GrantRadar

Nottinghamshire County Council

Councillors' Divisional Fund

Each Nottinghamshire County Councillor has a Councillors' Divisional Fund (CDF) budget of up to £3,000 a year. They use it to give small one-off awards to organisations, charities and community groups that actively support the community in their electoral division. There is no open application round: a group asks its County Councillor, who puts the request through the council's system. Awards must be over £100, and a single payment from one councillor cannot exceed £1,000, although two or more councillors can make a joint award above that. Awards made from April to August 2026 are mostly £100 to £500, to groups such as PTAs, sports clubs, churches, parish councils and CICs.

Apply on the funder’s site
You could get
Up to £1,000
no fixed round
Deadline
Rolling
apply any time
Effort
Light
short form, little evidence needed

Who can apply

  • Organisations, charities and community groups in the councillor's electoral division in Nottinghamshire whose work actively supports the local community
  • Parish and town councils are eligible
  • District and borough councils can receive funds only as accountable body for an informal community group or to provide a service such as a venue for a free community event
  • Profit-making organisations, and schools or others with statutory funding for the same purpose, are funded only where the wider community (not just paying customers) benefits
  • Individuals can be funded only exceptionally, where the councillor is assured the award is the most appropriate support and brings demonstrable benefit to the wider community
  • New organisations can be funded but face extra checks
  • The applicant needs a bank account for BACS payment
  • Groups apply through the County Councillor for the division where the project is

What it funds

  • One-off items of expenditure for proposals that actively support the local community in the councillor's division and fit the County Council's strategic objectives
  • General running costs of not-for-profit or community organisations and local charities can be funded, except salaries and main office rent
  • Funding need not be earmarked for a specific activity or event, as long as the councillor is assured it will benefit the wider local community
  • Can contribute to match-funded projects
  • Recent examples include equipment (laptops, tents, kit, a projector), room and pool hire, community event costs, day trips, refreshments for toddler and older people's groups, and school enrichment activities

What it will not fund

  • General charitable donations
  • Anything that creates an ongoing financial commitment, e.g. administrative support
  • Salaries and main office rents
  • Anything contrary to County Council policy
  • Opposing or supporting any proposal (including planning proposals) that the County Council must determine or may formally comment on
  • Politically affiliated activities, pressure groups, or groups set up to support or oppose a regulatory decision
  • Awards of £100 or less
  • Supplementing district or borough councils' own budgets
  • Projects with ongoing maintenance or running costs, unless a third party takes these on or the councillor commits future CDF allocations
  • Direct payments to third-party contractors, except in exceptional circumstances where the applicant has no suitable bank account
  • Any award from which the councillor benefits financially

Profit-making organisations, and bodies with other statutory funding for the same purpose (e.g. books for schools and academies), are funded only where the councillor is assured the wider community benefits. Awards over £1,000 to one organisation in a year, awards to individuals, and awards to help set up a new organisation trigger extra monitoring. Repeat awards to the same organisation in a year are for exceptional cases or coordinating/accountable bodies only.

How to apply

  1. Find your County Councillor (https://www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/council-and-democracy/councillors/contact-a-councillor) and get in touch with them about your project or cause
  2. If the councillor agrees to support it, they submit the application through the council's electronic system, with details of any other County Council funding applied for or received, and how the proposal meets the council's strategic objectives
  3. Democratic Services checks that the proposal meets the scheme rules and processes it; the councillor must declare any personal interest
  4. If approved, payment is made by BACS; you must acknowledge the County Council's funding (e.g. a notice or a mention in your publications, annual report or minutes), without naming the councillor on permanent notices or plaques

The councillor may signpost you to a more suitable fund instead, e.g. the County Council's Local Communities Fund

In a non-election year, councillors must submit applications by the first Friday in March (financial year end). In a County Council election year, no requests are accepted from the end of February until after polling day.

Unused funding, e.g. for a cancelled event or because match funding failed, must be returned within 30 days of telling the council; a sample of awards is audited each year

More like this

Other grants open to organisations like yours.