Happy Holidays!

Whatever you are up to this festive season, the Strategic Commissioning Team and all at North Somerset Council would like to wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

We are looking forward to an even more exciting 2014 - and don't forget to keep your eye on the PLANS blog for information on funding, training and other community matters.

Thank you for supporting the blog and for contributing over the last year.

Bye for now!

Free training - building confidence for work

Building Confidence for work is a free course offered by Community Learning West and Westonworks for adults 19+ who are unemployed and/or with few or no qualifications and wish to develop confidence in applying for paid or voluntry work. It covers

• Self esteem and motivation
• speaking and listening skills
• making the most of your skills
• interview preparation
• strategies for building confidence for job interviews

The course runs for six sessions on Tuesday mornings 10.30am-1pm from the 28 January 2014 until 11 March (excluding 18 February) at the Sub Station at the Information Station, St Andrews Parade, Weston super Mare, BS23 3SS.

If you are interested in joining this course please contact JP Evans at Community Learning on 01934 426 725

Free Safeguarding Children Training

Free Safeguarding Training for anyone working with children and young people
If you work with children and young people in a voluntary or paid position then it is expected that you would have attended child protection basic awarness training. Training of this nature is a statutory requirement and commissioners of your service will be looking for this level of training before commissioning activites.

North Somerset Council offer this training for free. NSC's Child Protection Basic Awareness course is 3 hours long and suitable for workers or volunteers whose role involves infrequent contact with children, young people and/or parents or carers as well as those who have more regular contact.

2014 dates are:

1. Tuesday 21 January 09:30-12:30 (Clevedon)
2. Tuesday 18 March 09:30-12:30 (Weston super Mare)
3. Tuesday 17 June 09:30-12:30 (Weston super Mare)
4. Wednesday 3 September 09:30-12:30 (Weston super Mare)
5. Monday 10 November 09:30-12:30 (Weston super Mare)

Course content will include:

• What is child abuse and neglect
• Signs and indicators of abuse and neglect
• What to do in response to concerns
• Information sharing guidance
• Safeguarding roles and responsibilities

You should attend safeguarding and child protection training every three years.

If you are intrested in booking onto one of these courses please go to CPD Online, click on 'Services for Children and Young People' you can search for the course either using the keyword search on the right or by selecting the date.

Free trees for community groups and schools

The Woodland Trust has 3,000 free tree packs to give away to school, community and youth groups for spring 2014. Bring your community together to do something good for your neighbourhood by applying before 9th January 2014 for the chance to receive free trees in March 2014.

Mix and match the pack themes up to a total of 420 trees to create the ideal mix for your location. Each pack is worth £30, £105 or £420. All you need to do is find a suitable site and supply the volunteer planters and tree protection. One application is required per pack.

Tel: 0845 293 5689 Email: woodlandcreation@woodlandtrust.org.uk

An introduction to volunteering

A free course to help you feel more confident about becoming a volunteer.

If you are new to volunteering or looking to become a volunteer this then course could be useful to you. You will be able to

• find out about the benefits of volunteering
• explore what you can offer - your skills and qualities
• local volunteer opportunities
• feel more prepared to get out there and lend a hand

The course will run from The Carlton Centre, Carlton Street in Weston super mare on Wednesdays 1pm - 3.15pm for 6 weeks starting on the 15 January until the 26 February.

To reserve a place and for more information please contact JP Evans from the Community Learning Service on 01934 426 725 or julie.evans@n-somerset.gov.uk

December Go4Life newsletter

The latest edition of the Go4Life online newsletter Move More Monthly is now available with ideas to help you get more active.

'Other' funding opportunities

1. Garfield Weston Foundation
2. Breaks4kids – YHA
3. Tudor Trust
4. Peter Harrison Foundation (Opportunities Through Sport)
5. The Volant Charitable Trust

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Garfield Weston Foundation

What is it?

• The Trustees are keen to see applications for core and project costs for charities delivering services directly to beneficiaries, especially in the following categories:
• Arts
• Education
• Youth
• Health
• Community
• Environment
• Religion
• Welfare
• The Foundation will consider funding project and core costs, but does not fund salaries.

Who can apply?

• Registered charities. 

Deadline?

• No deadline.

Information

Email: Eform

Website: http://www.garfieldweston.org/

  

Breaks4kids – YHA

What is it?

• Help to fund youth group and school trips for children from low income households, by contributing up to 50% of the cost of their YHA accommodation and food.
• This gives children who would otherwise be left behind, the chance to be included in the trip with the rest of their group.

Who can apply?

• Children from low income households.

Deadline?

• None

Information

Website: http://www.yha.org.uk/school-trips/breaks-for-kids

Tel: 0800 0195 465

Tudor Trust

What is it?

• Support for community led groups working to high standards led by people of vision, which are committed to growth, progression and development. There is a two stage application process, and you are advised to read their guidelines and what they fund before starting the first stage application process.

Who can apply?

• Local community groups and charities.

Deadline?

• No deadline.

Information

Tel: 020 7727 8522

Website: http://tudortrust.org.uk/

Peter Harrison Foundation

What is it?

• The Foundation supports sporting activities or projects which provide opportunities for people who are disabled or otherwise disadvantaged to fulfil their potential and to develop other personal and life skills.  You can apply for any amount, and for capital projects or revenue funding.

Who can apply?

• Registered charities and societies.

Deadline?

• No deadline.
• There is a two stage application process. Fill in an initial enquiry form, and if your proposal may be of interest, you will be contacted by telephone to discuss your idea in more detail.  You may then be invited to complete a full application form. 

Information

Email: enquiries@peterharrisonfoundation.org

Website: http://www.peterharrisonfoundation.org/programme.htm

The Volant Charitable Trust

What is it?

• Set up by the author J K Rowling, the trust makes grants for charities and projects, whether national or community-based that alleviate social deprivation, with a particular emphasis on women’s and children’s issues.

Who can apply?

• Charitable organisations.

Deadline?

• The Trustees meet twice a year – in March and September – to consider applications and allocate funds.  The deadline for applications to the March 2014 meeting is 10 January 2014, and successful applicants will be notified immediately following the meeting. 

Information

Website: http://www.volanttrust.com/guides.html

£10,000 to plus funding opportunities

1. Big Lottery Reaching Communities Programme 
2. BBC Children in Need – Main Grants
3. Youth Music Programme (up to £250k)
4. Homelessness Transition Fund (up to £250k)
5. Sport England Inspired Facilities
6. Heritage Lottery Fund Young Roots Programe

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Big Lottery Reaching Communities Programme 

What is it?

• This funding is for projects that help people and communities most in need.
• Grants are available from £10,000 upwards and funding can last for up to 5 years.
• We can fund salaries, running costs, a contribution towards core costs and equipment.
• We can also fund up to £100,000 for land, buildings or refurbishment capital costs.

Who can apply?

• We strongly encourage partnerships between the voluntary and community sector and the statutory sector. 

Deadline?

Information:

Wesite: http://www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/global-content/programmes/england/reaching-communities-england

BBC Children in Need – Main Grants

What is it?

• Grants are aimed at children and young people of 18 years and under experiencing disadvantage through:
• Illness, distress, abuse or neglect
• Any kind of disability
• Behavioural or psychological difficulties
• Living in poverty or situations of deprivation
• Grants are used to fund organisations working to combat this disadvantage and to make a real difference to children and young people’s lives.

Who can apply?

• Open to charities and not for profit organisations applying for grants over £10,000 per year for up to three years.

Deadline?

• May/September/January

Information:

Email: pudsey@bbc.co.uk

Website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b008dk4b/features/cin-grants-main-index

Youth Music Programme

What is it?

• The Programme supports music making opportunities for children and young people, in particular for those in challenging circumstances.  The Programme provides funding for organisations enabling them to transform the musical experiences of young people, encouraging their talent, building their confidence, and ensuring an effective and sustainable youth music sector which serves the evolving needs of young people. 
• The programme makes grants for work that focuses on the following themes: 
• Children in Challenging Circumstances: projects which include children who are in challenging circumstances.
• Early years: the learning and development of all children aged 0-5, by ensuring universal access to high-quality music-making activities
• Encouraging Talent and Potential: to provide children with musical talent and potential opportunities to develop regardless of their background or chosen genre

Who can apply?

• Non-profit organisations that have been working for at least a year and which are based in the UK can apply.

Deadline?

• There are two funding rounds each year, and the next deadline is April 2014.  After you submit an application, you can expect a decision within eight weeks. 

Information:

Email: Eform

Website: http://network.youthmusic.org.uk/funding/what-youth-music-programme

Homelessness Transition Fund

What is it?

• The main objective of the Fund is to help prevent homelessness and rough sleeping by protecting essential services for single homeless people, and supporting these services to become financially sustainable, and supporting the introduction of innovations to end rough sleeping.

Who can apply?

• The Fund is aimed at charities, voluntary organisations and social enterprises that are delivering front-line services.  Joint and consortium bids are welcome.

Deadline?

• No deadline.

Information:

Email: fund@homeless.org.uk

Website: http://homeless.org.uk/fund

Sport England Inspired Facilities

What is it?

• Another £40 million has been invested into the Inspired Facilities grant scheme which will enable it to offer funding to community sports projects across England for another three years.
• Inspired Facilities is part of Sport England’s goal to deliver a London 2012 legacy of increased mass participation in sport. The funding is intended to breathe new life into tired facilities that can be unattractive, expensive to run and difficult to maintain. There is also money available to convert existing buildings into venues that are suitable for grassroots sport.

Who can apply?

• Community and voluntary organisations from across England can apply for grants of between £20,000 and £50,000 to refurbish and improve existing facilities, or develop an existing building for sports use in the community.

Deadline?

• The next round will be launched Spring 2014.

Information:

Email: funding@sportengland.org

Website: http://www.sportengland.org/

Heritage Lottery Fund Young Roots Programme

What is it?

• This programme is for projects that engage young people aged 11 to 25 with heritage in the UK.
• Whether restoring a vintage motorbike, designing a new nature trail or documenting changes to their community over time, through Young Roots projects young people make a real difference to the paces where they live.  In the process, their confidence grows and they learn valuable heritage and employability skills. 

Who can apply?

• We fund partnerships of heritage and youth organisations to help young people shape and deliver their own projects in safe environments.

Deadline?

• This is a rolling programme, so you can apply any time.  We will assess your application in eight weeks and make a decision.   

Information:

Email: enquire@hlf.org.uk

Website: http://www.hlf.org.uk/HowToApply/programmes/Pages/YoungRoots.aspx

£5,000 to £10,000 Funding opportunities

1. True Colours Trust
2. Allen lane Foundation
3. Rank Foundation
4. St James’s Place Foundation
5. The Foyle Foundation

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True Colours Trust

What is it?

• Grants available for one-off purposes, to help smaller organisations develop and deliver programmes for disabled children, their siblings and families.  The Trustees are particularly keen to support:
• Young carer projects
• Siblings projects
• Bereavement support
• Hydrotherapy pools
• Multi-sensory rooms
• Mini-buses

Who can apply?

• The Trust only funds registered charities or activities with clearly defined charitable purposes.

Deadline?

• You can apply any time.  

Information:

Email: Eform

Website: http://www.truecolourstrust.org.uk/

Allen Lane Foundation

What is it?

• The Foundation is interested in funding work which benefits people in the following groups, or generalist work which includes significant numbers from more than one such group:
• Asylum-seekers and refugees (but not groups working with a single nationality)
• Gay, lesbian, bi-sexual or transgender people
• Gypsies and Travellers
• Migrant workers
• Offenders and ex-offenders
• Older people
• People experiencing mental health problems
• People experiencing violence or abuse
• The grants are relatively modest. Single, one-off grants range from as little as £500 up to £15,000. Grants repeated for more than one year vary from about £500 per annum up to £5,000 per annum, for a maximum of three years.

Who can apply?

• Your organisation does not need to be a registered charity - the Foundation also funds other organisations which are not charities but which seek funding for a charitable project.  

Deadline?

• No deadline.

Information:

Email: info@allenlane.org.uk

Website: http://www.allenlane.org.uk/criteria.html

Rank Foundation

What is it?

• The Foundation makes grants of up to £7,500 for capital and one-off activity costs.
• You will need to find match funding elsewhere, as the Foundation will only provide two-thirds of the total project cost up to the value of £7,500.
• Applications welcomed for
• Youth projects
• Community care projects
• Small appeals

Who can apply?

• Registered charities and churches.

Deadline?

Information:

Email: rosamond.mcnulty@rankfoundation.co.uk

Website: http://www.rankfoundation.com/grant-applications/ 

St James’s Place Foundation

What is it?

• The Foundation’s Small Grants Programme makes grants of up to £10,000 in any two-year period for work supporting people with cancer, or supporting disabled young people.
• The Foundation makes grants for work in two areas:
• Projects that provide directly for young people under the age of 25 within the UK who suffer from physical or mental health difficulties or conditions, or a life threatening or degenerative illness or are disadvantaged.  This includes young people under 25 caring for others
• Projects that provide directly for people with cancer

Who can apply?

• Registered charities with an annual income of up to £750,000 a year can apply. 

Deadline?

Information:

Website: http://www1.sjp.co.uk/about-st-james-place/our-responsibilities/st-james-place-foundation

The Foyle Foundation

What is it?

• Grants towards helping to make the arts more accessible by developing new audiences, supporting tours, festivals, arts educational projects and support emerging new artists.
• They will also support libraries, museums or special educational needs projects.

Who can apply?

• The Foundation supports smaller charities in the UK, especially those working at grass roots and local community level, in any field, across a wide range of activities.
• You can apply for between £1,000 and £10,000, but to be successful, you need to show that this funding will make a big difference to your work.

Deadline?

• No deadline.

Information:

Email: info@foylefoundation.org.uk

Website: http://www.foylefoundation.org.uk/

£100 to £5,000 Funding opportunities

1. The Torch Trophy Trust
2. Cash 4 Clubs
3. Alec Dickson Trust
4. Tesco Charity Trust - Community Award
5. Hedley Foundation
6. The Yapp Charitable Trust
7. Hilden Charitable Fund
8. Eucalyptus Charitable Trust
9. Quartet Community Foundation Express Programme
10. Woodward Charitable Trust

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The Torch Trophy Trust

What is it?

• A trust providing bursaries to sports volunteers, including those involved in youth sport or sport for the disabled.
• Bursaries of between £100 and £1,000 are available for organisations or individuals who cannot obtain funding from any other source.
• The aim of the funding is to enable volunteers and groups to develop their skills as coaches or officials to assist their club, organisation or community to develop their chosen sport.

What can apply?

• Applications are welcome from all parts of the United Kingdom and from all sports including disability and youth.
• Applications must be accompanied by a letter from the relevant Governing Body.

Deadline?

• The 2013 deadline is Tuesday 31 December.

More information:

Email: emily.monaghan@torchtrophytrust.org

Website: http://www.torchtrophytrust.org/

Cash 4 Clubs

What is it?

• Financial assistance is available for sports clubs throughout the UK to improve facilities, but new kit and equipment, and increase sporting opportunities.
• Towards anything that will add to the sustainability and effectiveness of your sports club is eligible and match funding is not a specific requirement.

Who can apply?

• Sports clubs that are registered with their sport's national governing body or local authority can apply. Applications may be submitted at any time and are considered three times a year.

Deadline?

• To be announced in early 2014 (check website).

More information:

Email: cash4clubs@betfair.com

Website: http://www.cash-4-clubs.com

Alec Dickson Trust

What is it?

• Grants of up to £500 are available to help young people to run a project in their local area anywhere in the UK that involves local volunteers.

Who can apply?

• If you are under 30 years of age, are involved in volunteering or if you ar running a project in your local community or have found it difficult to find funding.

Deadline?

• There is no deadline.

More information:

Email: alecdicksontrust@gmail.com

Website: http://www.alecdicksontrust.org.uk/

Tesco Charity Trust - Community Award

What is it?

• The scheme provides one-off donations of between £500 and £4,000

Who can apply?

• Registered charities and not for profit organisations who are working on local projects that support children and their education and welfare, elderly people and adults and children with disabilities.
• Applications must be made via the online application form.
• There are two categories of community awards:
• Grants to support children's welfare and/or children's education
• Grants to support elderly people and/or adults and children and disabilities
• A wide range of work can be funded, but salary costs are not eligible.

Deadline?

• There are four rounds of funding each year. Up to date information can be found here.

More information:

Email: charity.trust@uk.tesco.com

Website: http://www.tescoplc.com/index.asp?pageid=121#ref_tescocharitytrust

Hedley Foundation

What is it?

• A charitable foundation which supports young people, the disabled and the terminally ill.

Who can apply?

• Grants of up to £5,000 are available registered charities to projects that support:
• Young people  - their education, recreation, support, training, health and welfare
• Disabled people and terminally ill – provision of specialist equipment and support for carers

Deadline?

• No deadline.

More information:

Email: pbarker@hedleyfoundation.org.uk 

Website: http://www.hedleyfoundation.org.uk/

The Yapp Charitable Trust

What is it?

• Core funding for the running costs and salaries to small registered charities with an income of less that £40,000 a year.

Who can apply?

• Any registered charity who is undertaking with:
• Elderly people
• Children and young people aged 5-25
• People with physical impairments, learning difficulties or mental health challenges
• Social welfare – people trying to overcome life-limiting problems of a social, rather than medical, origin (such as addiction, relationship difficulties, abuse, offending)
• Education and learning (with a particular interest in people who are educationally disadvantaged, whether adults or children)

Deadline?

• None

More information:

Email: Eform

Website: http://www.yappcharitabletrust.org.uk/

Hilden Charitable Fund

What is it?

• Priorities include Community Based initiatives for Disadvantaged Young People aged 16-25, Homelessness, Penal Affairs, Asylum Seekers and Refugees. The average grant is around £5,000.

Who can apply?

• Will not give grants to individuals.

Deadline?

• There are no application deadlines. 

More information:

Email: hildencharity@hotmail.com   

Website: http://www.hildencharitablefund.org.uk/index.htm

Eucalyptus Charitable Trust

What is it?

• The foundation makes grants (usually under £5,000) to voluntary and community organisations in England and Wales to carry out ‘general charitable activities’.  In the past, grants have been made to national organisations and local charities.

Who can apply?

• Local and national charities can apply in writing to the address below

Deadline?

• No deadline, process is ongoing.

More information:

Phone: 0117 905 4000

The Eucalyptus Charitable Foundation

c/o KMPG LLP

100 Temple Street

Bristol

BS1 6AG.

Quartet Community Foundation Express Programme

What is it?

• Grants (up to £2,000) from the Express Programme are awarded to small, local voluntary and community organisations where a small amount of funding can make a difference in disadvantaged areas. The work of your organisation must benefit people who are disadvantaged or isolated. People may be isolated due to poverty, disability, age, location or culture. Priority is also given to groups that:
• Enable people to take opportunities that would otherwise not be available to them.
• Reflect the concerns and priorities of people living and working in the area.

Who can apply?

• Applicants do not have to be a registered charity, as long as the organisation has charitable aims, a constitution, a Management Committee, use of a group bank account with at least two signatories, and a child protection policy if applicable.

Deadline?

• Applications can be submitted at any time.

More information:

Email: applications@quartetcf.org.uk

Website: www.quartetcf.org.uk 

Woodward Charitable Trust

What is it?

• Grants for small  scale, local work in a variety of areas such as projects with children, homeless people, minority groups, disability, arts and offenders. 
• Three kinds of grants are available:  small grants up to £5,000, large grants over £5,000 and children’s summer play scheme grants of £500 to £1,000.

Who can apply?

• Grants are allocated to charities with an income of less than £250,000 a year.

Deadline?

• Grants are assessed twice a year in January and July. 

More information:

Website: http://www.woodwardcharitabletrust.org.uk/index.html