Dorset Community Transport Grant

‘Not for profit’ community organisations in the Dorset Council area.

This includes:

• not for profit community transport organisations
• non-profit making organisations operated with no undue restriction on membership, for example charities
• town and parish councils
• voluntary organisations

We cannot fund:

• commercial providers (bus companies)
• schools, educational transport schemes
• individual transport providers - one-man bands/sole providers/privately run community taxis
• organisations that are not not-for-profit
• projects outside the Dorset Council area, i.e. Bournemouth, Christchurch, Poole and other surrounding areas
• projects which we believe could harm the reputation of Dorset Council
• projects which duplicate a service already commissioned by Dorset Council
• projects that cannot demonstrate financial need - proof of capital reserves may be asked for
• the purchase of a new lease or costs associated with renewing a lease

You can apply for a capital grant of up to £10,000 with 20% match funding required. Funding must be matched by other funding from outside of your organisation. You will need to give evidence of external funding before we can release our funding to you.

You can apply for a revenue grant of up to £5,000.

We expect demand for funding to be very high so we may award you less than you apply for.

You will be asked to sign a standard grant agreement with full details of your grant award including any terms and conditions.

You will be required to submit an annual progress report after 3 months.

We can only accept applications submitted through the online form.

You can apply anytime between Friday 15 November 2024 and Friday 27 December 2024.

Applications close at midnight on Friday 27 December 2024.

Applications will be considered in January 2025.

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We will shortlist, review and make recommendations for funding via our transport panel.

There will be 1 panel that will consider applications from the voluntary and community sector.

The panel will have at least 3 officers (one acts as the panel chair) and the portfolio holder for Transport. These officers all have expertise and knowledge of Dorset’s community and transport sector.

Applications will be screened by each member of their respective grants panel to ensure fairness.

Where a conflict of interest occurs, the relevant officer/representative will not take part in the assessment and the conflict of interest will be recorded.

Councillors will be able to comment and offer feedback on specific projects in their ward through a ‘councillor feedback ‘form which is linked to the online application form.

The panel will assess each application against the fund criteria. Decisions are made by a majority vote. Where there is no majority, our portfolio holder for Transport will have the deciding vote. The panel decision is final.

If an applicant withdraws their application after the panel decision has been made, the chair, in consultation with the other panel members, can agree to award the grant to another applicant.

Any decision to amend the award if the project or organisation has changed, or new information comes to light that affects the application, will be considered by the grants officer/manager and panel chair, in consultation with other panel members as appropriate.

Successful applicants will agree to the following conditions:

• that they will use the grant only for the purpose specified on the application form
• the grant will be for use by the applicant group only
• do not progress with the expenditure of the grant until the grant agreement has been signed and any grant conditions met
• must have or be prepared to set up, a bank account in the groups’ name, with a minimum of two signatories
• provide a short report on expenditure and outcomes
• provide a copy of Public Liability Insurance (min. £5 million cover)
• provide a copy of Employers Liability (if appropriate)
• provide a copy of last 12 months approved/audited accounts for group
• provide a copy of last 3 bank statements (within last 12 months)
• provide a copy of Safeguarding Policy
• provide a copy of GDPR statement / Policy
• Dorset Council reserves the right to recall the grant in the event of breach of conditions or unsatisfactory performance or to recall unspent monies
• use the Dorset Council logo in publicity and promotional material in relation to the funded project
• Dorset Council reserve the right to use information about the group and its project for publicity and promotional purposes
• the group must agree to any further conditions required by Dorset Council at the time of awarding the grant
• any funds awarded will only be released when the grants panel are confident that all other funding is in place and any terms and conditions have been met
• if for any reason you find that external funding applied for is unsuccessful you must contact us immediately to discuss how this will impact on your original application
• applicants will be asked to sign a standard grant agreement with full details of their grant award including terms and conditions
• applicants will need to demonstrate and evidence that their project is needed and that the intended beneficiaries of the project have been involved and consulted with
• decisions made by our grants panel are final. There is no appeals process
• we reserve the right to make changes to the guidance and/or programme after its launch. We will communicate any changes as quickly as we can
• in some cases, it may not be possible to award the full amount requested by the applicant. If this is the case a ‘partial’ award may be offered
• the applicant will be responsible for grant monitoring including grant spend
• all organisations will need to submit an 'End of Project Report'

After receipt of grant monies the applicant group will agree to:

• spend the grant within 6 months of the receipt of offer letter
• provide financial breakdown of how the grant has been spent
• contact the council should your organisations circumstances change and seek written permission for any changes to how the grant is used