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Hello, This video will give you an overview of the
Communities and Families Fund, a small grants programme funded jointly by the Scottish Government
and the Big Lottery Fund Scotland.
The fund is focused on supporting local projects that help families and communities give children
between 0 and 8 the best start in life.
We'll look at what types of projects and costs we can fund, and some of the practical
aspects of the programme
To get a grant through the Communities and Families Fund, your project must help achieve
at least one of the outcomes - or long term changes - that we want to see as a result
of this funding. Specifically, we want to fund projects that
will:
Improve the quality of life of younger children through early learning, play and child and
maternal health support, or
Enable communities to get involved in shaping and delivering support for families.
A wide range of projects could help achieve these outcomes, but here's a few possible
examples.
We could fund: Sessions for parents of younger children to
promote a healthier active lifestyle, or to promote IT as a way to spend quality, educational
time with their children
Or we could fund: Community projects to develop play areas for
local children and families, or deliver a community fun day to engage children and families
in play activities
We could also fund: Projects that support better nutrition for
children through a healthy breakfast club, or a community garden for young families to
grow fresh produce.
Finally, we could also fund: Family support and childcare projects, such
as developing or improving community-led playgroups and crèches, or delivering therapeutic family
play.
As mentioned, the Communities and Families Fund is a small grants programme, and by this
we mean that we can give out grants of between - £250 and £10,000, which must be spent
within 12 months.
There are no deadlines or closing dates, but you should aim to apply at least three months
before you need to spend the money you request. The Fund can cover all of your project costs.
However, we can also fund part of a larger project if you have other funding in place.
The Communities and Families fund is open to applications from voluntary or community
organisations, including charities, community groups, companies limited by guarantee, and
other not for profit organisations. Community councils can also apply, as can statutory
bodies such as including local authorities, health boards or NHS departments
However, we can't accept applications from individuals, for-profit organisations, or
schools, but a parent council or equivalent can apply so long as they are delivering the
project directly
There are then four key things that an applicant organisation must have in place to be eligible
for Communities and Families funding: Firstly, all applicant organisations must
have a governing document, such as a constitution Secondly, they need a management committee
or board, with at least 3 unrelated members Thirdly, they must be able to provide recent
approved accounts, or a financial projection if newly established
Finally, they must have a bank account in the same name as the group, which requires
at least 2 signatories to withdraw funds
We can fund a range of things for eligible projects, and a selection of the most common
fundable costs are shown here. These include sessional workers, materials and equipment,
transport and activity costs, minor refurbishment of buildings or green spaces and project overheads.
There are also a range of things we can't fund, including salaries for people directly
employed by your organisation, things you have already paid for, major refurbishment
and general fundraising. For a full list of what we can and cannot
fund please read the guide for applicants which you can download from our website.
For more information, visit our website at the address shown on screen. You can also
find answers to key questions on the Ask BIG site, or email us directly at enquiries.scotland@biglotteryfund.org.uk
-- we happy to help, and to discuss your project ideas.