Community Foundation for NI: Co Op Foundation Future Communities Grants

Overview

Who can apply?

They can fund UK-based charities, social enterprises and other voluntary and community organisations that do not mainly aim to generate profits for private distribution. Your organisation must be constituted, have a UK current bank account in the organisation’s name, and the majority of the Board or management committee unrelated.

To be eligible, your organisation must:

• Deliver activities aligned to the aims of the programme
• Deliver activities in Northern Ireland
• Have a clear vision for the future of your community/community of interest

Fund focus:

Through this fund they want to support organisations who have a focus on developing communities for the future.

They are particularly interested in, but not limited to, drawing on the voices of young people and developing young people to be the leaders, co-operators, organisers and activists in and for these future communities.

They want to support organisations that are working to bring their vision for future communities to life.

They want to see cooperation, leadership, and people working towards the kind of communities they want to live in, building on the assets within their communities to support that vision.

They will be looking for a compelling vision for geographical communities, and/or communities of interest. They want to see what can be done to help ensure a fair community, built upon co-operative values of self-help, self-responsibility, democracy, equality, equity, and solidarity.

They encourage you to think about partnering with other members of the community e.g. to share costs and solutions if you have similar needs. However, they recognise this may not always be appropriate depending on your planned use of the grant.

What can you apply for?

They want to support what groups and communities need, rather than what they think they might need. You can apply for a grant from £3,000 up to £10,000 to support your organisation. Uses of the grant may include, but are not limited to:

• Contribution to core costs, including staffing costs
• Equipment
• Investment that helps you scale
• Project costs

What they’re looking for

Applications will be assessed against the following criteria:

• Your organisation meets the eligibility criteria detailed above
• You have a clear plan for the use of the grant
• You can demonstrate how the grant will support your organisation and your local community to thrive
• You can show how your organisation will continue to be viable in future