1. Funding for Rother and wider East Sussex Groups
Sherlyn Barrow
External Funding Officer

2. Content This session will help you:
Find out about some grant opportunities
Develop your project
Before you write the application
When you write it
Work out a realistic budget
Find out about support available

3. Where do you find out about grants?
Funding News and others
ESCC’s Funding Guides
Social Media
Word of mouth
Alerts

4. Funding opportunities

5. Developing your project

6. Before writing the application
Read the guidance!
Check the application process/form
Timescale – length of project, deadline
Partnership requirements
Level of grant/match funding
Grant payment – cash flow
Monitoring and audit requirements
Read the guidelines!
Eligibility criteria – type of organisation, activities, beneficiaries
Application process/form - if you are ready for larger grants you should be familiar with jargon – saying that there could be new ones electronic/paper, do you need to get original signed by all involved by the deadline, etc. How are you going to share drafts?
Timescale - length of project, when you need to apply (i.e. Build in pre- application, then full bid, then appraisal – can take about 6 months
Partners do you know who you need/who else might want to be involved? If EU project have you got partners abroad, do you know how you are going to find them?
MF – in-kind, volunteers time acceptable? Working it out – volunteers rate, overheads methodology
– cash –
Payment - upfront/instalments, how frequent – for larger bids you may be the led and have to dish out money to partners.
Cash flow – make sure you build in time it will take to get the money
Audit requirements before to find out now than later! For INTERREG and other EU programmes original documents have to be kept for a number of years – may need to set up system to deal with that (i.e. F or us we destroy invoices, etc after a certain period of time) – how are you going to make sure you have easy access to electronic/paper information – you need to keep everything that proves the project happened – minutes, photos, etc

7. Writing the application
Keep it simple, short, to the point
Use bullet points
Active, not passive, positive not negative
Learn from others
Get feedback
Cutting and pasting

8. Evidencing Need Relevance Data source Type of evidence
Level of evidence
Useful websites/reports

9. Working out a realistic budget
Early draft using Excel
Currency/exchange rate
Formal commitment
Budget lines/cash flow
Match funding
Audit/funder’s requirements
Procurement
Full cost recovery
Involve finance officer if possible
For EU programmes, budget in € - used to be given a fixed rate at the beginning of the programme, however after a few years, it just was no longer appropriate
Budget lines – definition of capital may vary on some programmes/countries – for staff don’t just put salary, add on-cost, inflation overheads ethoddoly/flat rates
do remember to include audit costs when eligible and dissemination costs
Over/under budget – problem with underspend and N+2, impact on programme!
Example of budgets in your pack to familiarise yourself with layout/categories, etc

10. Support Councils for Voluntary Services Our publications
Funding enquiries
Bid checking
Training

11. Contact details External Funding Team County Hall – Centre G
Lewes BN7 1UE
Tel:
@escccommunity

12. Thank you!
Any questions?