The Change Project is offering free online training to professionals in Essex on ‘Engaging perpetrators in domestic abuse programmes’ on Wednesday 17th January 2024. The training will cover topics such as how to recognise domestic abuse, how to approach the conversation with families to engage with domestic abuse support and how to refer perpetrators on to Domestic Abuse Programmes.
The Change Project is a domestic abuse charity offering free funded places on our Domestic Abuse Programme in Colchester working with perpetrators of domestic abuse and supporting victim/survivors.
If you are interested in attending this free training course please click on the link below and register.
Alternatively, if you are interested in hearing more about the funded places and making a referral, please email us at: clare.whalley@thechangeportfolio.org
Grants plus business support are available to social entrepreneurs that are looking to start or grow an existing social venture. The funding is being made available through the UnLtd the leading provider of support to social entrepreneurs in and around the UK.
The grants are being made available through two funding streams:
Grants of up to £18,000 to grow an existing social enterprise that has been operating between 1 and 4 years.
Grants of up to £8,000 for social businesses not yet established or been running under a year.
UnLtd are committed to providing 50% of their awards to Black, Asian and minority ethnic social entrepreneurs, and/or disabled social entrepreneurs.
To be eligible applicants need to be:
Aged 16 and over
Living in the United Kingdom
Willing to participate in a learning experience
Working to benefit people living in the United Kingdom
Have a real social impact
Fulfil a clear need and demand
Have clear outputs and goals
In addition to the Awards, UnLtd has two focus areas where they think social entrepreneurs can make a big difference. UnLtd has dedicated teams and specialist support available to social entrepreneurs with ideas to help people in the areas of:
Healthy Aging
Access to Employment
The closing date for this funding round is the 31st December 2023.
The Rayne Foundation makes grants to charitable and not-for-profit organisations across the UK in four areas of special interest.
Our areas of special interest are:
Young people’s improved mental health;
Arts as a tool to achieve social change;
Improved quality of life for carers and for older people;
Better opportunities for refugees and asylum seekers.
As an independent funder, an important part of our role is to support work which is untried, tests new approaches and has clear objectives. We favour work which could change the way issues are tackled in our society and which could have lessons for others beyond the funded organisation
We receive many more applications than we can fund and for this reason have a two-stage application process to reduce the time and effort you spend making your application. It may help to look at examples of recent grants before you apply.
Characteristics of the organisations and projects that we fund
We look for all of the following characteristics in the organisations and projects that we fund:
Wider than local application and awareness of the bigger picture
We favour organisations and projects which could change the way issues are tackled in our society and which could have lessons for others beyond the funded organisation. We look for good ideas that other people can learn from, creative ways of tackling entrenched or new problems, and ideas which have potential to be replicable. As a result, we are more likely to fund projects which are untried or in their early-to-mid stages of development than established, long-running services. The organisations we fund will demonstrate an awareness of what is going on in their field nationally and how their work complements what else is available. They will be able to tell us why they are best placed to deliver the proposed activity.
Real expertise and sector knowledge
The organisations we fund will be experts in their field. They will have a good understanding of the needs of their client groups and how to support people to bring about change. They will demonstrate capacity for listening and responsiveness to beneficiaries and partners. They will be thoughtful and creative in their thinking about how to meet those needs. We will assess whether plans to deliver the work are realistic and achievable. We will also look at the financial aspects and what might happen beyond the life of the grant.
Commitment to demonstrating results and sharing learning
The organisations we fund will be able to explain why they believe their activities will lead to positive change for users and how they will gather evidence to demonstrate this. We favour organisations which think carefully about how to evaluate their work and which plan to share their learning widely. If the work could be funded on an ongoing basis by statutory agencies, we want to understand if the evidence is sufficient to meet the needs of potential commissioners.
Strong leadership, management and track record
We want to see that funded organisations are well governed and managed, that they have good finance and risk management systems, and that they have the necessary skills and expertise to deliver their objectives. We also believe in backing good people and will favour organisations led by capable and committed people who are ambitious for their organisations and their users. We want to see a track record.
Direct benefits to vulnerable and disadvantaged people
We prefer to fund work which brings clear and direct benefits to vulnerable and disadvantaged people. This means that we are more likely to fund front-line organisations and will only fund second-tier or research organisations for projects which have a demonstrable benefit to end users.
Practical aspects
What sort of organisation can we fund?
We fund charitable and not-for-profit organisations. Large, national organisations or ‘household name charities’ are unlikely to receive a grant unless they are the only organisation in a position to tackle a particular problem. We do not fund statutory bodies such as hospitals, local authorities, government departments or schools.
What sort of grant can we make?
We will consider funding salaries and project costs (including a reasonable contribution to overheads or on-costs) for up to three years. We do consider grants towards an organisation’s core costs but we only tend to award these when an organisation is making a step-change in the way that it works or tackles a particular issue and where a core grant will provide greater flexibility during the transition period.
Typical grant size
Our grants typically fall in the range of £10,000 – £20,000 per annum for up to three years. We prefer to fund alongside others as we are unlikely to be able to fund your project in full. We will also consider the size of your request relative to your overall turnover. Small, newer organisations in particular are unlikely to receive a larger grant from us if that would equate to more than 10% of total income, unless it is towards and organisation’s first paid post. Please consider all of these factors when deciding how much to ask for.
Finances
We consider that organisations with high levels of unrestricted reserves are in less need of our funding. This means that organisations with more than nine months’ running costs in unrestricted reserves are less likely to receive support. At the same time, organisations with tiny reserves or an overall deficit will need to convince us that their organisation is viable and they are taking action to increase reserves.
Cabinet Member for Health, Adult Social Care and ICS Integration, Councillor John Spence said: “Our new carers’ strategy for Essex is aimed at ensuring high-quality information guidance and advice, that carers know their rights and that they feel well supported.
“Grants from this fund will particularly help the last of these, as local organisations and charities will be able to identify those projects which will best enhance the lives of the carers in their part of Essex.”
This fund will enable the development of projects that complement and are integral to the Essex wide carers offer, and that of partner organisations’ services supporting carers of all ages. The aim is to build more community based local provision to support carers within the communities which they live.
Applications open today and close on 30 January 2024. They will be reviewed by local panels in each of the Alliance Partnership areas. Please circulate to anyone you think might be interested and for any enquiries contact essex.carers@essex.gov.uk
Registered charities, not-for-profit organisations, and schools/PTAs can apply for grants of up to £3,000 for projects that are of benefit to their local community.
The funding is made available by the Ford Britain Trust to support a range of projects focusing education, environment, children, the disabled, youth activities and projects that provide clear benefits to the local communities.
Applications will be considered from all UK locations. However, organisations based in Essex (including East London), Bridgend )including South Wales), Southampton, Daventry, Manchester and Liverpool – areas close to Ford locations – will be given priority.
Funding will support capital projects such as refurbishments, or expenditure on items such as furniture, equipment or computers.
There are two types of grants to apply for:
Small grants for amounts up to £250. The small grants programme is currently closed.
Large grants for amounts over £250 and up to a maximum of £3000. The deadline for applications to the large grants programme is the 31st January 2024.
New funding scheme to help voluntary, community, and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations in England improve their energy efficiency.
The £25.5m VCSE Energy Efficiency Scheme is now open to help voluntary, community, and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations in England improve their energy efficiency.
It is part of the package of over £100 million of support being delivered by the government to help frontline delivery organisations with the increased cost of living.
The scheme will be delivered by a consortium of partners, led by Groundwork UK and supported by Energy Saving Trust, Centre for Sustainable Energy, Locality and Social Investment Business.
The VCSE Energy Efficiency Scheme will have 2 elements:
Eligible organisations can apply for the cost and delivery of an independent energy assessment. This will help identify how to reduce bills through measures such as improving or installing new energy features in the building, or changing how energy is used. These assessments will be useful to organisations whether or not they apply for the second element. This part of the scheme is now open for applications, and will remain open until August 2024.
Organisations with an energy assessment may then be eligible to apply for a capital grant to install the recommended energy efficiency measures in their premises. This part of the scheme will open to applications in January 2024 and grant rounds will also run until August 2024.
To apply for an independent energy assessment, organisations must:
be based and operating in England
be a VCSE organisation, with charitable, benevolent or philanthropic purposes
be delivering frontline services or operating a hub that delivers multiple frontline services
be able to evidence the need for energy efficiency support
be able to evidence that they are financially sustainable
not be suitable for blended finance or loan support through other energy focused schemes
Additional eligibility criteria will apply to the capital grants. These criteria will focus on the organisation’s relationship to their building and the evidence and impact of the requested energy measures.
Priority will be given to organisations:
for whom energy is the biggest concern
directly supporting individuals and communities with critical needs, particularly those related to the rising cost of living
with a turnover of less than £1m a year
Practical support will be available to help organisations manage capital installation projects. All measures will need to be installed and paid for by March 2025.
The Strengthening Communities grant programme aims to support small, grass roots organisations who are embedded in the community, working within the most deprived areas of the UK. Through this grant programme we want to make sure that our funding reaches organisations that provide services which are widely accessible to the whole community and respond to, and address the needs of the people living in it.
We fund established organisations with a track record of delivering services directly to beneficiaries and want to fund work that enables:
People from across the community to participate in activities which improve connectedness, opportunities and wellbeing
People who are excluded, vulnerable or facing other forms of hardship to have access to community-based services that support positive lasting change
A stronger, active, more engaged community
Key grant details
Grant size:
£20k – £70k per year (see FAQs for how much to apply for)
Length:
1-3 years (most grants are for 3 years)
Decision timescale:
Within 6 months
Deadlines:
none
Qualifying criteria
Please only apply for this grant if you meet the following criteria:
Organisation size:
£20k – £500k
Location of work:
UK only, both physically based and working within or immediately next to an area within the 10% most deprived areas in England and Scotland and within or immediately next to an area within the 15% most deprived areas in Northern Ireland and Wales
Funding covers:
Running costs
Organisation type:
Community-led charities and not for profit organisations
Grants of up to £2,000 are available to charities, housing associations, schools and social services providing support for individuals and families across the UK who are in financial need.
The Cosaraf Charitable Foundation’s Hardship Grants will support individuals and families who have exhausted all other sources of funding and are struggling with everyday costs, such as basic living expenses, household items and utilities, work- or education-related expenses, or rent arrears.
Priority will be given to:
the most financially excluded people
families over individuals
those with caring responsibilities
items that will make the most difference to the individual/family’s long-term future
Other than in exceptional cases, Hardship Grants will only be made available for:
Household items (white goods and occasionally other items i.e. sofas, wardrobes etc.)
Basic Living Expenses (Utilities or food)
Work- or education-related expenses (interview clothes, school uniforms, laptops)
Rent arrears and Council tax arrears, but only where there is a clear and obvious risk of homelessness (for rent arrears involving a social landlord please outline what support has already been offered to your tenant)
Contribution to immigration-related costs, where the current immigration status directly causes financial hardship to the applicant
Applications can be made at any time and are assessed every six weeks.
Cabinet Member for Health, Adult Social Care and ICS Integration, Councillor John Spence said: “Our new carers’ strategy for Essex is aimed at ensuring high-quality information guidance and advice, that carers know their rights and that they feel well supported.
“Grants from this fund will particularly help the last of these, as local organisations and charities will be able to identify those projects which will best enhance the lives of the carers in their part of Essex.”