Community support funding

 Apply for up to £15,000 of funding to support communities with:

  • community mental health and wellbeing
  • connecting communities to services (e.g. transport, social, digital inclusion, accessibility, outreach, language support, etc)
  • supporting the voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) sector with bid writing and funding support
  • volunteering (recruitment, training and retention) - how to work with volunteers, and community networking

This grant has been funded by the Government's Shared Prosperity Fund.

Refer to our community funding policy and community funding privacy notice for further information.

Organisations

The following can apply:

  • parish councils
  • charities
  • community and voluntary groups
  • clubs
  • not-for-profit organisations
    and
  • religious bodies

School PTAs, friends of groups and health charities can also apply if their projects benefit the wider community and support our aims.

Joint applications between organisations are welcomed as it can help deliver and enhance projects. One organisation needs to apply and take the lead during the application process.

Funding and eligibility

We can help fund:

  • core running costs (heat and light, insurance rent or premises costs, office costs, etc)
  • programme or activity costs which are directly relevant to the application
  • projects or activities that support positive climate or environmental sustainability
  • travel and transport costs associated with events in Northamptonshire
  • travel and transport relating to the activity in the application, either in North Northamptonshire or within 60 miles of the applicant’s main address
  • hire or purchase of equipment for meeting project needs, including sports equipment
  • venue hire (excluding hire of group’s own premises) relating to the application
  • technical assistance (where third-party support is required to meet the project outcomes)
  • festivals and events within North Northamptonshire
  • capital costs
  • publicity and marketing (but not political lobbying) 
  • volunteer expenses, including volunteer training costs

We can't help fund:

  • organisations that hold more than 12 months unrestricted operating costs within their assets, unless a good reason can be demonstrated
  • activities which are discriminatory, political, or are classed as religious conversion
  • activities where there is statutory funding provision available
  • costs that can be claimed back from elsewhere (e.g. VAT)
  • costs that are not auditable (e.g. cash payments unsupported by an approved financial system)
  • costs towards banking charges or repayment of debt
  • payments made to individual members of the applicant group or organisation who have a personal financial interest
  • retrospective costs (e.g. activities already completed or costs incurred before the agreement of funding)
  • programmes or activities which are considered the core activity of national or regional government, government departments or arms-length body, such as health or education
  • gifts and prizes
  • alcohol
  • employee costs (including salaries)
  • political lobbying
  • training or facilitation costs
  • works to facilities that are or should be subject to an insurance claim
    and
  • projects already funded by other NNC funding

Organisations must:

  • demonstrate value for money in the investment of public funds (environmental, social and economic)
  • identify and quantify beneficiaries and impact of investment 
  • consider on-going sustainability
  • ensure the identified funding priorities are met in the application

The following conditions apply for successful applicants:

  • funding awards are paid upon receipt of a signed grant agreement, annex and accompanying documentation
  • your organisation will need to comply in accordance with the provisions of and principles of the Data Protection Act 2018
  • this grant is not transferable between projects or organisations
  • a grant is awarded on the basis of information provided in the application. Should this information be found to be misleading, or the supported project is cancelled, the council will be entitled to be repaid the grant monies
  • applications must be for a non-profit making purpose
  • it is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure they have all relevant consents and permissions in place (i.e. planning permission, DBS checks, and licenses). A grant award does not give permission to proceed with any work without the correct statutory authorisation
  • successful grants awarded must be spent within twelve months of the award and must meet and comply with the grant arrangements
  • successful grants awarded must comply with appropriate monitoring systems, including a final report and any relevant documentation such as receipts
  • applications made for funding requests over £15,000 will be rejected

Apply

To apply, you will need your:

  • certificate of public liability insurance in the sum of at least £5 million
  • constitution or governing documentation
  • equality policy
  • year end accounts
  • child protection statement (if applicable)
  • vulnerable adults statement (if applicable)

Once you have applied, we may ask for further information and supporting evidence.

Our Grants Funding panel can award grants up to £2,500. This panel will make recommendations for grants over £2,500 to our Oversight Board, who will make a final decision.

Last updated 30 October 2023