County Councillor Grants

Each County Councillor (Member) has a budget of £8,000 to be spent on local projects or initiatives in their electoral division. Potential applicants must contact their county councillor before applying for a grant.

When to apply

The County Councillor grants will open on 1 June 2013. All applications must be received in the County Treasurer’s Department by 28 February each year and only Grant approvals made and received by that date will be paid in that year.

Grant criteria and eligibility

Applications can be made by organisations and groups located within the administrative County of Hampshire, but the organisation or group must have:

• A formal letter heading
• Independently verified statements of accounts or at least, a formal letter from an independent person with the requisite ability and practical experience to carry out a competent examination of the accounts
• A published statement of its objectives
• A committee or board of governors or trustees
• Minuted meetings and an annual general meeting

Applications will not be accepted from individuals (e.g. for personal sponsorship), however, an organisation that meets the criteria may apply for a grant on behalf of an individual member. Applications from religious groups may be considered, but the application must show that the project will bring wider community benefit.

Examples of organisations that could apply

This is not intended to be an exhaustive list – other organisations who seek to serve the people of Hampshire may well qualify, provided that they satisfy the Council’s Open for Business priorities:

Parish Councils (for specific projects only), Scout, Guide, Boys and Girls Brigades, local organisations, religious groups where the project will bring wider community benefit, local Shopmobility schemes, local Citizens’ Advice Bureau, local Riding for the Disabled, village or community hall associations,  Age Concern, Mencap, British Legion, Services’ benevolent societies, parent teacher associations (formally constituted), organisations promoting the locality, nursery education groups, etc.

Organisations that are not eligible

• Any political party
• Any organisation with political aims
• Any campaigning group (CPRE, Friends of the Earth, etc )
• Any organisation that raises funds nationally – for national distribution
• Any organisation that is principally funded by national government (SEEDA, SEERA, National Parks, District Councils, Natural England, Highways Agency)
• Any government quango
• Any pressure group formed solely for one issue.
• Any group formed to oppose any proposed/likely county council policy
• Any part of Hampshire County Council.

Types of projects and initiatives covered by the scheme

Groups and organisations can apply for funding for both revenue (one-off) and minor capital projects. It is hoped that grants would benefit a wide range of groups/activities: for example, vulnerable children or adults, young people, facilities for older people, community facilities, parish councils (but only for specific projects), minor traffic or safety works, local environment projects, and community safety.

Application process

How applications will be assessed

Applications for grants must demonstrate that their project or initiative contributes to one or more of the County Council’s Open for Business Plan 2011-13 priorities:

1. Improve outcomes for vulnerable and disadvantaged groups
2. Enhance community engagement and partnership working – strengthening and empowering communities
3. Support and enable sustainable economic development
4. Enhance Hampshire’s environment and promote sustainability
5. Develop new models of service provision, meeting the challenges of reduced resource and evolving national policies, whilst improving the quality of service for users
6. Improve customer service
7. Deliver efficiencies and expenditure reductions, supported by effective management of resources
8. Rebuild training, leadership and competence frameworks to enhance the effectiveness, capacity and flexibility of staff and managers

Financial issues

There will be a minimum grant set at not less than £100 with the maximum set at £8,000. Grant payments will be one-off, and there should be no expectation of future funding. The grants are expected to support projects and not to contribute to an organisation’s revenue costs: for example, annually recurring costs. The scheme may be used to facilitate match funding from other organisations, but match funding is in no way a requirement. The County Council is not able to undertake feasibility work to assess the merits of an initiative/project nor to assist applicants in making their bid beyond advising on the application process.

Publicity

Support from the Council’s Corporate Communications Team will not be available to publicise individual Members’ grants. Councillors must deal with all correspondence and media comment that arises from their grants and fully recognise with the media and others that the grant has been provided by the County Council in furtherance of the County Council’s priorities.

Audit and reporting

Funding recommended by members will be processed and payments made by the County Treasurer’s Department. The scheme will be advertised county wide with a focus on the County Council’s website.

For grants over £2,000, applicants will have to report to the county councillor who has made the grant on how the money was spent. The County Council will report annually on the out-turn and nature of grants made by county councillors.

Application guidance notes and online form