Community Support Fund 2021

Information on the Community Support Fund.

The Community Support Fund is now accepting applications from voluntary and community organisations in Greater Manchester who are supporting those suffering from hardship as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

To support these local responses, Forever Manchester is offering awards of up to £5,000.

Forever Manchester is working with UK Community Foundations to distribute funding raised by the National Emergencies Trust Coronavirus Appeal. This money is being distributed to community organisations responding to the needs of local communities across Greater Manchester via our Community Support Fund.

Who Can Apply?

Given the on-going pandemic, we expect continued high demand for our funding. We get a lot of applications for great projects, which unfortunately means tough decisions have to be made about which projects can be funded.

It is really important that you read the following eligibility criteria in full. Applications which do not fulfil these criteria will not be assessed and will be withdrawn.

To apply you must be a registered charity/CIO/CIC or other recognised charitable registered organisation with your own bank account and relevant safeguarding policies in place. We expect you to be based in the area where you are offering help.

• You must be applying for activity which is in line with your organisation’s aims and objects as shown in your governing documents.
• Applicant organisations must have been established for at least 12 months.
• You should have an annual income between £25,000 and £150,000. (Please note we will have other programmes opening later in the year whose focus will be on smaller groups)

The Fund is aimed at organisations supporting those suffering hardship as a result of Covid-19 and priority will be given to funding organisations who are reaching the most vulnerable or at greatest risk of negative social, health or economic impacts. As such we would expect to be receiving applications from organisations working in the following types of services:

• Foodbanks and other emergency food/household provisions
• Homelessness support
• Financial and welfare advice
• Domestic violence support
• Mental health and counselling services

If you have had an award from the Forever Manchester Community Support Fund in the last 12 months, you should have fully spent that award and submitted appropriate feedback.

How much can you apply for?

You can apply for up to £5,000, but as we expect a lot of applications and we will not be able to fund them all, we ask that you only apply for what you know you need.

Any funds awarded must be spent in full by 30^th September 2021.

What can you apply for?

We are prioritising applications which are providing a service in direct response to community hardship created by the Covid-19 pandemic. This could be for responding to ongoing emergency needs or for making changes to how you work so that you can continue to help those affected by the Covid-19 pandemic over the coming months.

For example, projects could include, but are not limited to:

• Support for vulnerable and older people in their homes, providing food and medicines whilst this is still required.
• Training for new volunteer advice workers.
• Non-perishable food and essential living and baby items for distribution to destitute individuals.
• Increased hours for part time frontline workers to deliver increased services.
• Purchasing additional equipment to respond to increased demand on services.

How long will a decision take?

We aim to assess your application and give you a decision within four weeks of the deadline, but please note we can only do this if you provide us with all the supporting documents requested.

Supporting Documents

For help and guidance on your groups supporting documents and to see what we require to be submitted alongside your application, please refer to our guidance which you can find here: For Supporting Information

Deadline for Applications

We will close for applications at midday on Wednesday 10^th March 2021. Any applications received after this time will not be considered.

If you have any questions or have trouble completing the form, please contact us at awards@forevermanchester.com or phone 0161 214 0940.

Please note that there is limited funding remaining in the Community Support Fund and if we receive a lot of applications we may close access to the online application form earlier than the advertised deadline. At this time, we do not expect to be opening further rounds of this Fund.

Date added: 15th February 2021