Near Neighbours: Windrush 75 - Windrush Day Grant Scheme 2023

Overview

Introduction

2023 marks the 75th anniversary of the arrival of the MV Empire Windrush in the United Kingdom (UK). In 2023, the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) will be marking this special occasion by launching the Windrush Day Grant Scheme 2023. The Department is offering up to £750,000 in grant funding to support a new cohort of impactful and ambitious projects. As of today, HM Government has dedicated £3.75 million in funding toward honouring the Windrush legacy. This includes £2.75 million across five years of the Windrush Day Grant Scheme, and £1 million allocated to the National Windrush Monument, which stands as a fitting tribute to the contributions of the Windrush passengers and their descendants to the UK.

This year’s Windrush Day Grant Scheme will support groups to commemorate, celebrate and educate people about the contribution of the Windrush generation and their descendants across communities in our country. The grant scheme forms a part of the Government’s commitment to level up opportunity across diverse communities and help build greater trust in public services while improving outcomes for everyone and forging a greater sense of belonging.

This year’s grant scheme will also for the first time be open to community organisations in Northern Ireland to apply for funding and join together in celebrating the 75th Anniversary of the arrival of the MV Empire Windrush.

Historical Background

The MV Empire Windrush arrived at the Port of Tilbury on 21 June 1948 and its passengers disembarked a day later. The ship carried several hundred Caribbean migrants, many of them veterans of the Second World War. Since then, Windrush has come to symbolise the mass migration of people from the Caribbean to the UK in the post-war era, as well as their descendants. This generation, subsequent migrants and their descendants have made a significant and lasting contribution to our nation’s cultural, social and economic life. 

What are they looking for?

Aims

They are looking for projects to focus primarily on at least one of the overarching aims of the Windrush Day Grant Scheme, as follows:

• To educate people about the Windrush story. This year’s National Windrush Day marks Windrush 75 – the 75th anniversary of the arrival of the MV Empire Windrush to the UK. Projects will build awareness of historical facts and deepen understanding about the Windrush generation and their descendants. This includes the pioneers who arrived on the MV Empire Windrush in 1948, and those who came on vessels and planes in the decades afterwards
• To foster a greater sense of pride and recognition of the contributions made by UK Caribbean communities to UK society, and among the wider public. The Windrush generation and their descendants have contributed a great deal to society over more than seven decades. The scheme invites proposals for projects that proactively support and encourage people from different backgrounds to embrace this aspect of our shared history
• To develop the educational and entrepreneurial skills of young people. To inspire the next generation of young leaders to learn new skills to encourage them to pursue their aspirations and contribute to the social capital of society in the UK
• To celebrate and recognise. We want projects to celebrate and recognise the contribution that the Windrush generation and the wider UK Caribbean community have made to the UK

In addition, all proposals should have the following aim:

• To be community-led and have a positive social impact. They want projects to be developed by, or with, the UK Caribbean community, and for organisations to carefully consider how the project will create a positive social impact in their local area, helping to galvanise communities to work together to embrace positive aspects of their shared identity

Local councils in England and Northern Ireland are eligible to apply. Where proposals are led by local councils, we will be looking for a clear demonstration that the proposal has been developed with the UK Caribbean community and local community organisations. See the eligibility criteria outlined in section 4 of the Guidance Notes for further information on the requirements for local authority applications.

Outcomes

They will be looking for projects that achieve all the following three outcomes of the Windrush Day Grant Scheme:

• Greater community cohesion: Projects should encourage communities to work together across generational and social divides. The Windrush generation and their descendants live and work in communities around the UK, and events and activities should engage with them, as well as with those from different age groups and ethnic backgrounds
• Have a lasting impact beyond the funding period: Projects should be designed so that they continue to have an impact after the funding period has ended. This could be achieved through forming new local partnerships or producing assets that can continue to be shared in the future
• Increased acknowledgement of the contribution of the Windrush generation and their descendants: Projects should encourage people to form a better understanding of the Windrush generation’s contributions to the society in the UK, as well as wider contributions made by the UK Caribbean communities to our country

While they have a history of funding smaller scale projects, they are also interested in hearing about larger scale, more ambitious proposals this year, such as consortium projects with a larger impact across a wider community. Advice on funding allocation for projects will be provided to DLUHC by a grants committee comprised of a panel of Windrush community stakeholders.

Activities

22 June each year marks National Windrush Day and projects must include a lead event or activity on this date. This will ensure that the 2023 Windrush Day Grant Scheme celebrates the historic 75th anniversary of the arrival of the MV Empire Windrush. 

All further events and activities must take place within the 10-week period of 8 June 2023 to 31 August 2023.

Project events and activities taking place after 22 June 2023 must do one or more of the following:

• Clearly demonstrate how a proposal can help build community cohesion between people of different age groups and ethnic backgrounds
• Have a lasting social impact beyond the funding period
• Help develop the educational and entrepreneurial skills of young people across this period

They are keen to build on the experiences and work that organisations up and down the UK have done so far across the previous four years of the grant scheme. They are looking for unique and exciting proposals that engage with the Windrush story and Windrush communities in powerful, enterprising and thoughtful ways.

Proposals could be designed to fund activities such as the following illustrative examples (please note that this list is not exhaustive – they encourage innovation provided that the aims of the scheme are met):

• Commemorate Windrush 75 – the 75th anniversary of the MV Empire Windrush arriving in the UK
• Bring together local partners and communities to create a unique project
• Run a scheme that supports young people to improve their academic, vocational or entrepreneurial skills – and demonstrate how the scheme has made an impact
• Deliver a high-quality artistic performance or series of performances that celebrate the Windrush legacy
• Run novel activities in partnership with local schools, for example, through assemblies, workshops, educational trips and project work

While previous iterations of the Windrush Day Grant Scheme have proudly supported ambitious projects, there is a need to be realistic about what is achievable within the scheme’s timeframe (outlined below in section 6, ‘Timeline’). Therefore, this year they are strongly encouraging proposals to set out manageable deliverables.

Applicants will need to provide assurance in their application that their organisations have the capacity to keep to their proposed delivery timetable and that they are able to commit to providing regular updates on their progress, including (but not limited to) project monitoring, evaluation forms and participant feedback forms, as required by DLUHC to assess the impact of the scheme.

They also ask that proposals clearly demonstrate how their project will work with local partners. These might include but is not limited to organisations such as museums, libraries and schools.

Funding

For the 2023 iteration of the Windrush Day Grant Scheme, DLUHC is providing a total of £750,000 to fund activities across England and Northern Ireland.

The minimum amount available for each project is £5,000 and the maximum is £50,000. This year, there are two tiers of funding:

• Tier 1: smaller projects, of a value between £5,000 and £24,999
• Tier 2: larger projects, of a value between £25,000 and £50,000

They have a limited budget for Tier 2 projects. Proposals seeking more than £25,000 may be invited to present on their project to the grants committee. Tier 2 proposals must clearly demonstrate value for money.

Some bidders may be seeking funding below £5,000. In such cases, bidders should contact their local authority or council for voluntary service (CVS) to explore the possibility of being included as part of a larger bid. Local authorities may wish to bid for funding to enable them to offer smaller grants that support several community groups in their area.

Consortium bids will also be accepted, provided that the lead partner meets one of the eligibility criteria outlined in the Guidance Notes. If applying as a consortium, organisations must have agreed a lead partner and project lead (individual) from one of the organisations to manage the programme. All proposals must give consideration to the potential impact of COVID19 on their project delivery. This might include transitioning to online activity, if required.

Note:

DLUHC reserves the right to request further information relating to project applications before successful applicants are selected and announced.

This could include an invitation to a phone call or virtual meeting.  DLUHC will also undertake assessment of bids in collaboration with a board of community stakeholders, whose expert knowledge of the Windrush community will help advise on the efficacy and recommended amounts of funding for each project.

These decisions must be made in accordance with HMG’s Code of Conduct for Recipients of Government General Grants.

See Guidance Notes for further information on DLUHC role and requirements/reservations.

Project specifications

Eligibility

Applications are open to registered charities, exempt charities, CICs, social enterprises, and community benefit societies, as well as local authorities.

Organisations are eligible to apply if:

1. They are registered:
   • Charities
   • Exempt charities
   • Community Interest companies
   • Social enterprises
   • Community benefit societies

OR: 

1. They meet all the following criteria as demonstrated by submitting additional supporting documents:
   • They are established for charitable, benevolent or philanthropic purposes
   • They have a governing body with at least three members
   • They have a governing document which they can produce
   • They can provide accounts demonstrating good financial health across both of the last two financial years

OR: 

1. They are a local authority as defined (see ‘Definitions’ in guidance notes)

Your project bid must:

• Demonstrate how it contributes to the aims of the Windrush Day Grant Scheme as set out in the Guidance for Applicants
• Include a lead event or activity on National Windrush Day, 22 June 2023, which coincides with the 75th Anniversary celebrations of the arrival of the MV Empire Windrush to the UK. Events and activities must take place within the 10-week period of 8 June 2023 to 31 August 2023. Any activities after 22 June must focus on one or more of the following aims:
  • Help build community cohesion between people of different age groups and ethnic backgrounds
  • Have a lasting social impact beyond the funding period
  • Help develop the educational and entrepreneurial skills of young people
• Seek no less than £5000 and no more than £50,000, and provide details of other funding secured, subject to the relevant tier of funding applied for.
• Be based in England and Northern Ireland.
• Meet all relevant criteria as set out in the Guidance for Applicants
• Not make a profit from activities. Organisations should be mindful of the staffing costs associated with their project and make efforts to limit how much of their allocated grant funding is used for this purpose

Desirable criteria

They encourage applications from outside Greater London and the South East, so that Windrush Day builds a good profile throughout all regions in England and Northern Ireland. Local authorities Where proposals are led by local authorities, they will be looking for a clear demonstration that the proposal has been developed with the UK Caribbean community and local community organisations.

Assesment Areas & Scoring

See Guidance Notes for fuller descriptions.

• Impact - 40%
• Coomunity-led and longevity - 20%
• Value for money - 20%
• Project lead suitability - 10%
• Evaluating and measuring impact - 10%