Grant Making Policy.

Forest of Dean Lions Club (CIO) GRANT MAKING POLICY

After consideration by the club, grants are made at the discretion of the Trustees. The grants that are made are in accordance with the charitable objectives of the club.

 Support Priorities

The number of grants that can be made are limited by the funds that are available in any given year.
The trustees have decided priorities will be:

Geographical – the Forest of Dean Lions Club serves the Gl15 and GL16 postcode areas. This does not exclude the wider area of Gloucestershire, national or international causes but the GL15 and GL16 postcodes will be given highest priority. There are numerous other Lions Clubs in the UK that serve other areas.

Applications for support and/or grants are all considered on their own merits, following investigation and discussion by Club Members. However as most of the available funds are raised within the local community, those applicants that are local are given special consideration. Areas that are supported include:

  • Local charities – youth groups, groups working with the elderly, residential and nursing homes, individual appeals;
  • Youth and children’s organisations – sport related groups or individuals, scouting and guiding, youth club activities, young people undertaking overseas assignments;
  • Community facilities – relief of hardship for individuals and families, village hall projects, community group initiatives.

The above priorities in this policy will be reviewed and may be changed in accordance with the Trustees’ view of the most effective application of available funds at any point in time.

Principles

In awarding grants, the Trustees will apply the following principles:

− Trustees will not normally support applications from large national charities (unless it is from and for the local branch use) or charities dedicated to issues deemed by the Trustees to be already well funded;

− Trustees will work with other organisations to fund initiatives beyond the financial scope of a single organisation;

− All applications from previous recipients of grants or from previously unsuccessful applicants will be considered by Trustees on their own merits. Although Trustees will have regard to the outcome of the previous grant, any new application will not receive preferential or adverse consideration.

Exclusions

The Trustees will not normally approve the use of funds for:

  • Medical research projects of international, national or locally based charities;
  • Purposes for which government has a statutory responsibility to provide.

Grant Application Process

All applications should be made via the contact form on the club web site forestlions.org.uk

Applications will not be dealt with immediately, but will be brought to the club monthly meeting. Meanwhile the Secretary will send form to the applicant by email. 

The form asks for information to help the club make a decision on whether to fund the application or not. Information asked for is:

  • Name of applicant
    Address of applicant
  • Telephone number of applicant
  • Email address of applicant.

For an organisation the club also asks for:

  • Name of the organisation
    Address of the organisation
  • Telephone number of the organisation
  • Email address of the organisation

For all applicants the club asks

  • How would you like the Forest of Dean Lions to support you/your organisation?
    i.e. the purpose of the application, details of the project, the way in which the grant
    will be used and how it will be managed effectively for its intended purpose;
  • When is the support required?
  • Have you received support from The Forest of Dean Lions in the past?
  • Are you eligible for support from any other organisations?
  • Have you secured support from any other organisations/charities?
  • What funds do you currently have available?
    i.e. provide adequate information regarding the identity and financial status of the applicant and/or of the status of the person(s) who will carry out the project/work;

For successful applications the club also asks for:

  • Bank Account number
  • Bank Account Name
  • Bank Account Sort Code

Assessment Process

The assessment process will be that:

  • All grants applications will be subject to initial assessment to ensure that they meet the basic criteria for funding. Grants will be considered by the Trustees at their meetings and they will aim to write to all applicants informing them of the outcome of their application for funding within three months of the date of the application;
  • Trustees will not be obliged to provide an explanation to the applicant should their application be unsuccessful, however Trustees do realise the importance of feedback and will where appropriate provide suitable comment to the applicant;
  • Applicants should note that Trustees receive far more applications than they have funds to support. Even if a project fits with the criteria and priorities of the Trustees and a detailed assessment has been made, Trustees may still be unable to provide the grant.

Awarded Grants

Successful applicants for grants please note:

  • All equipment purchased with the grant is owned and remains the property of the grant recipient (whether an organisation or an individual);
  • On receipt of the grant a written acknowledgement of the receipt is to be issued to the Lion Secretary;

Data Protection

To comply with Data Protection requirements, applicants are required to consent to the use of personal data supplied by them in the processing and review of their application.

This includes transfer to and use by such individuals and organisations as the Trustees deem appropriate. The Trustees require the assurance of the applicant that personal data about any other individual is supplied to the Trustees with his/her consent. At the point of submitting application, applicants are asked to confirm this consent and assurance.

Monitoring and Publicity

It is the policy of the Trustees to monitor at their discretion, all grants made. Where the grant is for an extended period, project progress should be reported on a regular basis. In addition to reports detailing progress, grant recipients are expected to provide:

  • A statement of how the grant monies have been spent, this may be in writing or to take up the opportunity (where appropriate) to visit Trustees to deliver a personal report of how the grant has been spent;
  • Details (where appropriate) of other funds applied to the same project;
  • Trustees or their representative(s) may, where appropriate, visit the applicant to view the progress/success of the project and see how and where the grant has been spent.

Objectives of the Club

The Objects of the Club are such purposes as are exclusively charitable in England & Wales, including in particular:

The advancement of citizenship by:

  • Promoting the principles of good citizenship;
  • Encouraging members to take an active interest in the civic, cultural, social and moral welfare of the community;
  • Providing a forum for the open discussion of all matters of public interest; provided that partisan politics and sectarian religion shall not be debated by members;
  • Encouraging service-minded people to serve their community without personal reward and encouraging the promotion of high ethical standards in commerce, industry, professions, public works and private endeavours;
  • Supporting youth to develop their skills, capacities and capabilities to enable them to participate in society as mature and responsible individuals;
  • Promoting the Voluntary Sector for the public benefit by associating with local authorities in a common effort to advance education and provide facilities in the interests of social welfare for recreation or other leisure time occupation to improve the conditions of life of people in local, national and international communities;
  • Promoting volunteering;
  • The relief of poverty and the relief of those in need in particular by providing humanitarian aid and disaster relief;
  • The advancement of health or the saving of lives by preventing avoidable blindness,
  • assisting disabled people to lead independent lives or helping to prevent or manage health issues;
  • Promoting for the benefit of the public the conservation protection and improvement of the physical and natural environment; and/or Promoting community participation in healthy recreation.

Nothing in the constitution shall authorise an application of the property of the Club for the purposes which are not charitable in accordance with section 7 of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and section 2 of the Charities Act (Northern Ireland) 2008.