Update on Preston Volunteering Fund

Preston City Council, in collaboration with Preston Volunteers, launched a new fund to enable, encourage and reward volunteering across the city of Preston.

Preston Volunteers have been blown away by the amazing response to the Preston Volunteering Fund! The amount of projects being planned in the community and their diversity has been incredible to see.

As your requests for funding come to nearly double the total amount in the pot, some adjustments and updates are going to be required. 

The Update

Following the deadline of the 31 August 2024 it won't be possible to run any further rounds as all of the grant pot will be allocated.

Decisions and next steps

A Panel will review the applications and successful applicants will be notified in October.

This is the first time this kind of grant has been available from the Council and we had no idea how many people would apply. We are heartened that so many of you are looking to support improving volunteering opportunities in Preston.

As a result, we want to support as many groups as we can and it may be necessary for the Panel to ask you if it is possible for you to reduce the amount of funding you are requesting in order that the funding can be allocated to more applicants. If this is the case, we will contact you to discuss this.

Extension Period

We know that this change will impact most on those groups who were considering applying in a subsequent round.

To give you the opportunity of still applying for funding, we are offering an extension period for those groups who are affected by this change to Wednesday 18 September to allow time to compile your bids before the Panel meets.

This will also allow any groups who have already submitted time to revise the amount they are requesting, if asked.

Grant Agreements

Once the funding decisions have been made, groups will be contacted about the outcome.

The Council will then enter into Grant agreements with successful applicants. We envisage that the funding should be with you by the end of October (dependant upon us receiving the signed grant agreements back).

The funding must be spent by the Council before the 31 March 2025 but your activities can continue after this date.

We also want to assure you that we are advocating for more funding opportunities to support all the amazing community groups in Preston.

The number of applications and the diversity of your work provides really strong evidence that more funding is needed so more great things can happen here.

Got questions? 

Don't hesitate to contact joseph.cooper@communitycvs.org.uk

Let's keep up the fantastic work of making Preston a better place together!

About Preston Volunteering Fund

The fund aims to support Voluntary, Community, Faith and Social Enterprise (VCFSE) organisations to increase their capacity to improve volunteer participation and retention and create new volunteering opportunities in and around the city.

Groups can bid for up to £10,000 for this purpose (there is no minimum amount you can apply for).

The fund is aimed at new and existing small and medium sized community groups, charities and organisations from the local area. 

This grant funding will be used to support Voluntary, Community, Faith and Social Enterprise groups, Sports Agencies and Educational facilities to support the promotion and increase of volunteering opportunities and activities within Preston.

Grant funding can be used for any of the purposes detailed below:

• Training for volunteers or volunteer managers (accredited or non-accredited)
• New group or team volunteering opportunities
• Tackling barriers to volunteering to enable everyone to access it
• Providing volunteer personal development and support
• Activities and events to recognise and reward volunteers
• Volunteer projects that enhance volunteers' well-being for all through any of the 'Five Ways to Well-being'
• Increasing staff capacity and time to support more volunteers
• Small capital projects* for items of equipment to enable a project or voluntary role(s) to happen (i.e. gardening, sports, arts, equipment, i-tablets, etc.)
• Trips or events for volunteers.

How to Apply

To apply for the fund download and complete the Preston Volunteering Fund Application form (PDF) [166KB] and return to joseph.cooper@communitycvs.org.uk, along with the supporting evidence requested in the Grant Criteria by the deadlines.

For additional information visit Help in Preston - Preston Volunteering Fund.

You will be required to attach the following required supporting documents.

• Bank account details
• Most Recent Audited Accounts or If you are a new group, or been running for less than 15 months and do not have accounts then we will accept original copies of your latest 3 months Bank/Building Society statements (these will be returned)
• Constitution/ governing document
• Equal Opportunites Policy
• Health and Safety Policy
• Safeguarding policy (children and young people and/or vulnerable adults depending on area of work)
• DBS Checks (where relevant).

If you do not have a bank account and three years' of accounts, this does not stop you from applying. Please contact Preston Volunteers and they will work with you to find a way around this.