Big Lottery Fund

Inverness to host Village SOS roadshow

Rural communities in Scotland will receive free advice and support in setting up their own community enterprises when the Village SOS Roadshow stops off at Inverness on Friday 28^th October. The event at Eden Court Theatre is one of 24 taking place across the UK in support of BIG‘s Village SOS Active Campaign designed to kick-start rural regeneration in local communities.

Tickets are free and you can book your place here

The roadshow events will present a unique opportunity for communities to get hands-on advice from rural and enterprise specialists from Plunkett Foundation and its partners Development Trusts Association Scotland and Co-operatives UK.

Speakers include:

• John Fellows, Head of Communication and Marketing at Big Lottery Fund Scotland
• Duncan MacInnes, Chair of Sleat Community Trust
• Ian Cooke, Director of Development Trust Association Scotland

Inspirational examples of community enterprises will also be on-hand to share their journey with other communities.

The Village S0S campaign also includes a UK-wide advice line for people in rural areas looking to set up and run new community enterprises that will breathe new life into their communities, from community-owned shops and pubs to rural transport schemes. For further information register your details here or call our advice line on 0845 434 9123.

Progress on dormant bank accounts

The Scottish Government has asked BIG Scotland to work up plans for distributing dormant accounts in Scotland around four themes. As part of this process we are consulting with key stakeholders during events in October 2011 on the needs that could be addressed with this funding and our proposed plans for distributing it.

The consultation process will ensure that the funding administered by BIG achieves the greatest impact while meeting the four themes previously agreed by the Government following a Scotland-wide consultation in 2008/09. These are

• Create opportunities for children and young people
• Address health inequalities through increased activity
• Strengthen inter-generational activities
• Create community-based employment opportunities.

There will be around £3 million to distribute in Scotland which is less than was previously anticipated but can still make a significant impact in Scotland. We have been developing our thinking on how this money could be invested and are suggesting that the overall aim of the programme should be “to support children and young people most in need", with the beneficiary group 'children and young people' being the common thread linking together the four themes.

We look forward to hearing what others think of our proposals during this consultation after which we will submit a strategic plan for the programme to the Scottish Government with a view to distributing the first funding by Spring 2012.

More details will be available soon on our Scotland Big Blog and Facebook page.

Latest Investing in Communities awards

Families and children with extra support needs were the biggest winners when we announced the latest awards from our Investing in Communities programme. Over £2 million was shared by seven organisations including The Tree Club which is run by parents of children and young people with severe learning disabilities in West Lothian. The group received £390,500 to increase the number of places they can offer at their after school and holiday clubs.

Tree Club Chair, Claire Dooley, whose two youngest children 13 year-old Patrick and Laura, 10, both use the club said: “The Tree Club is no ordinary after-school club. We believe that children should have fun regardless of their disability and we are run by parents because as parents of children with disabilities we know what’s needed. This is somewhere children and families can go and be accepted for who they are with superb staff that are committed to helping everyone reach their full potential and this grant from the Big Lottery Fund means that more families who need this kind of support will be able to access it.”

A full list of all seven groups sharing in £2,155,921 can be found here.

A UK update

BIG is currently delivering and developing a number of UK programmes which Scottish groups may be interested in. Here’s the latest on each one:

• Improving Futures will give vulnerable young children across the UK a better future by supporting their families. We have selected 20 voluntary-sector led partnerships across the UK that can offer joined-up support for these families at a local level, including four in Scotland. We have awarded development funding to enable the projects to develop their full application and business plan by the end of October 2011.
• Realising Ambition focuses on outstanding projects across the UK that have already proven their effectiveness in supporting young people at-risk, helping them to fulfil their potential and avoid pathways into offending. BIG has appointed a consortium, led by Catch 22 as its preferred UK Partner to help deliver the programme. BIG will assess the submitted business plan and, if satisfied, will appoint Catch 22 as its UK Partner for the Realising Ambition programme in early Spring 2012.
• Forces in Mind aims to support the psychological well-being and successful transition of veterans and their families into civilian life. We have awarded the Confederation of British Service and ex-Service Organisations (COBSEO) preferred bidder status to form the Forces in Mind Trust. It is expected that criteria for applications to this programme will not be available until the July 2012
• International Communities is a rolling programme open to UK-based voluntary sector organisations who are working with partners in the developing world. Grants between £50,000 and £500,000 are available for projects lasting between two and five years.
• The Millennium Now programme, aims to fund inspirational projects reflecting the five Millennium themes: Encouraging Environmental Sustainability, Investing in Education, Places - tackling issues related to rural areas, urban or coastal areas, Connecting Communities and Promoting Science, Technology and Health. As part of this we have been working with Channel 4 on the ‘Big Decision’ to ask the British public how they would spend the £10 million available. The public had until 14 October to make their contribution. BIG will now begin developing the programme around the types of project that the public have identified.

What's your story?

Here at BIG we are always keen to hear your Lottery funded success stories to help us publicise the good work you do in your local community. We are currently looking for inspirational stories to include in a range of promotional material including our  BIG magazine, our Scotland wide publication that highlights how Lottery funded projects are changing lives up and down the country and our new Scotland Big Blog. It might be a beneficiary whose personal story will bring to life the fabulous work that you do, it could be an up and coming community event with scope for great pictures or it could be someone whose gone that extra mile to make you’re project a success. We’re also keen to receive your pictures and any online media you have produced.

So if you’ve had a BIG Lottery Fund grant from any of our programmes, including Awards for All, and you have a story you want to share with others email us or call Landa Rolland, Senior Press Officer on 0141 242 1458.

Your small grant queries

This month’s burning questions come from those interested in applying to our small grants programmes in Scotland. Here’s what’s been on their minds recently.

Q: We notice that we don’t need to send supporting documents with our initial small grants application but what do you require from us AFTER you’ve offered us a grant?
Once you are offered a grant we will ask you return specific documents which must meet the following requirements.  All of your governing documents, including your constitution, financial accounts and bank account must be in the same group name. If you are a registered company and/or charity all documents must be in the same name registered with Companies House or OSCR. A bank account must have at least two unrelated bank signatories.

If you do not meet these requirements please make the necessary changes BEFORE you apply. We will withdraw our grant offer if you do not meet these requirements.

Q: We are a parent council. Can we pass our grant to our school to order equipment through the local authority to save on VAT?
A: No, this would be a breach of the terms and conditions of grant agreement. The grant-holding organisation must remain in control of all expenditure on the project. It therefore cannot pass funds to any other organisation to place an order or run the project on their behalf.

Q: Our project is based in a school or during school hours. Are we likely to receive 100% of our project costs?
A: This is unlikely unless you are applying to 2014 Communities for extra-curricular activity projects. Applications for both curricular and extra-curricular activity will be expected to secure a proportion of the total funds from other sources, such as their Local Authority or through self fundraising. If you’re able to demonstrate that your project is completely extra-curricular, we will consider funding 100% of the amount you request.

Forward Planning

As Investing in Communities 2010-2015 is well into its second year, staff at BIG are looking at the projects that we are funding very carefully and what's become clear is that it's never too early to start thinking about your future.

If you are a current Investing in Communities grant holder and you're entering the penultimate year of grant management then speak to your grant officer about future planning now.

While our lead times remain as predicted the two stage process means you have to count both in terms of looking at how long an application might take to get processed. Also you might need to put some thinking into developing your project - all of which takes time and effort.

Beginning that considered planning and having conversation with our development officers sooner rather later might save the heartache of releasing you've left your project with too little time to secure vital funding and ensure its future in the long run. Contact your grant officer now on 0141 242 1400.