Community Initiative Fund 2022/23
Posted on: June 30, 2022
The Community Initiatives Fund is designed to help parish & town councils, community groups, clubs, societies and voluntary organisations improve their local community.
- The £300,000 fund is for grants of up to £10,000 towards capital or revenue projects that benefit the wider community.
This fund excludes projects that deliver their work outside the administrative area of Essex County Council (Thurrock and Southend). The Community Initiatives Fund is administered by the EALC on behalf of Essex County Council.
Projects should have community backing and demonstrate a real community need. For instance, they could be to:
- Create, buy or develop new community assets. Examples include community centres, shops, wildlife/ nature reserves or disability facilities.
- Enhance existing community assets such as sports venues and clubs, youth clubs, scout groups, playgrounds, village hall improvements, local transport facilities or improved communication services.
- Enhance or develop initiatives that strengthen the local community, such as cultural initiatives, gardening, clubs, age & wellbeing services, advice/ support services, parental & educational activities, environmental improvements, music and literature events or heritage projects.
When talking about the Community Initiative Fund, Chairman of the EALC Executive Committee, Cllr Peter Davey said:
“The Essex Association of Local Councils is proud to have been asked to administer the grant scheme on behalf of Essex County Council. The Community Initiatives Fund provides vital funding for deserving organisations and their community projects, well-being initiatives and other important improvement schemes. The EALC has well-established links to many Essex organisations and is ideally positioned to triage applications, address the financial standing of applicants, create and administer the CIF funding panel and ensure funds are released in a timely manner to successful applicants. As Chairman of the CIF funding panel, I am honoured to be part of this important initiative.”
Meanwhile, Cllr Louise McKinlay, Deputy Leader of Essex County Council and cabinet member for Equality, Partnerships and Performance said:
“Essex County Council is pleased to support the Essex Community Initiatives Fund, as it aligns with our levelling-up priorities and plans… local groups and voluntary organisations are well placed to understand the needs and opportunities of their areas. So I would urge people to come forward to apply for funding for projects to boost and support their local community.”
How to apply?
Please read through the guidance notes carefully for the scheme’s eligibility and criteria details.
- Email a completed application form to funding@ealc.gov.uk by Friday 19th August.
- The panel will then review and decide upon your project based on the information given in your application form (in October).
- You will then be informed whether your application for funding has been successful or not. Not all applications are successful as the scheme is often heavily oversubscribed and sometimes, you may be given less funding than you applied for, or directed to alternative funding sources.
Essential documents
If you have any questions regarding this fund or would like to be added to the distribution list, then please contact our funding team on 01371 879722 or email them at funding@ealc.gov.uk. If you would like to find out further details from Essex County Council, please click here .
The Essex Association wish to formally thank Essex County Council for the support provided to the EALC, Parish & Town Councils, villages and communities across Essex.
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