Funding and Resources for Community Projects
This is a selection of useful sources of funding and guidance for community projects. This list is not exhaustive. In addition, there may be local and regional funding opportunities. Contact your regional development agency, the community development team of your local authority, your local Council for Voluntary Service and your diocese for further information on local funding and initiatives.
Be aware that most public funding bodies will not fund services or events where the key purpose is "promotion of religion"; mission or proselytising; acquisition of religious artefacts or publications for the use of followers in worship; or the cost of supporting religious personnel in their normal duties in their place of worship. Your application to public funding bodies will be looked at more favourably if you can prove the benefits to the whole community.
Resources, Training, Advice and Guidance
FUNDERS
This is a selection of funding sources for community activities. Check the details for yourself, but these notes may help direct you to possible sources for your particular project.
Adventure Capital Fund
www.adventurecapitalfund.org.uk
The Adventure Capital Fund is an ambitious new style of funder for community enterprise. They aim to back community enterprises that could make a real difference, and by offering a combination of financial investments and expert support, to help these enterprises to become stable, soundly run businesses that will survive long into the future.
Allchurches Trust Ltd
Ecclesiastical Insurance Group
Beaufort House
Brunswick Road
Gloucest GL1 1JZ
Tel 01452 336370
Email ATL@eigmail.com
www.allchurches.co.uk
The Allchurches Trust, which is funded by Ecclesiastical Insurance Group, offers grants for the development of church buildings to accommodate additional and community uses. An application form can be obtained from their website or from the Company Secretary, address as above.
Church and Community Fund
Church House
Great Smith Street
London SW1P 3AZ
Tel 020 7898 1767 or 1541.
Email ccf@c-of-e.org.uk
www.churchandcommunityfund.org.uk
Amongst other objectives, the Fund makes grants to projects engaging with social issues and involving the welcoming and encouraging of children and young people. They support both capital and revenue projects, such as the adaptation of church buildings for wider community use or employing a youth worker. The maximum grant is £15,000, but most grants are around £5,000.
Church Urban Fund (CUF)
Church House
Great Smith Street
London SW1P 3AZ
Tel 020 7898 1647
Email enquiries@cuf.org.uk
www.cuf.org.uk
Priority will be given to: projects based within areas where there are the greatest levels of deprivation in England, projects identified by Dioceses as being key to the reduction of deprivation in their area, projects which, by their nature, are limited in the funds they can access and therefore are in particular need of Church Urban Fund support and projects where CUF support will make the greatest impact. Contact your Diocesan Link Officer for further information. A list of the Link Officers can be found on the CUF website.
The City Bridge Trust which makes grants of £15million a year to charitable projects benefitting the inhabitants of Greater London. Go to http://www.bridgehousegrants.org.uk/citybridgetrust/
The Coalfields Regeneration Trust
Head Office
Silkstone House
Pioneer Close
Manvers Way
Wath Upon Dearne
Rotherham S63 7JZ
Tel 0800 064 8560
Fax 01709 765 599
Email info@coalfields-regen.org.uk
www.coalfields-regen.org.uk
The Coalfields Regeneration Trust is dedicated to improving the quality of life for people in Britain's coalfield communities. Their stated mission is to lead the way in coalfields regeneration and to restore healthy, prosperous and sustainable communities. They aim to fund projects that are seeking to tackle geographical isolation, exclusion from services in areas such as finance and health provision, projects which aim to encourage learning and personal development, formal and informal and for all ages, and projects that are supporting people into the world of work. Projects which build on active citizenship and local participation or dealing with debt and proverty are also welcomed. There are also six regional offices for England which have specific additional funding streams.
Communitybuilders
www.communities.gov.uk
/communities/thirdsector/communitybuilders/
Communitybuilders is a £70m investment fund run by Communities and Local Government and the Office of the Third Sector.
The purpose of the fund is to help strengthen multi-purpose, community-led organisations across England with a mixture of financial and advisory support.
They want to support 'community anchor organisations' to gain long term financial stability so they can meet the needs of their communities for generations to come.
Communitybuilders will provide a mix of loans, grants and non-financial support at different stages of the project cycle.
Organisations that are eligible for funding will have the following characteristics:
- Community control by local residents and/or representatives of local groups
- Able to address a wide range of the neighbourhood's needs in a holistic way
- Include all sections of their community
- Facilitates and supports community development and enterprise in the local area.
Community Development Foundation
This £4 million grant programme aims to create more opportunities for face-to-face dialogue and collaboration between different faiths within local communities. Grants of up to £6000 are available for faith, interfaith, voluntary and community sector groups and organisations working at a local level.
For more information: http://www.cdf.org.uk/web/guest/grassroots-grants
A Community Spaces grant programme
A £50m Lottery-funded grant programme called Community Spaces will provide grants and support to community groups wanting to make their neighbourhoods cleaner and greener.
Community Spaces will help local people improve and create play areas, community gardens, parks, wildlife areas, ponds, courts, village greens and churchyards.
Community Spaces is funded through the Big Lottery Fund and will make grants of between £10,000 and £49,999 and some limited grants of up to £450,000. The small and medium grants will be available until January 2011. Applications for the large and flagship grants will be open from summer 2008.
Not-for-profit community groups based in England are eligible to apply, including church-based and faith groups. Projects must be within two miles of a residential area and open to the public.
For further information about Community Spaces, and to find out how to apply, telephone 0845 3671 671 or visit http://www.community-spaces.org.uk/.
Esmée Fairbairn Foundation
The Esmée Fairbarn Foundation is one of the largest independent grantmaking foundations in the UK. They are prepared to make grants to organisations which aim to improve the quality of life for people and communities in the UK, both now and in the future. With an annual grants budget of around £30 million across the UK for charitable purposes in four programme areas: Arts & Heritage, Education, Environment and Social Change: Enterprise and Independence.
NB. Maintenance of individual places of worship (including parish churches) is only supported through grants to a number of independent specialist conservation and preservation trusts - see Grants for the Conservation of your Church's Contents.
Future Builders
www.futurebuilders-england.org.uk
Futurebuilders England is a unique government-backed fund offering support and investment to third sector organisations to deliver public services. They aim to offer a combination of loans, grants and professional support to build the capacity of third sector organisations who want to deliver better public services.
Government funding
A website that provides information on government grants for the voluntary and community sector from a range of government departments.
Heritage Lottery Fund 'Heritage Grants' Scheme
Heritage Lottery Fund
Head Office
7 Holbein Place
London SW1W 8NR
Tel 020 7591 6042
www hlf.org.uk
The 'Heritage Grants' programme offers grants of more than £50,000 for projects which conserve and enhance our diverse heritage, or encourage more people to be involved in their heritage, or both. To be eligible, your project must also make sure that everyone can learn about, have access to and enjoy their heritage; that your project is linked to the national, regional or local heritage of the UK and how you will protect its significance
Heritage Lottery Fund 'Young Roots' Scheme
The 'Young Roots' grant scheme offers grants of between £3,000 and £25,000. The scheme aims to involve 13-25 year-olds in finding out about their heritage, developing skills, building confidence and promoting community involvement. 'Young Roots' projects should stem directly from young people's interests and ideas, harnessing their creativity and energy and helping them work with others in their local community. To be eligible, your project should be related to the local and culturally varied heritage of the UK, be delivered by a partnership, cost no more than £50,000 and last for up to 18 months.
National Lottery 'Awards For All' Scheme
Phone: 0845 600 20 40
Textphone: 0845 755 66 56
Email: general.enquiries@awardsforall.org.uk
www.awardsforall.org.uk
'Awards for All' is a joint Lottery grants scheme aimed at local communities, supported in England by the Arts Council England, the Big Lottery Fund, the Heritage Lottery Fund and Sport England.
This funding scheme offers small grants (£300 - £10,000 in England / £500 - 10,000 in Scotland and Northern Ireland / £500 - £5,000 in Wales) to local groups.
To be eligible you need to show how you will meet at least one of the following aims: to extend access and participation by encouraging more people to become actively involved in local groups and projects, and by supporting activities that aim to be open and accessible to everyone who wishes to take part; to increase skill and creativity by supporting activities which help to develop people and organisations, encourage talent and raise standards; to improve the quality of life by supporting local projects that improve people's opportunities, welfare, environment or local facilities, for example through voluntary action, self-help projects, local projects or events.
Regional Development Funds/Regional Community Development Funds
Your regional development agency may also have some funds for community projects as well as further information on local sources of funding and grants. Check the website of your regional development agency.
The Tudor Trust
The Tudor Trust is an independent grant-making charitable trust which supports organisations working across the UK. Tudor aims to support work which addresses the social, emotional and financial needs of people at the margins of our society.
RESOURCES, TRAINING, ADVICE AND GUIDANCE
The following organisations offer information on sources of funding, as well as advice on fundraising, finance and budgeting.
Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations (ACEVO)
This is the professional body for the third sector's chief executives, with over 2000 members. Their website contains resources for the sector's leaders, with a view to increasing the sector's impact and efficiency. One key publication is the Essential Guide to preparing successful funding applications which covers, for a wide audience, the disciplines involved in researching, and drafting effective applications to trusts, Lottery and statutory sources. The Guide can be downloaded from the ACEVO website for the sum of £12.50.
BASSAC
BASSAC is the national network of multi-purpose community-based organisations, dedicated to tackling the causes and effects of poverty, exclusion and discrimination. As a national umbrella association, they aim to support organisations helping deprived neighbourhoods across the UK by supporting, advising and representing member organisations in key policy areas, information sharing and developing the multi-purpose approach. They publish several useful toolkits, among them "Sustaining Grants" which can be downloaded from their website.
Community Mission website
http://www.communitymission.org.uk/
This website is jointly hosted by Livability (formerly the Shaftesbury Society) and Tearfund
Community Mission is a partnership started by Tearfund and Livability. We believe in faith in action and that a commitment to integral mission is at the heart of the gospel. Community mission is the outworking of that commitment. Both organisations have decades of experience of working alongside people affected by poverty, and pursuing justice in the UK and across the world and both are passionate about the unique role that the local church plays in continuing Jesus' mission to bring good news to the poor.
The website has helpful resources for churches and community projects: relevant training and events, inspiring stories and practical tools. It also produces a free monthly eNewsletter with funding updates, training and events and stories. To subscribe, visit http://www.communitymission.org.uk/
Church Urban Fund (CUF)
The Church Urban Fund has developed the Church Community Value Toolkit together with the Commission on Urban Life and Faith, and the Churches Regional Commission for Yorkshire and the Humber. The Toolkit is a way for churches to show what they contribute to their community in terms of outputs and outcomes. In particular, there are calculations that can demonstrate the financial contribution of a church and ways to identify a church's distinctiveness. The Toolkit is there to be used as people see fit, perhaps in support of a grant application or in negotiations with others such as the local authority, the Local Strategic Partnership, or the Primary Care Trust. The Toolkit can be downloaded from CUF website.
CUF has also set up CUF Xchange (www.cufx.org.uk), a website providing a platform for projects working in poor and disadvantaged communities, to share their own insights and to highlight approaches which are effective, practice which is distinctive and specific obstacles, which prevent development.
Churches' Community Work Alliance (CCWA)
The CCWA initiates, supports and encourages community development work in the life of the churches. Their website contains resources, toolkits and funding advice.
Councils for Voluntary Service (CVS)
These are the local bodies which provide support at local level to the voluntary and community sector. They can provide advice on grants available and often support in the application process.
The National Association for Voluntary and Community Action (NAVCA) is the national voice and umbrella body.
For NAVCA go to: www.navca.org.uk
For a directory of local CVS go to www.nacvs.org.uk/cvsdir/
The Community Development Foundation
The Community Development Foundation is the leading source of intelligence, guidance and delivery on community development in England and across the UK. CDF is a non-departmental public body and a registered charity supported by the Department of Communities and Local Government. A good resource for up to date information on government policies and initiatives and recent research. Also runs grant programmes around building and developing communities.
External Funding Bulletin (incorporating Lottery Monitor)
A concise practical newsletter published 10 times a year provides an independent and objective information on how to access funds, on partnership funding, on eligibility criteria, on best practice as well as up to date information on new programmes from Government, EU, Regional Development Agencies etc.
Faithaction Magazine
Faithaction helps the Church to contribute towards the local regeneration of of their communities. Their website is a one-stop shop conduit aiming to help simplify complex government procedures for community leaders. It includes exclusive interviews, case studies, shared good practice, guidance on funding, events and seminars, news items relevant to the faith community and government updates, especially on the latest funding initiatives.
FaithAction
This is a newly-formed independent charity funded by the Cabinet Office to form and support a national network of faith-based organisations delivering public services. It also sends out a weekly newsletter informing members and other subscribers as to current changes in government policy, funding opportunities, training, events and resources. For more information and to subscribe to the newsletter go to: www.faithaction.net
Faith Based Regeneration Network (FbRN)
The Network is drawn from nine different faith traditions. It was established in 2001 by and for regeneration practitioners who identify with faith traditions, or who work with or for faith community organisations. As well as enabling the sharing good practice across the different faiths, it also aims to establish a common voice to communicate with government and other relevant authorities about regeneration and community development issues. The Network organises training seminars and publishes toolkits to build the capacity of faith groups by identifying, demonstrating and promoting good practice. The publication Tools for Regeneration. Practical Advice for Faith Communities includes, among other things, advice on fundraising and resource mobilisation and on setting up and managing a community organisation.
Faith Regen Foundation
Faith Regen Foundation, along with its commercial subsidiary Faith Regen UK, is a multi-faith national charity working in partnership with Black Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) and faith communities to address poverty, regenerate deprived areas and provide a range of enablement services.
Their resources include the Faith Communities Toolkit, a resource for businesses to understand faith communities better, a Good Practice Guide on Engaging and Empowering Faith Communities in Housing and Regeneration and the Capacity Building Toolbox Programme, which delivers free management training and support to voluntary and community groups.
Faithworks
Faithworks is a movement of thousands of individuals, churches and organisations motivated by their Christian faith to serve the needs of their local communities and positively influence society as a whole. Members and Affiliates enjoy the benefit of the Faithworks library of resources, including funding information, which have been put together with the aim of equipping churches to serve their local communities professionally, in a way that is consistent with their Christian ethos.
FunderFinder
A small UK charity producing software, such as for budget-writing, and other resources, mainly for grant-seekers. They specialise in information and advice about charitable trusts and foundations that fund in the UK. It is aimed at both people looking for funding for an individual and at people looking for funding for community groups or voluntary organisations.
National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO)
The National Council for Voluntary Organisations has produced a free six-part pack called Introductory Pack on Funding and Finance for small and medium-sized voluntary community organisations (available on their website). The pack covers: sustainable funding, financial management, fundraising, trading, procurement and contracting and loans and other forms of finance.
National Hubs
A group of six national partnerships called national hubs which offer free services, information and support to the voluntary and community sector. They cover six topic areas: Finance, Governance, ICT, Performance, UK Workforce, Volunteering. Each hub is a partnership that combines the expertise and knowledge of a range of support agencies.
Parish Resources for Stewardship
The Parish Resources for Stewardship website contains useful resources and advice for parish treasurers, project treasurers, Gift Aid secretaries and all those who have a concern for making sure the church has a firm financial base for carrying out its mission and ministry. It includes advice on fundraising, Gift Aid, setting up a Friends scheme and parish giving.
Planning for Real
Planning for Real is a whole process of community consultation. It begins with contacting the local community networks and reaches a conclusion with the formation of an Action Plan for taking forward the decisions made during the process. One of the main features is the building of a three-dimensional model. It helps the local "ownership" of the project if this is done locally, either by adults, or more commonly, in the local school. This begins the process of looking at the area as a whole - finding where your house is, tracing your regular journeys, and considering what needs to be done to improve community wellbeing. Of course, it can be revisited at any point; models are often kept and used many times.
The Planning for Real events are held in venues convenient for local people, as many as required. Sometimes an event is arranged for a specific group, perhaps young people, or Asian women.
Rural Community Councils
www.acre.org.uk/zRCCNETWORK.htm
The ACRE Network consists of 38 Rural Community Councils throughout England. RCCs are charitable local development agencies, generally based in counties, which support and enable initiatives in rural communities. They can provide advice on grants available and often support in the application process.
This is Church
www.thisischurch.com/getyourmoney.htm
A very user friendly website set up by St Mark's Church, Bedford, Diocese of St Albans following their successful fundraising project for a new community centre in the Brickhill area of Bedford. The aim is to share their experiences and provide practical help.
Volunteering England is an independent voluntary agency committed to supporting, enabling and celebrating volunteering in all its diversity.
Their work links research, policy innovation, good practice and grant making in the involvement of volunteers. They offer an array of services designed to help and support everyone who works with volunteers.
November 2007, February & April 2008
