Covid Impact Fund 

We are pleased to be partnering with Worcestershire County Council to offer the opportunity to  support community services to apply for a grant to help support vulnerable households and families  with children, particularly those affected by the ongoing impacts of the COVID pandemic where  alternative sources of assistance may be unavailable. 

Guidelines 

What is the funding for? 

The Covid Impact Fund is open to local organisations who provide a range of support services to  Worcestershire residents meeting one of the themes and outcomes outlined below:  

Theme	Example of a positive outcome
Households experiencing, or at risk  of experiencing, poverty	Risk of poverty is reduced, and family financial situation  improved reducing household stress
Individuals experiencing social  isolation	Individuals are able to access and maintain new and existing contacts which enables them to maintain their mental wellbeing
Individuals affected by domestic  abuse	Support and appropriate signposting in place to contribute to reducing the risk of domestic abuse in a household
Support to vulnerable households  which include a person aged 19 to 25  with special educational needs and  disability (SEND) and/or care leavers	Vulnerable households are supported to maintain their overall wellbeing and help reduce the negative impact of COVID (those who are disproportionately affected)
Individuals and families whose mental wellbeing has been impacted as a result the COVID pandemic (low level support)	Services that support and promote wellbeing are easily accessible and individuals are supported to improve their mental wellbeing
Addressing health inequalities	Individuals and families who are at risk of experiencing ill health, as a result of identified health inequalities, are supported with additional resources to improve their overall quality of life

 

How much can I apply for? 

• A one off grant of up to £10,000. Please note we welcome applications for less than £10,000  depending on need. 
• Grants over and above £10,000 up to a maximum of £50,000 may be considered where a  strong case can be made. This might include an application taking a strategic approach to  addressing one or more of the key themes, or a collaborative bid by VCS partners working  together to address one or more of the key themes. Or where an application makes a strong  and valid case that greater funding is required and can be realistically utilised in the  timeframe. Applications for grants in excess of £10,000 will be subject to additional Council  approval.  

What can the funding be spent on? 

• Approved grants will be treated as restricted funds and therefore must only be spent on  expenditure agreed and any funds not spent returned;  
• Up to 10% management fee for running costs can be applied to your application;
• Only capital costs that demonstrate direct positive outcomes for individuals or families will  be approved;  
• Funding must be spent on one or more of the funding themes as outlined above and  demonstrate in the application form that positive outcomes will be achieved
• The scheme is not intended to be used for the provision of general advice on managing debt  and/or financial hardship.  

Who can apply 

Organisations who apply for funding should be one of the following:  

• a voluntary or community organisation;  
• a registered charity;  
• a constituted group or club;  
• a not-for-profit company or Community Interest Company;  
• a school (as long as your project benefits and involves the communities around the school);  or a statutory body (including town, parish and community council);  
• a joint application from the above groups.  

Considerations for your application 

In your application, please be realistic about the numbers you can reach and your capacity to do so. 

• Please help us to understand how we can be sure you can reach those families and  vulnerable households. 
• Monitoring will require you to record the postcode of the families/vulnerable households  reached and how much funding each receives. 
• All funding must have been spent and reported on by the end of March 2022.

The following are not essential but if you are able to include either of the following in your  application, WCF would welcome that: 

• If your reach includes Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic communities, please state that in your  application, as WCF are keen to monitor how effectively we are reaching these communities; 
• If you have proactive ways to identify and reach families that are impacted by hardship for  the first time, we would be keen to hear about how you are doing that in your application. 

What information will I need to apply? 

As well as the completed application form you will also need to provide the following:  

• A copy of your organisation’s governing document/constitution/set of rules that set out the  purpose of your organisation and how it is managed.  
• Evidence of a bank account in the name of the organisation. The bank account must have at  least two signatories. Alternatively, if you belong to a small organisation that does not have  a bank account, another charitable organisation can look after the funds for you. But, you  must provide written authorisation from the organisation that will do this. 
• A copy of your organisation’s most recent accounts or financial information that show your  organisation’s balance of funds, income and expenditure. If you do not have financial  records that cover a full year, then you will need to provide the records you currently have.  
• A copy of your organisation’s safeguarding policy if you work directly with children or  vulnerable adults. 
• A copy of your organisation’s equality policy.  

Please note, applications cannot be assessed if the above supporting documents are not  provided.  

What happens after I apply?  

Each application will be fully assessed by the Worcestershire Community Foundation. We may  contact you for further information. You will be advised of the outcome of your application within  three weeks of the panel meeting, and a Conditions of Grant Offer letter and acceptance form will  be forwarded for you to sign and return. This will explain both general and any project-specific  conditions that the Trustees are applying.  

Definitions  

For the purposes of this grant (and without prejudice to other schemes): 

The definition of a child is any person:  

• who will be under the age of 19 as at 31 March 2021; or  
• a person aged 19 or over in respect of whom a child-related benefit (for example, Child  Benefit) is paid or free school meals are provided; 

• Vulnerable households which include a person aged 19 to 25 with special educational needs  and disability (SEND) and/or care leavers.  

 

If you have any questions about any aspect of making an application to this fund, please contact  [email protected]

For further information on Worcestershire Council support and grants programmes please go to: Here2help        Ready Steady Worcestershire