The National Lottery Community Fund: The People's Projects

Overview

After a national campaign the winners will be decided by public vote. The idea is to give Lottery players and the public a say in how National Lottery money is spent.

They’re looking for projects that:

• bring people together and build strong relationships in and across communities
• make communities stronger and more inclusive
• help people or communities develop the skills and capacity they need to achieve their ambitions
• involve the people you support in the design, development and delivery of your project
• support people to create meaningful change in their local community or help it thrive
• help people and communities connect by engaging with nature
• build connections across different cultures, different communities, or both.

They’re looking for imaginative ideas from organisations that have already done good work in their local community. They’ll prioritise smaller organisations with annual turnovers of under £500,000.

They’ll award grants of up to £70,000 to 57 winners across the UK. They will offer up to 38 runner-up organisations awards of as much as £10,000.

This is an exciting opportunity, but it will take time and commitment over several months to get your project the votes you need to win. Before deciding to apply, consider if you’re happy running a public campaign that could bring lots of publicity to your project. They’ll provide free support and training to help you do this.

Who can apply

They’re looking for projects with a strong local presence and an established track record in their area, which show what amazing things communities across the UK can achieve. You may work with a broad mix of people in your local area, or with particular groups of people – sometimes called communities of interest. Whatever you do, your project should bring people together and help your community to prosper and thrive.

Before deciding to apply, consider if you’re comfortable running a public campaign which will take commitment over several months, and which could bring lots of publicity to your project. You’ll also need to think about how a media campaign could help you to tell the story of your organisation or project, and the difference it will make to your community.

What types of organisation can apply

You can apply if you’re a:

• voluntary or community organisation
• registered charity
• constituted group or club
• not-for-profit company or Community Interest Company (CIC)
• school (as long as your project benefits and involves the wider local communities around the school)
• statutory body (including town, parish and community council).

If you’re a smaller organisation

They’re keen to fund smaller organisations and groups too. So they’ll look at your income when they’re making a decision.

Board or committee members

Organisations that apply must have at least two people on their board or committee who are not connected.

By connected, they mean:

• married to each other
• in a civil partnership with each other
• in a long-term relationship with each other
• living together at the same address
• related by blood.

All companies who apply must have at least two directors who are not connected any of these ways. This also applies to companies that are also registered as charities.

Your project must do at least one of the following:

• bring people together and build strong relationships in and across communities
• make communities stronger and more inclusive
• help people or communities develop the skills and capacity they need to achieve their ambitions
• involve the people you support in the design, development and delivery of your project
• support people to create meaningful change in their local community or help it thrive
• help people and communities connect by engaging with nature
• build connections across different cultures, different communities, or both.

They’ll also prioritise applications from groups that:

• show a strong track record in their local area
• have the support of their communities and will address their needs
• have an annual turnover of under £500,000
• show they’ll be able to plan and deliver a public facing campaign, with our support and training
• have project ideas that will capture the imagination of voters.

Other organisations can apply, but they’re less likely to shortlist them.

You can apply if you have a current grant from The National Lottery Community Fund. But your application should not duplicate any work we’re already funding you to do. We’ll check this when we review your application.

How they'll shortlist projects

They’ll check that your organisation is suitable to apply and eligible for the funding you’ve asked for.

They’ll then review the information you’ve provided in your application and consider:

• how you meet at least one of the criteria in what they’re hoping to fund
• how you meet the list of applications they’ve said they’ll prioritise
• how suitable the project will be for a public campaign that will feature either on TV or in a newspaper
• the activities you’re hoping to deliver, as well as your project theme and location, so that they have a good mix of projects across the region you’re based in.

They'll support a range of projects

They want to fund projects covering a variety of different communities, themes, and places. They'll make sure the funding is spread across the UK. They’ll also try to fund a range of different types of activities being delivered across projects and regions.

Visit The People’s Projects website for examples of the kinds of projects they have funded in the past.

You must involve your community in your project

They believe that people understand what's needed in their communities better than anyone else. It’s important to them that you involve your community in the design, development, and delivery of the activities you’re planning.

If your project works with children, young people or vulnerable adults

You need to have a policy in place that explains how they'll be safe.

What you can spend money on

They can fund projects costing up to £70,000 in total. They expect most of the funding to be for running costs for your project. But you can also apply for equipment or items up to the value of £10,000 if you need them for your project activities.

You must spend the money within 12 months of getting it.

They can fund:

• events and activity costs
• equipment and materials
• up to £10,000 in total towards larger or longer-lasting items (such as furnishings for a community space)
• staff costs
• people’s time (that may not be staff)
• training costs
• transport
• utilities bills or running costs related to your idea
• volunteer expenses
• translation costs (for example, into other languages like Welsh)

You should consider the environmental impact of your project and try to reuse, reduce and recycle where possible.

How they'll help you prepare for the public vote

If your project is shortlisted you’ll take part in a media campaign to get public votes. They’ll offer free support and training to help you create your campaign and prepare for the vote. You should be available to put time into your campaign from January to May 2023.

If your project is in:

England, Wales or Northern Ireland

• they’ll visit the shortlisted projects to make a short film which will be shown on ITV or UTV local news
• the three projects in each of the ITV and UTV regional news areas with the most votes will get up to £70,000.

Further guidance available on their webpage.