Future of Volunteering Grants in Wales

WCVA is working with Welsh Government to review the provision of grants for volunteering across Wales as part of a broader vision for the future of volunteering and the services that support it.

At a national level, grants delivery to date has been through the Volunteering in Wales Fund and GwirVol and the intention is to move to a single volunteering grant fund (to be called Volunteering Wales Grants). This will cover all geographical areas and ages, with specified priorities and themes.

Grant-making decisions will also be aligned to fit within a financial year, an arrangement that should be better for monitoring and administrative reporting as well as for delivery.

2016 -17 will be a transition year in the move toward a new annual grants cycle.

For more information

The Prince's Countryside Fund – Spring 2016 Round Open for UK Applications

The Prince's Countryside Fund has opened for applications from projects in the UK that can have a long-term positive effect on rural communities.

The Prince's Countryside Fund was established to support the sustainability and protection of farms and rural communities throughout the UK. The aim of the funding is to have a long-term positive impact on rural communities, helping those that live and work there to sustain the countryside by tackling key rural issues.

For the Spring 2016 round, there are specific funds available to help the rural communities affected by the recent flooding following a series of storms over the winter. The Trust is actively seeking applications from organisations that are supporting farmers, rural businesses and communities to recover following the flooding or projects that are focused on assisting the recovery and future resilience in these rural areas, particularly Cumbria, Lancashire, North Yorkshire, Herefordshire, Northumberland and Scotland.

Not-for-profit organisations, charities, social enterprises, Community Interest Companies, companies limited by guarantee, and unincorporated associations based and working within the UK can apply.

Grants of up to a maximum of £50,000 (inclusive of VAT) to a maximum period of three years are available for projects that result in outcomes that directly relate to the Fund's objectives to:

• Improve the viability of British farming targeting the areas of greatest need.
• Improve the sustainability of rural communities targeting the areas of greatest need.

Projects must focus on at least one of the following three key countryside issues:

• Developing Thriving Rural Communities by improving service provision in rural areas. Projects should provide innovative solutions to deliver assets and services that keep rural communities together and develop a more sustainable rural economy.
• Transforming Rural Livelihoods by supporting rural enterprise and farming businesses. Projects should focus on developing stronger, more sustainable farm and rural enterprises with the aim of halting the decline of the rural economy.
• Creating the Farmers of the Future by providing training opportunities for young people and the unemployed. Projects should help improve skills and increase opportunities of taking up rural careers, in particular in farming, with the aim of helping people to remain within and contribute to the rural economy.

The deadline for applications is 13 April 2016 (midnight).

http://www.princescountrysidefund.org.uk/

(Source: Grantfinder) 

Comic Relief Local Communities Programme Open to Applications in Wales

The Comic Relief Local Communities Programme provides grants for community projects in Wales that empower local people and enable them to create lasting change in their communities

Grants of between £1,000 and £10,000 are available to empower local people, enabling them to create lasting change in their communities.

Funding is available for innovative projects that:

• Increase local services.
• Build skills of local people.
• Increase community cohesion.
• Respond to local economic needs.

Residents associations, community centres and groups, Social Enterprises, Community Interest Companies, Community Interest Organisations and Credit Unions in Clwyd, Dyfed, Gwent, Gwynedd, Mid Glamorgan, Powys, South Glamorgan and West Glamorgan are eligible to apply.

Projects should be run by people directly affected by the issues they are dealing with, and priority will be given to small, locally based groups or organisations in areas of disadvantage that have a clear understanding of the needs of their community.

The deadline for applications is 30 April 2016.

http://www.cfiw.org.uk/eng/grants/37-comic-relief-local-communities

JustGiving donations missed out on gift aid after HMRC ruled 'love from mum and dad' unacceptable

JustGiving donations missed out on gift aid after HMRC ruled 'love from mum and dad' unacceptable: Donations website JustGiving has said it was ordered not to apply gift aid to donations on its website signed off with messages of support by more than one person, such as 'love from mum and dad' - at a cost of millions to charities.

EAGA Charitable Trust open to applications

Financial assistance is available to support projects that aim to understand and combat fuel poverty in the European Union.

Funding is available for projects that contribute to understanding and addressing the causes and effects of fuel poverty.

Grant applications will be accepted for work based in the UK and other EU countries only. The subject of research needs to demonstrate direct relevance and application to UK fuel poverty policy.

Grant applications should consist of one or more of the following elements:

• Rigorous academic and/or public policy-related research.
• Robustly evaluated action projects which either build on existing proven models or offer innovative new models with the aim of achieving population-based effective interventions.
• Dissemination and promotion of proven good practice, for example through appropriate workforce interventions, social media, toolkits including online tools and workshops including online congresses and webinars.
• Technical support for, including scoping of, novel and innovative pilots and demonstration projects and the evaluation of them.

Grant priority areas are as follows:

• Fuel poverty and health and wellbeing.
• Fuel poverty policies and energy systems.
• Low-carbon policies, behaviours and practices.
• Fuel poverty and rural communities.

All types of organisations and individual research consultants are eligible to apply for grants of between £2,500 and £25,000. The work can be based in the UK and other European Union countries.

The deadline for applications is 3 June 2016.

http://www.eagacharitabletrust.org/

Nominet Trust Open to UK applications

Grants are available for organisations to carry out UK-based or international projects that use digital technology to improve the lives of the disadvantaged and vulnerable and to strengthen communities.

Funding and support is provided to enable entrepreneurial organisations with a basic, but functional, digital prototype to develop it into a more robust product or service and demonstrate its value to intended users and other stakeholders.

Successful applicants can expect to receive:

• Grant funding, typically between £15,000 and £50,000 for a project of 9-12 months duration.
• A support package including mentoring, marketing and comms advice and networking opportunities.
• Access to a discretionary fund of up to £5,000 to access specific expertise to support early-stage development.

Projects should use digital technology to tackle pressing social challenges such as the environment and sustainability, education, employment and healthcare.

The Trust does not ask for an equity stake nor request loan repayments, and allows successful ventures to retain any IP developed.

The following are eligible to apply:

• Entrepreneurs, teams, start-ups and organisations who want to apply their talent and technology to address UK social issues.
• Individuals can apply for funding but if successful they will be required to form a registered legal entity.

The deadline for Stage 1 applications is 14 April 2016 (12 noon).

http://www.nominettrust.org.uk/how-to-apply/what-we-will-support

Charities at risk of extortion demands

Trustees, charity professionals and volunteers should be aware of online extortion or ‘ransom’ demands currently affecting UK businesses. This is because charities could also be vulnerable to attack and so are encouraged to be vigilant. This advice is particularly relevant for those charities which operate overseas and/or deal with international partners in high risk zones.

The information contained within this alert is based on reports made during the past week, to Action Fraud, the UK’s national fraud reporting centre.

What to look out for:

• a number of businesses throughout the UK have received online extortion demands from a group calling themselves ‘RepKiller Team’;
• the group have sent emails demanding payment of between £300 - £500 in Bitcoins [a form of digital or ‘crypto’ currency] by a certain date and time;
• if their demand is not met, they have threatened to launch a cyber-attack against the organisation and damage its reputation by automating hundreds of negative reviews online;
• the demand states that once their actions have started, they cannot be undone.

Action to take

If you have received such a demand, or receive one in the future, you are advised to:

• OT meet their demands and pay the ransom;
• make a report to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or via their websitewww.actionfraud.police.uk;
• retain the original emails (with headers);
• make a note of the attack, recording all times, type and content of the contact.

Carl Mehta, head of investigations and enforcement operations at the Commission, said:

Charities need to be aware of the imminent danger posed by this fraudulent group and to take appropriate steps to protect their charity’s assets and good reputation - both of which could be damaged if the ransom demands of the group are met.

I urge all charities, if they suspect they may have fallen victim to such extortion or ransom fraud, to report it immediately to Action Fraud.

(Source: Charity Commission)