Rural Community Network: Ours to Share Grant Programme

Overview

What is Heritage?

The Ours to Share project defines heritage as ‘our past, present and future’. It represents many traditions and stories that are worth exploring, sharing, and saving.

The Rural Community Network’s definition of heritage* includes the following:

• Tangible - historical buildings, monuments, artefacts, and archives.
• Intangible - our traditions and stories, sports, music, dance, folklore, crafts, skills, and knowledge.
• Natural - our landscapes, woodlands, uplands, bogs, rivers, insects, plants, trees, birds and animals.

* Heritage Council of Ireland’s definition of heritage.

Rural Community Network defines heritage in response to NISRA (Northern Ireland Strategic and Research Agency) who have advised that for Northern Ireland the default rural definition is ‘areas with a population density of 5,000 or less’.

For the purpose of this grant, they will allow applications from groups based in larger settlements but who can prove that a minimum of 75% of their beneficiaries will come from rural regions.

What is Rural?

Rural Community Network defines heritage in response to NISRA (Northern Ireland Strategic and Research Agency) who have advised that for Northern Ireland the default rural definition is ‘areas with a population density of 5,000 or less’. For the purpose of this grant, we will allow applications from groups based in larger settlements but who can prove that a minimum of 75% of their beneficiaries will come from rural regions.

Funding

This grant scheme has been created to help support rural communities in developing and delivering heritage projects that will enhance rural communities through bringing people together to celebrate our diverse heritage.

There is one tier of funding available:

• Grants of up to £3500 for constituted groups/organisations to deliver their project idea.
• Projects must take place within between 1 September 2022 and be finished no later than 31 January 2023

Objectives

The key objective for the scheme is to support projects that can encourage engagement of a diverse and inclusive range of participants and one or more of the following aims:

• Celebrate local heritage and culture to bring people together
• Preserve rural heritage by recording and conserving for future generations
• Address barriers to wider and broader inclusion in local communities through the engagement of local heritage
• Promote a deeper understanding of the local area celebrating the many stories, identities, histories and cultures of the area

This funding is to empower and support rural communities to explore heritage in meaningful and inclusive ways with the wider community. The rural areas are full of stories, legends, places, people and traditions that have the potential to enhance a community’s wellbeing and everyday lives.

Eligible Costs

Here are examples of what can funded through this grant scheme.

• Materials and Equipment costs (a maximum of 20% of the total amount applied for can be sought for materials and equipment costs. I.e. in a £5000 application £1,000 maximum)
• Transport costs if applicant can demonstrate that it is an integral part of the project
• Programmes/projects that develop heritage and culture at a local level and make them more accessible.
• Volunteer expenses
• Resources such as publications, exhibitions, trails, digital resources
• Training and skills development programmes
• Activity costs
• Marketing and promotion/signage
• Refurbishment work
• Accessibility/room hire/refreshments
• Specialist costs – single tender action/curation
• Facilitator/tutor costs

Eligibility

The following groups are eligible to apply for this scheme.

• Constituted groups
• VCSE (Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise) groups
• Other organisations involved in heritage or culture development work
• Cultural arts and heritage groups e.g. drama groups, historical societies, craft and art collectives

Groups that meet these criteria must demonstrate that:

• They represent/engage with rural communities
• Be committed to inclusivity and open to the whole community.
• Be non-party political and open to the full range of local opinion.
• Ensure that all group activities abide by the law
• If there is an existing group, they must demonstrate that they will widen and broaden representation in their group.
• To be based and operating in Northern Ireland.

What are they looking for in applications?

• The need for the project and how you have identified the need for the local community
• If your project responds to the objectives and aims of the fund
• You can show that you have, or can outsource, the skills necessary to make your project successful
• They may take into consideration the location of your project to make sure their funding is fairly distributed across Northern Ireland

Note: They will not accept applications completed by a 3rd party (professional consultant/fundraiser) on behalf of your group/organisation.

Further guidance is available here.