COMMUNITY FUND – CATALYST GATEWAY KENSINGTON COMMITTEE

BACKGROUND

In October 2011 Kensington Housing Trust (KHT) joined with other group members to become CatalystHousing as one legal entity. In turn the KHT Community Fund has become part of Catalyst Gateway bringing together all Catalyst staff and projects involved with community development activities. Catalyst Gateway is overseen by a Boardwith its own charitable status. It has a focus onthreemain theme areas:

  • Employment and Training

“Creating opportunities and providing training to help people reach their full potential.”

  • Young people and Families

“Helping young people reach their full potential and build a better future for families.”

  • Community enterprise

“Supporting local communities to organise activities and events”

TheCatalyst GatewayKensington Committee makes decisions on funding applications and overall direction of the local Community Fund. Committee members include Catalyst residents and co-opted individuals who bring experience and expertise. Committee members have decided to commission larger scale projects, with the intention of having a greater impact, whilst retaining a small grants programme offering up to £2,000 to local community groups. The Committee are particularly interested in projects that will have an impact on poverty and / or projects that involve collaborative work between organisations There are two grant funding rounds a year with Committee decisions on applications currently taken in January and June.

WHAT THE COMMUNITYFUND WILL SUPPORT

The Fund aims to improve the quality of life for those living in and near Catalyst homes in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, especiallyWards in North Kensington, orin the vicinity of Catalyst homes in Hammersmithand Fulham and Westminster (former KHT homes). The Committee will consider applications that help to support and develop Catalyst Gateway themes as outlined above. In addition the Committee are particularly keen to support initiatives / projects that address issues of poverty and / or encourage collaborative working between groups.

FUNDING CRITERIA

Introduction: The Community Fund purpose is to provide small grants, up to £2,000 to community groups for projects to support activities which reflect Catalyst Gateway themes and benefits the local community.

One off Funding: Grants provided by the Community Fund will be one-off payments and cover up to 12 months of the project’s duration. Groups applying to the Community Fund for grant assistance will only be able to submit one application in any one financial year.

Fast Track Funding: Applications can also be made for “Fast Track Funding” for community organisations seeking a speedy decision for a small scale project. The maximum that can be applied for under Fast Track funding is £500

Assessment and monitoring: In all instances where a group has received approval from the Community Fund for funding they will need to complete a monitoring form and may receive monitoring visits as part of our value for money policy and to ensure funding is spent only for the purpose it was intended. This may include assessing accounts. Groups which satisfactorily meet the assessment criteria will be considered eligible for further funding.

Three year funding limit: The Community Fund is only able to fund individual groups up to a maximum of three consecutive years. Where a group has been funded three years running by the Community Fund, no further applications from the group will be considered by the Catalyst Gateway Kensington Committee, for a period of 12 months from the end of the previously funded project.

Eligibility

Applicants must be a voluntary organisation and:

  • Be either a registered charity or a not-for-profit organisation with charitable purposes.
  • Have a constitution or set of rules.
  • Have a written equal opportunities or diversity statement.
  • Provide a service which benefits residents living in and around Catalyst properties in the local authority boroughs of Kensington & Chelsea (particularly wards in the North of the borough); Hammersmith & Fulham or Westminster.

What the Fund is not for:

  • Applications supporting individual people
  • Community groups that have substantial reserves or are in serious debt
  • Fundraising events
  • Staging conferences and seminars
  • Political or religious objectives

How to Apply

To apply for funding you will need to complete a grant application form. Application forms and further information can be obtained from the Community Investment Team at the address below, or by downloading an application form from Kensington and Chelsea’s Social Council’s website section.

Application Form

Please complete all Sections / Questions of the Form and include relevant account details.

Please note:

The Grant Section A.

Question 3. Please provide a budget- will be assessed as to its value for money.

Question 6.- Does the benefit to the local community fit with one of Catalyst Gateway themes? What will the spending achieve? Will the project have a demonstrable impact on poverty? How many people are likely to benefit? How many of these are likely to be from black and other minority ethnic communities?

Question 6 cont. How many beneficiaries are likely to be from Catalyst (formerly Kensington Housing Trust) homes? Relevant geographical postcodes can be supplied regarding location of Catalyst homes.Does the project involve collaborative working with other organisations?

If the project involves working with children please provide details on supervising adults, including relevant qualifications, and confirm you have a current Criminal Records Bureau policy in place.

Question 7. Measure benefits– you will need to describe how you will monitor the project, for example recording numbers benefitting. You will be required to complete a monitoring form on project completion / end of grant award and supply photographs.

Section CDeclaration - Referee: You will needto provide a reference. The referee should not be a member of your family, friend or someone employed or voluntarily working within your group. The referee should be someone who knows about the viability of your application and whether or not your group could successfully achieve the project aims. The referee will need to supply this reference in advance of the Committee meeting making an award decision. If your project has supplied a suitable reference for an approved Community Fund grant in the last year then you will not need to supply a new reference.

Decisions on Awarding Grants: The Kensington Committee of Catalyst Gateway will determine whether to award grants. When deciding on awarding grants the Committee will make judgements against a number of criteria. As part of this, we may contact you for more information about your group or activity. Decisions on whether or not to make an award will depend first and foremost on how well applicants demonstrate that they meet the criteria.

Successful Applications: If your application is successful we will notify you of how much the grant is, and supply a grant conditions form detailing the terms and conditions attached to the grant. You must sign this, acknowledging that you agree to abide by these, and return the signed grant conditions form to us. We will normally pay the grant within 20 working days of receiving your signed agreement.

This means that there could be up to two to three months from when you apply to when you receive the award. Please bear this in mind when you submit your application, for example anticipated start date.

Financial Probity: If you are awarded a grant you must use it only for the project you set out in the application form. You cannot give it to any other group, nor use it to set up an alternative project. You must spend the grant within one year of the date of the signed grant conditions form, unless otherwise specified. If you do not keep to the terms and conditions, or if the group ceases to operate, you may have to repay all or part of the grant.

If we discover that you gave false or misleading information on your application form or acted dishonestly in spending the grant, you will be reported to the police and the Charity Commission as appropriate and may be prosecuted for fraud.

Unsuccessful Applications: If your application is unsuccessful we will inform you of the main reasons why. This may help you decide whether to apply again.

You are welcome to discuss your proposal in advance of application, for further information andfor an application form please contact:

Nick Whitty / Ian Cann,

Community Investment Team

Catalyst Gateway

370 Portobello Road

London W10 5RP

Tel: 020 8964 6434

Email:

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