Help through Winter Fund
Grant details
| Grant size: | Up to £20,000 |
| Typical grant: | £10,000 |
| Apply by: | As soon as possible, but by Christmas 2024 at the latest |
| Decision in: | Every 2 weeks |
Who is it for?Community hubs based in Somerset that meet our minimum standards.
What is it for?To support members of your community who need additional help during the winter.
What can we use this money for?
Some people in our communities need extra support over the winter months. Community hubs around Somerset are well placed to provide some of this and also signpost people to other places where they can get help.
We want to fund at least 50 community hubs across Somerset so they can keep doing their fantastic work over the winter and, if they can, offer things like:
- Warm spaces
- Cooking on a budget
- Community meals, foodbanks, and pantries
- Signposting to Citizens Advice Somerset’s Help Through Winter support package
You can use the money to pay for things like staff time, volunteer expenses, transport costs and your overheads.
It can be used for costs you have incurred from 1 October 2024 and costs you will incur to 31 March 2025.
Which groups can apply?
We can only consider your group for a grant from this Fund if you meet our minimum standards.
Our minimum standards cover things like:
- the types of groups we can give a grant to and how we expect them to be run
- how we expect those groups to manage their finances
- how those groups keep people safe.
All of our minimum standards are on our FAQs page, where you can also find lots of information about applying for funding.
You can also use our eligibility checker which will help you understand if you can apply for a grant from us.
When do we have to apply?
There is only one opportunity to apply for this money.
The Fund opens on Monday 18 November and will close as soon as all funds are spent. You should therefore apply as soon as possible. We anticipate that we’ll need to close this Fund by Christmas.
How likely am I to get a grant?
Sadly, we can’t provide funding to every group that applies to us.
We have around £1,000,000 to give out from this Fund. We’re usually able to support 2 out of every 3 applications we receive.
We’re more likely to give you some money if your group:
- runs on less than £500,000 a year
- works in an area that is more disadvantaged
- works with groups of people facing multiple disadvantages
- has provided reliable reporting on any previous grants we’ve given you.
Where does this money come from?
The Household Support Fund ‘Help Through Winter’ programme is funded by Somerset Council, who are working alongside partners across education and the VCFSE sector to deliver essential support to families and residents.
How are decisions made?
Your application will be assessed by one of our team. They’ll read through what you’ve written, look at your supporting documents, and check places like the Charity Commission and your website. We may contact you if we have any questions.
A final decision will then be made by Somerset Community Foundation with guidance from Somerset Council and other partners.
How do I apply to this programme?
When you click on ‘Apply Now’ below you’ll be asked to register your email address. You will then be sent an email with a link to the online application form. You can save your progress by clicking ‘save as draft’ at the end of the form. The link in the email allows you to return to the form. At the end of the form, you can attach supporting documents.
You need to click ‘Submit’ at the bottom of the form to send your completed application to us.
Get help with this funding programme
This funding programme is managed by Andy, our Programmes Director. Andy can help if you:
- aren’t sure if you meet our standards
- aren’t sure if this is the best fund to apply for
- can’t use our online form, need extra support with your application or if English isn’t your first language
- can’t attach the documents we’ve asked for.
Grant details
| Grant size: | Up to £20,000 |
| Typical grant: | £10,000 |
| Apply by: | As soon as possible, but by Christmas 2024 at the latest |
| Decision in: | Every 2 weeks |
Who is it for?Community hubs based in Somerset that meet our minimum standards.
What is it for?To support members of your community who need additional help during the winter.
FAQs
You can find our minimum standards and everything else you need to know about applying on our FAQs page.
