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Improvements to Reaching Communities
On Wednesday 28 April Big Lottery Fund introduced a series of improvements to the Reaching Communities Programme designed to make it easier to apply. Reaching Communities continues to be one of our major programmes and most of its grants will go to the voluntary and community sector. If you apply for less than £40,000 for each year there will be a simpler application process and quicker decision making than if you are asking for more than this. This improvement should benefit smaller organisations in particular, and provided activities are community and not religious activity, PCCs' are eligible to apply. Later this year the programme will be expanding to consider applications for community building projects - so watch this space for more information.
SUPPORT FOR RURAL COMMUNITY OWNED SHOPS
The Plunkett Foundation manages the village CORE programme supporting the establishment of community owned shops in rural
communities. This includes the establishment of a new community shop or saving an existing shop by transfer to community ownership.
The Plunkett Foundation is also helping community shops, such as Yarpole, to stock and sell more local food through the Making Local Food Work Programme.
For more information call 01993 810730 or see www.plunkett.co.uk
Current funding opportunities
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Community groups invited to apply for share of £500,000
***NEWS RELEASE ***
BIG LOTTERY FUND
BIG STEPS TO MAKE FLAGSHIP
FUNDING PROGRAMME EVEN BETTER
At least £100 million a year is to be invested across England by the BIG Lottery Fund in a new improved version of its flagship Reaching Communities programme for each of the next five years.
The new funding which will be introduced this spring comes with two distinct improvements.
First, applicants seeking smaller sums of money will enjoy a simpler application and assessment process.
Second, an improved decision making process will ensure that all applicants will learn at an early stage whether their project is in with a chance of receiving funding. For those invited to the second stage, the likelihood of success will be much higher, making work on completing a full application more worthwhile.
Also in the pipeline for later in the year is a third element, a dedicated capital stream offering funding within the familiar Reaching Communities application process to respond to the high, unmet demand for funding for community buildings. The changes are a response to the Fund's major public BIG Thinking consultation last year. In addition, the Big Lottery Fund is promising more informative feedback on all unsuccessful applications.Over 75 percent of BIG Thinking's respondents said that it was better to give early decisions on applications, including rejecting those likely to be unsuccessful, based on a few key questions at the enquiry stage.
Sanjay Dighe, Chair of Big Lottery Fund England Committee said: "Reaching Communities is the centrepiece of our funding for 2010 and beyond and the enhancements we are making are a response to popular demand. Voluntary and Community Sector groups have welcomed the chance to access as much as £500,000 for up to five years but many have also told us that in the current, uncertain times, they would value a version of the programme that is easier to access. That's why we are introducing a lighter touch Reaching Communities programme for people seeking sums of up to £40,000 a year.
"It is business as usual, so projects should continue to get their applications in and we can support many more grassroots organisations to develop ideas that will flourish and benefit the wider community."The dedicated capital element which will be available in the Autumn is likely to fund medium sized refurbishments, new builds or extensions to community centres, village halls or other community use buildings meeting local community needs and aspirations.
The main aim of Reaching Communities is to help bring real improvements to communities and to the lives of people most in need. Over 1,400 awards have been made which translates into £336 million Lottery good cause money for communities across England since the first award was announced in 2006.
Full details of the Big Lottery Fund programmes and grant awards are available on the website: www.biglotteryfund.org.uk
In addition to the Diocescan Partnership Fund , we also have access to information about other sources of funding through the networks we are linked into, and through access to the Directory of Social Change, Directory of Grant Making Trusts.
If you need us to find a source of funding for your project, please call 01584 871089 or email j.gibbon@hereford.anglican.org with an outline of your project and we will do our best to help you.