Renfrewshire Council

Sustainable Communities Fund

Renfrewshire Council's fund for community and voluntary organisations to identify, develop or sustain local infrastructure and place-based projects with social, environmental or economic benefits, including taking on land or buildings through a community asset transfer. There are three tiers: small awards up to £10,000, intermediate awards of £10,000 to £25,000, and large capital awards up to £100,000. Revenue, capital or both can be funded, and proposals must be discussed with the council before applying. Part of the money may come from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.

Apply on the funder’s site

You could get: £10,000 – £100,000; no fixed round
Deadline: Rolling; apply any time
Effort: Heavy; budgets, references, often several stages

Who can apply

Community and voluntary organisations based in Renfrewshire that have a constitution, an organisational bank account, and members who control the direction of the organisation
Membership organisations such as sports clubs can apply, but the proposal must benefit the wider community, and the council warns the scale of benefit expected makes success challenging for them
Exploring the feasibility of a community asset transfer does not require Community Transfer Body status, but funding towards a transfer or developing a transferred asset does, and applicants should be working towards it; funding does not mean an asset transfer request will succeed
Applicants for more than £25,000 must meet a funding officer
Applicants for £50,000 or more must show a robust business case, success in levering in external funding, an overall financial strategy, the ability to spend within the council's and UK government's timescales, and either extensive community engagement and local partnerships or recognition as a key strategic partner of the council (or a Strategic Partnership Agreement)
Where the award is a subsidy, all public grants to the organisation in the last three years, including this one, must be under £315,000

What it funds

Infrastructure and place-based projects across Renfrewshire that will:

Improve the lives of local people
Build resilient communities through sustainable activities
Advance equality of opportunity and improve accessibility and inclusivity
Revenue costs: certain one-off costs such as professional fees, marketing, feasibility studies or business plans
Revenue costs: recurring costs such as salaries and overheads, for the first year only
Capital costs: specific one-off costs like building works, refurbishment, or setting up a project with tools, equipment, furniture, technology or energy saving devices
Small awards (up to £10,000): purchase of small items of equipment, looking into projects to restore or regenerate property, community engagement initiatives like surveys, information sessions or events, volunteer development programmes, small climate change interventions, and small capital investments
Intermediate awards (£10,000 to £25,000): capital or revenue costs towards feasibility studies or business plans for property development or community asset transfers, and project management costs
Large awards (up to £100,000): capital costs towards plans to take ownership of or redevelop land or buildings in your local community

The fund supports the progression of a project, so you could fund a feasibility study into procuring an asset and later apply for capital funding for works to it.

What it will not fund

Recurring costs after the first year
Funding for different projects in the same organisation
Proposals by membership organisations that benefit only their members rather than the wider community

How to apply

Discuss your proposal with the council's community planning team before applying, by email or on 0141 487 1508; they give initial feedback and may ask for more information
If applying for more than £25,000, meet a funding officer to check the project aligns with council priorities and is achievable and sustainable
Apply online through the Sustainable Communities Fund form (ArcGIS), stating which tier you are applying for
The Funding Panel of council officers evaluates the application against the criteria and makes a recommendation to the Communities and Housing Policy Board, which makes the final decision
If successful, accept the award agreement sent by email and claim the funding using its forms

The criteria are community engagement and participation, positive local impact, viability and sustainability, and strategic alignment with the fund objectives, the 7 best value themes, the Renfrewshire Council Plan 2022 to 2027, Our Renfrewshire Community Plan and Renfrewshire's Plan for Net Zero.

Help with the application, or the form in another format, is available from communityplanning@renfrewshire.gov.uk.

Have ready

A detailed project description including timelines
Basic information about your organisation and its governance arrangements
Details of all project costs, including those you are applying for
The outputs and outcomes you want to achieve and how you will measure them
A bank statement less than 3 months old
Most recent annual accounts or an income and expenditure statement, less than 15 months old, dated and signed as approved (or a link to OSCR or Companies House); new organisations give estimates for the first 12 months
A signed, dated copy of the constitution or Memorandum and Articles of Association (or a link to OSCR or Companies House)
Quotes: none for revenue under £10,000 (costs must be justified); one external quote or an itemised list with unit costs and suppliers for capital under £10,000; at least 3 external quotes and the selection process for £10,000 to £25,000; a detailed brief and at least 4 external quotes with the selection process over £25,000
For capital building works, evidence of applications for planning or building warrants or consents, with reference numbers
A business plan or funding strategy if applying for more than £25,000

Other supporting material…

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