential

Enabling those with caring responsibilities to fulfil their educational and employment potential by removing the barriers to opportunity and promoting access to learning.

  1. Supporting Carers to Stay Healthy

Supporting carers to remain mentally and physically well by offering services that provide positive outcomes to an individual’s health and well-being.

  1. Life Outside of Caring

Personalised support both for carers and those they support, enabling them to have a family and community life through enabling activities that provide respite from caring and alleviate the impact of the caring role.

Criteria for making an application

To be eligible to apply for support through this fund your organisation must:

  • Have an active and local voluntary management committee.
  • Have an appropriate organisational structure or legal status for the activities for which funding is being sought.
  • Be able to demonstrate good governance, financial/business planning and organisational management.
  • Be able to demonstrate how it supports those with caring responsibilities to identify themselves as carers at an early stage, and involve them from the outset in the design of local care provision.
  • Have appropriate types and levels of insurance for the activities or services you are planning to deliver.
  • Have a bank account in the name of the organisation.

Where there are new groups that cannot meet all of the above we will be willing to discuss alternative arrangements and/or concessions.

Restrictions that apply

Third Sector Organisations

Applications are restricted to organisations which are seen as ‘Third Sector’ which we define as 'non-governmental organisations which are value-driven and which principally reinvest their surpluses to further social, environmental or cultural objectives’.

Beneficiaries

  1. Services supported through the funding must be for the benefit of Carers living within the geographic footprint covered by Cheshire East Borough Council, NHS Eastern Cheshire and NHS South Cheshire Clinical Commissioning Groups.
  1. Carers who benefit from the services provided must be assessed as providing regular amounts of care and support to the person they care for.

Capital funding

Applications can only be made for revenue funding. Major capital expenditure cannot be funded; however certain minor capital items may be considered in your application with prior agreement to your submission. Please contact the Grants Officerif you require further clarification.

Multiple bids

Organisations may make any number of applications to cover a range of distinct services. Where funding for is being sought to deliver distinctly different Carer Break activities a separate application must be completed for each proposal. Please contact the Grants Officerif you require further clarification.

Criteria for assessment of applications

The following factors will be used in assessing your application for funding:

  • Outcomes – the degree to which any one or more of the three objectives (listed on pages 1 and 2) is/are met and the positive effect (health/emotional/social) on the lives of Carers affected.

Please note - applications must clearly fulfil at least one of the listed objectives in order to be considered, and in doing this it is a basic requirement that the application must demonstrate the expected positive effects on the health and well-being of the target service users in order to be considered for the offer of an award.

  • The outputs you expect to deliver, for example, the number of Carers that will benefit from the activities and expenditure undertaken in delivering you project.
  • The ability and capacity of the organisation to deliver the activities or services for which funding is sought.
  • The degree to which Carers are, or have been, involved in the design of the activities for which funding is being sought,and their continued involvement in service improvement through consultation and the evaluation of feedback. The involvement of Carers in the design of services is considered a pre-requisite to any successful application.
  • Robust business case evidencing that the proposed activity/expenditure is needed and/or supported by carers and relevant stakeholders and or partners.
  • Value for money – whether the services provide a cost effective use of public money and generate outcomes that have a positive impact by adding value through early identification of carers and the prevention of carer breakdown.
  • Increase in choice for carers - new projects, activities and ways of working that will result in a greater variety ofcarer breaks available to carers.
  • Sustainability – the degree to which theservices(s) can be maintained and/or replicated, and learning shared.

If an applicant has previously had performance issues with any grant funding or contract with the Council or its CCG partners (the Partner Organisations) then this may be taken into account when making a decision.

Award process

Applications will be reviewed and evaluated by a grant selection panel using a scoring system based on the above criteria. Decisions to make specific funding offers will be taken by the panel, based on the results of this assessment. All funding offers will be subject to a signed agreement that will include a commitment by the recipient organisation to report on outputs and outcomes of the agreed funding purposes. The decision of the panel is final but feedback will be provided upon request.

Costing of applications

  • The Partner Organisations recognise that it is legitimate for organisations to include the relevant element of overheads in their cost estimates for providing a given service under the agreement.
  • Where applications include staffing costs you will need to demonstrate that there is a direct link between the member of staff and the activities of the project.

Monitoring

Quarterly self-monitoring of the services detailed in the agreement will be expected unless otherwise agreed with your organisation. Payment of award will be made in instalments in advance, each of which will cover a minimum period of 3 months. The Partner Organisations may require alternative or lighter touch monitoring arrangements and timescales to the above where the nature of the funding dictates that other arrangements are considered more suitable. Under these circumstances the Partner Organisationswill agree alternative monitoring arrangement with your organisation in advance of funding.

In addition to the requirements described above the Partner Organisationswill request an end of project evaluationreport, summarising the activities undertaken and outputs delivered, and showing the outcomes achieved, particularly in respect of Carers and the effects on their health and wellbeing.NB – Self-monitoring information in relation to all awards may be subject to validation by periodic inspection visits from Cheshire East Council staff or its partners in the CCGs.

Method of application

All applications should be for funding within the financial period 1 April 2014 to 31 March 2015, and should be made on the application form we have provided. Copies of the application form are available in MS Word format for electronic completion upon request.

In order to make the process accessible to all eligible organisations, the Council will accept submissions in alternative formats through discussion and agreement with potential applicants.

Closing date – The closing date for applications for this funding is 5pm 24th February 2014

Information sharing

Council Departments and partner organisations- Details provided on your application may be entered onto the Partner Organisationsinternal grants database and shared with other departments of Cheshire East Council and its CCG partners.

Partner organisations and assessment – Your application will be assessed by officers ofboth the Council and the funding CCGs. Where considered appropriate the process may be opened to independent scrutiny by third parties.

Other Partners and funding agencies - Details of the purpose of your application and, if successful, the level of funding awarded may be shared with other funding agencies if those details are requested or if we need confirmation of another funding agency’s intention to provide match funding to deliver the services or activities included in your application.

Website – The Partner Organisationsmay publish details of successful awards on their websites; this may include details of the purpose and also the level of funding awarded.

Please note: the above requirements apply specifically to information provided as part of your application. Information relating to any subsequent award will be treated in accordance with the requirements and the constraints of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

Further inquiries - For enquiries about this funding or completing the application form please contact the Grants Officer at the address shown below, or by telephone on 01260 371097, or by e-mail to

Completed application forms should be returned to:

Commissioning Manager - Strategic Commissioning

Commercial Strategy, Business Innovation & Performance Directorate

Floor 4

Delamere House

Crewe

Cheshire

CW1 2LL

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