GRASSROOTS GRANTS

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

WHAT IS GRASSROOTS GRANTS?

HOW LONG WILL GRASSROOTS GRANTS RUN FOR?

WHAT IS THE MAIN AIM OF THE PROGRAMME?

WHO IS THE LOCAL FUNDER FOR THE PROGRAMME?

WHAT IS AVAILABLE FOR HAMPSHIRE, THE ISLE OF WIGHT, PORTSMOUTH & SOUTHAMPTON?

IS MY GROUP ELIGIBLE FOR A GRANT?

WHAT SORT OF GROUP OR ORGANISATION WOULD NOT BE ELIGIBLE?

HOW MUCH CAN I APPLY FOR?

WHAT CAN I SPEND IT ON?

HOW DO I APPLY?

HOW CAN I FIND OUT MORE?

Click here to dowload the FAQs as PDF

WHAT IS GRASSROOTS GRANTS?

Grassroots Grants is a grant scheme funded by the Government Office for the Third Sector and run locally by the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Community Foundation with the support of its partner organisations.

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HOW LONG WILL GRASSROOTS GRANTS RUN FOR?

The programme will run for 3 years from July 2008-March 2011.

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WHAT IS THE MAIN AIM OF THE PROGRAMME?

To increase the small grant funding available to community groups to help them develop and become more rooted in their communities.

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WHO IS THE LOCAL FUNDER FOR THE PROGRAMME?

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Community Foundation (HIWCF) together with its Partners is the Local Funder for Grassroots Grants across Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Portsmouth and Southampton. HIWCF's Partners are:

Southampton Voluntary Services,
Community First for Portsmouth
Isle of Wight Community Council

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WHAT IS AVAILABLE FOR HAMPSHIRE, THE ISLE OF WIGHT, PORTSMOUTH & SOUTHAMPTON?

Nearly £2.2 million will be available to small voluntary and community groups across Hampshire & the Isle of Wight. The table below shows how the money has been split across the 4 key areas of the county; Portsmouth, Southampton, the Isle of Wight and the rest of the county.

GRANTS

Grant allocation not distributed by the end of each year will be returned to the Treasury - money cannot be rolled over to the following year.

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IS MY GROUP ELIGIBLE FOR A GRANT?

The purpose of the programme is to support and develop voluntary and community groups, many of whom are dependent on volunteers. Community groups are at the heart of building stronger communities. The kinds of groups that could benefit from Grassroots include: mother and toddler groups; after school groups; youth clubs; self help groups for people with mental and physical health issues; projects working with the learning or physically disabled; social and cultural groups; community sports groups; activity groups for older people; support groups for people from ethnic and other minorities; groups run by local people who want to tackle local issues. The list is endless but the common theme is that most of these groups are led by volunteers and live a hand to mouth existence.

Your group must be:

• Not-for-profit and active in their community for not less than 12 months at the time of application
• Able to evidence income of less than £30,000 per annum averaged over the last 3 years.
• Mainly volunteer led
• Connected with and/or meeting the needs of the local community
  

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WHAT SORT OF GROUP OR ORGANISATION WOULD NOT BE ELIGIBLE?

We will not be able to fund the following:

• Individuals
• Statutory organisations, such as Local Authorities, schools and the Police Force
• Regional or local offices of a national organisation
• Arms length public sector organisations that are controlled wholly or in part by, for example Local Authority, a Primary Care Trust or agencies of these
• Any party political activity
• Commercial ventures
• Organisations for the sole benefit of relief of animals or plants
• Organisations working in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland
• There are some restrictions on the types of activities that can be supported for Asylum seeker groups - funding cannot be used for the provision of services to asylum seekers when those services are inconsistent with immigration laws or Home Office policy.
  

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HOW MUCH CAN I APPLY FOR?

The maximum any organisation can be awarded is £5,000 over the life of the Grassroots Programme (July 2008 to March 2011) either as a one-off amount or spread over this period.

For example: £5,000 award total could be spent in Year 1 of the programme
OR

£5,000 could be awarded over the 3 years as a £2,000 award in Year 1, £1,500 in Year 2 and £1,500 in Year 3.

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WHAT CAN I SPEND IT ON?

Small grants are intended to respond to the diverse needs of community organisations and therefore will be used to fund a wide range of activities.

Examples of what can be funded are:

• The purchase of equipment, like a computer, oven, furniture
• The costs of putting on a local event or workshop
• Staff costs to enable the employment of individuals
• Contribution to rent costs (related to activities/service delivery)
• The cost of attending a conference or event
• Training for volunteers
• Additional activities to expand an existing funded project
• Activities that support community activity
• Activities that meet an identified need in the local community
• Funding to support an organisation to achieve a quality or other standard relevant to their activities

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HOW DO I APPLY?

Before you apply for a Grassroots Grant, please read the Criteria and Guidelines to ensure that your group is eligible for a Grassroots Grant. If you meet the criteria, please fill in an Application Form. You can contact one of our Partners based in your local area to help you with your application.

Grant-Making Partners:

Hampshire
Hampshire & Isle of Wight Community Foundation
info@hantscf.org.uk
www.hantscf.org.uk

Southampton
Southampton Voluntary Services
information@southamptonvs.org.uk
02380 228291
www.southamptonvs.org.uk

Portsmouth
Community First for Portsmouth
enquiries@portsmouthccs.org.uk
02392 827110
www.portsmouthccs.org.uk

Isle of Wight
Isle of Wight Rural Community Council
mail@iwrcc.org.uk
01983 524058
www.iwrcc.org.uk

Grants panels for Grassroots will be held every 6 weeks.

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HOW CAN I FIND OUT MORE?

If you'd like to discuss applying for a Grassroots Grant, please contact us using the details below.

Email: infograssroots@hantscf.org.uk

Hampshire & Isle of Wight Community Foundation
Sun Alliance House
Wote Street
Basingstoke
Hampshire
RG21 1LU

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Click here to dowload the FAQs as PDF