Changes to Lottery funding

AWARDS FOR ALL CHANGES
There have been some important changes to Lottery funding.The joint Lottery funded Awards for All scheme now no longer exists. Three of the Lottery providers now have their own specific small grants schemes and BIG Lottery has taken over the running of the revised Awards for All scheme.

Awards for All  This used to be a small grants scheme (£300- £10,000) funded by all 4 Lottery funding sources. From 1 April onwards it will only be funded by BIG Lottery. It will continue to fund small grants projects between £300 and £10,000. Voluntary and community organisations, schools, parish and town councils and health bodies may apply.
Projects must now meet one or more of the following outcomes:
- people having better chances in life with better access to training and development to improve their life skills
- stronger communities with more active citizens working together to tackle their problems
- improved rural and urban environments which communities are better able to access and enjoy
- healthier and more active people and communities
For more information phone 08454 102030 or go to www.awardsforall.org.uk

Sport England's Small Grants Programme  They will fund work that supports recognised sports with a clear sporting outcome to grow and sustain themselves. Their list of recognised sports currently includes 36 sports, but is increasing all the time, so it is worth phoning them to ask if they can fund your sport. Sports clubs, voluntary and community organisations, local authorities and education establishments can apply. You can apply for between £300 and £10,000. They will fund things like the purchase of sports equipment, getting more coaches qualified , running coachine activities etc.
For more information visit: http://funding.sportengland.org/funding_programmes/small_grants.aspx or phone 08458 508508

Heritage Lottery Fund 'Your Heritage' Programme  The fund supports projects that help people learn about their own or other people's heritage. Your project must also do one or both of the following:
- Conserve the UK's diverse heritage for prseent and future generations to experience and enjoy
- Help more people, and a wider range of people, to take an active part in and make decisions about heritage
Grants of between £3,000 and £50,000 are available. The maximum cost of the project must be £100,000. If you have people that are giving 'in kind' help to the project e.g. volunteering their time, this will strengthen your application.
For more information visit: http://www.hlf.org.uk/English/HowToApply/OurGrantGivingProgrammes/YourHeritage/ or phone 02075 916000

Arts Council Small Grants Programme  The Grants for the Arts programme supports work that will help them achieve their mission of 'Great art for everyone'. Art organisations, local authorities, public organisations, partnerships, collectives, national organsations and organisations whose activity is not normally arts related can apply, including voluntary and community groups and groups of organsations. Grants range from £1,000 to £100,000 and can cover activities lasting up to three years. You must find at least 10% of the total cost from other income sources. They will fund things like projects and events, marketing activities, public art, research and development, productions etc.
For more information: http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/funding/gfta2006.php or phone 08453 006200

OTHER CHANGES  £2.2bn is being diverted from Lottery funding to the 2012 London Olympics. This will have a significant impact on the amount of Lottery funding available, and the amount of new funding programmes.

  • For BIG Lottery, which largely funds the voluntary and community sector, future new funding will be reduced to 60- 70% of current levels. In 2007 they could only fund 1 in every 13 of their applications and this will now reduce. For more information: www.biglotteryfund.org.uk
  • The Heritage Lottery Fund funds historic buildings, museums, natural heritage etc. They will honour all grants already agreed but less will be given out in the future. To find out more: www.hlf.org.uk/english
  • Sport England has reduced the amount of funding it has available. It now has more of a focus on competitive sports and no focus on leisure pursuits. To find out more: www.sportengland.org
  • The Arts Council has cut its 'Grants for the Arts' funding scheme by 35%, has stricter criteria and a limit to the amount people can apply for. To find out more: www.artscouncil.org.uk

In all cases funding already approved will continue. There is also still a substantial amount of money still available, but significantly less than in previous years. This means there will be less new funding streams and less money available to community and voluntary groups through current funding streams from all Lottery funding providers. You may well have to apply  to alternative funding providers more frequently, particularly where your funding is running out soon.

The Government has stated that no further money will now be diverted from Lottery funding to fund the 2012 Olympics.The Lottery funds should be re-imbursed at some point after 2012 but this is likely to take years.