Denby Dale Parish Council Grants Scheme
The Parish Council operates two grant schemes. These are detailed below:
Small Grants Scheme
The small grants scheme offers grants of up to £500 to community groups. The amount of money available is set annually in the budget. The scheme is advertised at the end of March in the local newspaper and application forms are available from the beginning of April from the Parish Clerk. The deadline for completed forms is usually towards the end of May and all applications are considered by the Finance and General Purposes Committee at its June meeting.
Guidelines for Awards under the Small Grants Scheme
1. Schools will only be grant aided for environmental purposes or, if in the opinion of the Parish Council it is for the benefit of the wider community.
2. The Parish Council will only grant aid Churches for parish clocks and possibly environmental purposes. Church Halls can also be grant aided if they are used by the community.
3. It is very rare that grant aid is made available for the provision of clothing except where it is for a communal use.
4. Grants would not generally be given to large scale projects unless they were nearing completion.
5. Grants should not be made retrospectively.
Community Grant Aid
Grants awarded under this scheme are for larger amounts. This money is aimed principally at capital projects, which offer improved facilities to a large area of our community. The size of any grant awarded is at the discretion of the Council and is generally in line with a theme decided by the Council (e.g. youth facilities). Grants are generally awarded via a commissioning process, however, this does not exclude application by bona-fide local groups looking to provide or improve local facilities.
There is no formal application procedure but groups must consider whether their project is applicable and that it does not seek to duplicate or compete with an existing facility or compromise the viability of an existing facility.
The Council will require the following information before it can consider any application:
• A brief description of the project together with any relevant plans, detailing the numbers of people to benefit including their age range and details of any consultations carried out
• A business plan
• If planning permission is required or has this already been granted
• The group must be properly constituted and must provide a copy of its constitution and business plan. The constitution must include the name of the group, its purpose, the structure of the committee which should include at least Chair, Secretary and Treasurer, the banking arrangements, which should require at lease two signatories and a statement covering the disposal of assets on dissolution signed by the Chair.
• An equal opportunities statement
• A copy of the formation minutes with the adoption of the constitution signed by the Chair
• The names and addresses of the officers
• The bank account details including account number, sort code, branch address and signing arrangements including the names addresses and signatures of all signatories, stamped and authenticated by the branch.
• Original bank statements covering at least the last six months including the latest statement (to be returned) together with photocopies (to be retained)
• An up to date statement of accounts signed by the Chair
• The amount of grant required
• A concise break down of costs, including details of estimates
• A cash flow projection signed by the Chair
• A break down of other sources of funding already achieved or applied for
• An estimate of any on-costs and how these will be sourced
• If young people are involved, a Child Protection Policy
• A risk assessment
Any group awarded a grant under this scheme will be expected to keep the Council informed of the progress of its project with six-monthly reports and provide an end of grant report together with statement of accounts and original receipts, together with any other relevant information including photographs and newspaper cuttings.
The Parish Council reserves the right to impose restrictions or other conditions on any recipient of a grant.
It must be understood that any grant must only be used for the purpose for which it was awarded unless the written approval of Denby Dale Parish Council has been obtained, and that any unspent portion of the grant must be returned to the Parish Council.