Discover Brightwater Community Fund
At Discover Brightwater we are committed to making a real difference to our area. To do this
we’re happy to work with any organisation or local group to improve our environment, heritage
and communities. Applications will be reviewed on a first come, first served basis, depending on the number of successful applications.
About the Programme
The Brightwater Landscape Project is a National Heritage Lottery Fund supported project that
aims to reveal, restore and celebrate the heritage of the Bright Water area. This includes its
built, natural and cultural heritage. Bright Water refers to the land that surrounds the River
Skerne and its tributary burns: Fishburn, Bishop Middleham, Sedgefield, Mordon, Newton
Aycliffe, Heighington, Aycliffe Village, Houghton-le-Side, Walworth, Barmpton and s.urrounding
areas, as well as parts of Darlington.
The Discover Brightwater Partnership community grants programme aims to support local
organisations and projects to achieve lasting impact in their community, continue and expand
their work and run projects that help people enjoy all the Brightwater area has to offer.
Grant Guidelines
Community Grants will be available for groups and organisations to:
• Strengthen their organisation; this could be through training or support your
organisation needs to grow or become more sustainable, equipment that would
make a lasting difference to the work your group undertakes.
• Run additional activities; these could be activities that help attract new members
to your group or special events that encourage visitors or local residents to
explore the Brightwater area.
• Celebrate the Brightwater area; your group may have ideas for activities that help
more people connect with the Brightwater area’s culture or natural environment.
Your project must show how a grant will benefit those people living in or visiting the Brightwater
area.
Groups must:
• be based within the Brightwater area
• be rooted in, and engaging with, the community (for example through being led by a
volunteer committee, providing volunteering opportunities, having open membership,
proactively trying to engage new members)
Please check the map on the Discover Brightwater website to make sure your project is in an
eligible area.
What type of funding can you apply for?
Purchase of capital items, materials, equipment
• coaching or training activity sessional costs (we would expect reasonable hourly rates),
• capacity building activity,
• transport costs,
• publicity costs,
• overhead/core costs related to a specific project.
Who can apply?
The following groups can apply to the Community Grants Programme:
• Charities or trusts
• Community or voluntary groups
• Community / parish councils
• Community Interest Companies
• Social enterprises
• Other not for profit organisations or partnerships led by not for profit organisations.
What can’t be funded?
The programme will not directly support the following activities:
• Retail, food and drink projects
• Renewable energy schemes
• Activities delivered outside the Brightwater area.
This is in addition to excluded activities listed in CDCF’s general grant criteria, which can be found
below.
Size of Grant
Grants of £750 to £5,000 are available.
When to Apply
There is no closing date, we will aim to have a decision for you within six weeks of receiving your application. The Grants will be open until all of the funds have been given out.
How to apply
Prior to applying to the Community Grants Programme, you may wish to have an informal
discussion with the Discover Brightwater Programme Manager, Paul Black: email:
paul@bwlp.co.uk; tel: 07790 750195
Groups must also check they meet CDCF’s general requirements to receive funding, which can be
found at the end of this document.
To apply for a grant, you must use CDCF’s online application form which can be found by visiting
www.cdcf.org.uk
If you don’t have IT facilities available to help you complete the application process please phone
Paul on 07790750195 who can help you.
Applying to the Discover Brightwater Community Grants Programme does not restrict you from
applying to other Foundation funds.
Need more help?
For more information about the Brightwater programme please visit the Partnership’s website:
www.discoverbrightwater.com
CDCF’s general grant criteria
Organisations seeking funding must satisfy the following conditions:
| Volunteer-led organisations, registered charities and CIOs must: | Social enterprises, Community Interest Companies (CIC) and other companies must: |
| Have a management committee with a minimum of four unrelated members | Have a management committee with a minimum of three directors, or four directors if two are related |
| Have a bank or building society account in the name of the organisation/group, with a minimum of two unrelated cheque signatories | Have a bank or building society account in the name of the organisation/company, with a minimum of two unrelated cheque signatories |
| Have charitable aims | Have clear charitable purposes and a defined social benefit |
| Provide evidence of good governance practices and sound financial management (including registering with the Charity Commission, CASC or other governing body, depending on the size of the organisation) | Have a recognised status (e.g. a company limited by guarantee), and be registered with the necessary relevant body (e.g. Companies House) |
| Usually, you must register with the Charity Commission if your charity is based in England or Wales and has over £5,000 income per year. We may ask for evidence of this in the form of a letter from the Charity Commission confirming receipt of your application for charitable status. | Have a nominated organisation as an asset lock body. |
In addition, social enterprises, CICs and other companies must demonstrate within applications
that:
the company has been registered for a minimum of 12 months
• a reasonable percentage of their income has been earned through trading
• the project they wish to fund is not a tradable asset or service
• sessional costs are in line with an appropriate pay spine structure
• the application is made for cost to deliver the project not managing the CIC
• the project or activity for which funding is sought is charitable i.e. it must not be part of
the trading services for which they would usually have a charge
• there is clear evidence of need (consultation etc.) from the community and the benefit
must also be clear
In managing your organisation, we would expect that the appropriate policies are in place.
These should include (if appropriate) but not be restricted to:
• safeguarding policies and procedures for children and vulnerable adults
• public liability insurance
• employer’s liability
• equality and diversity
• disclosure and barring service (DBS) checks carried out and in place for all paid and
unpaid volunteer staff working with children and vulnerable adults
• suitable planning permissions and/or other regulations approval are in place prior to the
commencement of any improvements to building or land as required.
While we may not always ask that these are submitted with all applications, we do anticipate
that you hold appropriate assurances and that these can be produced upon request.
We are unable to accept application from groups that:
have not returned monitoring forms for previous grants
• are subject to an investigation by the Charity Commission, the police or any other
organisation in a legal capacity
• are connected to the donor unless a full and independent assessment has taken place to
ensure that there is no conflict of interest and the proposed grant offers value for money,
• have restricted membership other than that associated with the objects of the group
itself i.e. necessary for the safety/wellbeing of disadvantaged users,
• fail due diligence or do not comply with Charity Commission guidelines i.e. we would not
make grants to organisations that had related bank signatories, several related trustees,
income well in excess of the threshold for charitable registration etc.
What we cannot fund:
• unspecified contributions to general fund-raising appeals or large projects,
• for profit or commercial elements of charitable organisations,
• capital items for general office or company resourcing (non-project),
• public bodies to carry out their statutory obligations,
• direct replacement of statutory or public funding,
• party political activity and campaigning,• contingency funding,
• refreshments or food,
• building or buying premises or land rights,
• projects that solely support animal welfare,
• purchase of vehicles (running costs will be considered),
• feasibility studies or initial community consultations,
• fundraising activities,
• deficit or retrospective funding,
• sponsored events, multiple trophies or prizes,
• general running or core costs, except as a proportionate contribution to a project,
• CIC start-ups
• wholly grant-maintained CICs
• profit making or business ventures, including start-up costs
• activities that are primarily about proselytization or supporting worship activities (faith
organisations may apply for funding towards a project/activity that is open to the whole
community and has wider social benefits)
We do not normally fund
national or regional charities, although we can support local branches of national
charities if they are financially independent and locally managed.
• salaries through Community Grants but it may be considered by some of our other
programmes (please check the specific programme criteria),
• organisations whose free reserves include more than 12 months of running costs,
• medical research and equipment,
• organisations that do not have their own bank account (in exceptional circumstances
and through prior agreement with CDCF a group may nominate an organisation to hold
the funding on their behalf).
Please note each of our programmes and funds have their own criteria, which may vary from
those listed above and so subject to change.
