Grant
Guidance Notes
2017/18
These Guidance Notes are to help you complete the Grants Application Form
Please note the following changes for 2017/18 onwards:-· The Grant Panel would welcome and encourage the submission of joint/partnership applications.
· There is now a restriction on the number of applications:-
· An organisation can only submit one application and one further partnership application with another VCS organisation under each strategic grant funding priority.
· In respect of the Stronger Communities theme this applies to each of the three rounds.
· An organisation cannot submit the same bid across more than one strategic grant funding priority.
· The programme will not fund structural purchases.
Some general points first:
· You are advised to read these notes and the whole form through before you start filling in the form
· On the front page, please insert the details of which grant you are applying for i.e. the strategic grant funding priority, and the grant amount.
· In the form, the word ‘you’ usually refers to your group or organisation.
· If you need any help, please phone Nigel Boot at Redditch Borough Council on (01527) 64252 ext. 3024 or email: .
· If you don’t have an answer to a question, then please don’t just leave the box blank. Please explain why you can’t answer the question.
· Please either download the form onto your computer and complete it from there, or complete it by hand using black ink. To download the form, please go to: www.redditchbc.gov.uk where you will see a link to the grants.
· If you need to have this form in a different format or would like help filling it in because your first language is not English, please contact us as above.
· Please feel free to expand the boxes or add extra sheets, labelled with your group’s name, and question number if necessary. However, please don’t send us any information or documents we haven’t asked for, as we cannot consider them.
· Document Checklist:
Please ensure that you send copies of the following documents with your form:
- Your latest signed annual accounts or management accounts (see Q.23).
- Project Plan - if you have not already detailed this fully in the box available in Question 14.
- A copy of your organisation’s formal constitution if you are an unregistered charity or if this is the first time you have applied for a RBC Grant.
- Letters of commitment from all partners involved in the project, if you are applying as the lead body for a consortium or partnership.
Please remember to send all the required documents with your application, otherwise your application will not be considered.
· Please send back your completed form by the deadline of 4pm on Friday 11th November 2016. We cannot accept incomplete, late or faxed applications, please email them to or hand-deliver your application to Main Reception at The Town Hall, or post it by recorded delivery in advance of the deadline to the address shown below:
Grant Application
Community Services
Redditch Borough Council
Town Hall
Walter Stranz Square
Redditch, B98 8AH
If you send your application in by email please remember to scan the declaration page with your signature. If you hand deliver your application, please ask the Reception staff to date and time stamp your envelope.
Groups we will consider funding through a strategic grant
Applications will only be considered from groups and organisations meeting all of the following requirements:
· Groups that are non-statutory organisations;
· Groups that are formally constituted;
· Groups that operate in the not-for-profit sector;
· Groups that are clearly able to demonstrate their ability, through a grant award, to deliver benefit to the community within the period of the grant, and to sustain their activities;
· Groups whose activities benefit residents of Redditch; and
· Groups whose activities clearly contribute to or support Redditch Borough Council funding priorities.
Groups/activities we will not consider funding through Redditch Borough Councils grant programme:
The following will not be considered for funding:
· Groups which do not provide services to the community, but use funds to campaign
· Activities or projects that promote religion or a political party (this does not exclude applications from faith-based groups to deliver community based projects)
· Groups that have uncommitted/unrestricted funds that could be used to fund the activity.
· The programme will not fund structural purchases.
· Groups without their own bank or building society account where cheques and other withdrawals can be signed by at least two people who are not related to each other.
The Council’s Grant Programme is based around the Strategic Purposes of Redditch Borough Council. These are:
· Help me to find somewhere to live in my locality.
· Provide good things for me to do, see and visit.
· Keep my place safe and looking good.
· Help me run a successful business.
· Help me to be financially independent.
· Help me to live my life independently.
The six Strategic Grant Funding Priorities which organisations are invited to bid into are based on these purposes. You will be asked to demonstrate how your service / project fits to the Strategic Grant Funding Priority you are applying for. Each one relates to a particular Strategic Purpose and so when scored you will be scored on how well your service / project fits the Strategic Grant Funding Priority applied for and therefore the relevant corresponding Council Strategic Purpose.
*Please note that for Redditch Borough Council’s 2017/18 grants programme organisations can only submit one application and one further partnership application per strategic Grant Funding Priority.
What can you use Redditch Borough Council grant funding for?
We prefer to give funding to support your revenue (running) costs rather than capital costs (purchase of computers, mending the roof, installing disabled access). This is because we believe revenue funding is harder to obtain from other sources, but you may be more likely to raise money elsewhere for one-off capital costs.
We give grants because we want to support voluntary sector organisations to deliver independent, sustainable services for the residents of Redditch. The Worcestershire Compact states that a grant is a “financial contribution to an activity delivered by a voluntary and community sector organisation… either to contribute towards organisational costs or to wholly or partly fund a specific piece of work.”
You can apply for funding to contribute to the costs of your whole organisation or a project – you are asked on the budget spreadsheet in question 18 to make it clear which you want.
You might want to consider the following when assessing the full costs of your services, in addition to the direct costs:
· compliance (regulatory and insurance requirements)
· income generation
· support services (otherwise known as ‘overheads’ eg premises, equipment, utilities, management salaries etc)
· responding to consultation
· governance, user engagement & representation
· innovation and quality (including research, monitoring & evaluation).
Please note that we will not fund the whole of any organisation’s costs. This is because it is not advisable for you to be totally reliant on Redditch Borough Council for your funding - we cannot guarantee any funding beyond the one-year term. Grants will only be given to support services that meet the strategic grant funding priorities of Redditch Borough Council.
Initial Eligibility Screening
We will operate an initial screening process, where we check each application form against our strategic grant funding priorities. If we do not consider that your application meets our priorities, we will reject it without assessing the whole form. This means you will hear from us in a relatively short time if your application has been screened out. If an application form is incomplete, or any information we asked for is not sent, then we will also reject the application without assessing the whole form.
Timescale for this Round of Strategic Grants
Diary Dates for Redditch Borough Councils Grants Programme / Timescale /Launch / Monday 26th September 2016
Grants Workshop / Tuesday 11th October 2016
Grant Application deadline / 4pm Friday 11th November 2016
Grants Panel Scoring / December 2016
Executive Final Approval / 17th January 2017
1st instalment of funding to be released / April 2017
Full Assessment process
Stage 1 – Initial Screening
The application will be initially screened to assess how well the application meets our strategic grant funding priorities and the purposes to which you intend to use the funding. A failure to pass this initial screening will result in the application being unsuccessful.
Stage 2 – Information
Questions 4 and 22 will be used to determine if your application proceeds to the next stages. All applicants will be informed if they have progressed to Stage 3 within 14 days of screening dates (see above).
Stage 3 – Grants Panel Assessment
Once screened, applications going forward to the Grants Panel are summarised by Officers into a short proforma which sets out the key elements of the project (as written in the application form). This is used as the basis for the assessment. The Assessment is undertaken as a group exercise involving no fewer than 3 Members. Panel members make a judgement based on the 4 point scale which as below, and against the scoring matrix over the page:-
A. No.
B. Only brief details to support this.
C. Yes but could be improved.
D. Yes and is comprehensive.
Where there are additional questions from the Panel the application form will be used to answer these and may provide any further evidence for the scoring for the assessments.
All applicants will be informed if they have progressed to Stage 4 (see above).
Section 1: Background to the project / A (0) / B (1) / C (3) / D (5) / Based on Application FormOrganisation ………………………………………... / Questions…
1 / … has clearly set out its aims and aspirations of the project and has evidenced the demand for the project. / Questions 7, 8, 10
2 / … supports the Council’s strategic purposes and is aligned with local priorities (in addition to identified theme). / Question 8
3 / … is low risk to the Council’s reputation. / Questions 4, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24
Section Score
( /15)
Section 2: Project Planning / A (0) / B (2) / C (4) / D (6)
The project …………………………………………..
4 / … has a clear outline and robust financial outline. / Questions 18 and 19
5 / … addresses the needs of people suffering social or economic disadvantage within the borough. / Question 12
6 / … gives clear details on how the project will be structured, co-ordinated and promoted. Is based within the Borough. / Questions 6, 11, 13 and 14
Section Score
( /18)
Section 3: Added Value of the Project / A (0) / B (3) / C (5) / D (7)
The project & Organisation ………………………
7 / … has provided clear evidence of a local need that is not met by current or planned provision. / Questions 10
8 / … provides realistic outcomes that clearly address the chosen theme. / Question 9
9 / … provides a robust and realistic plan for sustaining the project after the period of grant aid. / Question 17
10 / … has clearly identified the difference the project will make to the local community and highlighted the added value the organisation brings to the proposed project. / Questions 15 and 16
Section Score
( /28)
Total Score ( /61)
Stage 4 – Executive Committee
All recommended applications will be put to the Executive Committee for approval.
The Grants Panel will take into account the following when assessing the applications:
Financial assessment
A financial assessment will take place based on the following questions which may result in the application being unsuccessful if appropriate financial requirements cannot be met. If your application is unsuccessful based on the financial assessment a full report will be made available.
Question:18, 19 21 and 22.
Policies and procedures
An assessment will be made based on Question 24. We need to be satisfied that the number and type of policies/procedures required are appropriate for the size and complexity of your organisation; such as does your organisation do DBS checks? If there are any missing policies in most cases we will require them to be put in place to an agreed timetable during the term of funding.
Guidance notes
The following are the guidance notes for each question:
Q1. We need your organisation’s name and full contact details.
Q2. We need this information in case we need to contact you with a query about your application - so please name the person who is most likely to be able to help us.
Q3. What sort of group or organisation is yours?
Your constitution or governing document should provide this information, if you are unsure. We cannot give grants to individuals or private organisations - only to voluntary or community groups/organisations, which reinvest any surplus or profits, they make back in the work of their organisations. If you are a registered charity, please write in your registration number. If we haven’t listed your type of organisation, please explain what it is - e.g. it might be a community interest company or a co-operative.
Q4. Is your group or organisation formally constituted? Please include a copy for evidence.
If you are an unregistered charity/group or if your organisation has not applied for a RBC grant before please provide a copy of your constitution for evidence. If your organisation is not formally constituted you can get support and information to do this from BARN please call 01527 60282 or visit www.barn.org.uk.
Q5. How much are you applying for?
You are applying for 1 year funding so please state how much you would like here, in the box below the category of grant you’re applying for (see Priorities at the beginning of the form). Please don’t ask for more money than the maximum specified.
Q6. Are you applying for funding for your own organisation alone, or for a partnership/consortium activity?