New £200,000 Community Initiatives Fund launched by West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner
New £200,000 Community Initiatives Fund launched by West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner to community and voluntary organisations to help overcome social effects of Coronavirus isolation.
The new Community Initiatives Fund, which comes into effect on Tuesday 1st September 2020, will be funded from money which has been allocated from items seized from criminals under the Proceeds of Crime Act.
Each year, the West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner invites local community groups to bid for a grant from the existing Active Citizens Fund which is money which must go into community projects and cannot be spent on recruiting Police officers. The Community Initiatives Fund temporarily replaces the Active Citizens Fund.
Following a surge in voluntary and community activity to help vulnerable people during the COVID 19 crisis, the West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner, David Jamieson, has made £200,000 available over the next six months, to support active citizenship within local communities.
Sandwell will have £ 21,000 to spend on projects which tackle vulnerability, fear of crime and work with the WMP response to COVID
Criteria
· Projects must be pandemic-recovery related (for example but not exclusive – focus on mental health / re-establishing confidence in emerging from lockdown / diversionary activities on-line or socially distanced)
· Priority will be given to activities taking place in Impact Areas – Tipton Princes End, Smethwick Soho&Vic West Brom central
· Activities outside of the Impact Areas will be considered if funding remains.
· There is a cap of £5,000 per grant.
· If a project has been successful in applying for alternative funding for the same project, they will not qualify for a CIF grant.
The fund cannot be used for to cover the cost of a salary/wages. We also cannot fund the purchase of assets that will provide long term benefits to a private company or individual rather than to the community. Funding will not be provided for an organisation or project to make payments to itself for the hire of accommodation or facilities
There is a maximum bid of £5k
This is the link to the detail on the OPCC website which includes process map and also the documents for organisations to complete https://www.westmidlands-pcc.gov.uk/community-initiatives-fund/.