Agenda item

RESOLVED: That Cabinet

a)    Approved the proposed Community Funding Grants Framework for West Northamptonshire Council for implementation from 2023/24.

b)    Approved the composition of the Community Funding Panel and the role of the Cross-party Advisory Group.

REASONS RESOLVED:

·         Following Vesting Day, the Council has had in place an interim Community Funding Grants Policy approved by Cabinet for use until March 2023. This Policy was for the operation of a single grant scheme that combined the district and borough councils’ legacy community funding grants and budgets into a single WNC Community Funding Grant Scheme.

·         Over the past two years, it has become apparent that our Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) have had different expectations and understandings of the use and purpose of this now single grant. There has also been other funding made available to these voluntary and community organisations, which while a welcome investment in prevention, has been aligned to the interim Community Funding Grant Policy without a clear remit from Cabinet.

·         There is now the opportunity to align all community funding into a single framework that will embrace current and future community funding grant awards. This will standardise the approach across the Council and ensure a fair, accessible, open and transparent process. Therefore, Cabinet approval is sought to enable Officers to launch the Community Funding Grants Framework and for this to be applied to community funding that voluntary and community organisations can apply for going forward.

·         The recommendation to implement a Community Funding Grants Framework will provide a consistent approach to the grant awards made by the Council and make it clear what the expectations of the Council are for projects to be considered for funding via a set of principles and standards. These principles and standards apply to both the VCS and to any Officers considering funding requests.

·         The Community Funding Grants Framework will enable the Council to take a more strategic and targeted approach to grant funding investment into the VCS , ensuring that all awards are aligned to meet identified needs and the Councils corporate priorities.

·         The level of grants to a voluntary or community organisation under this proposal will fall below the Council’s Scheme of Delegation limits for Officers No grant award will therefore be classified as a Key Decision of the Council.

·         The Cabinet, on approval of the Community Funding Grants Framework, will have determined the strategic direction of all community funding to the VCS which will be tracked and reported to members periodically to ensure transparency for all stakeholders.

·         The recommendation to approve the composition and ongoing role of the Cross-party Advisory Group extends their advisory role into all future Community Funding Grant Schemes.

ALTERNATIVE ACTIONS:

Continuing without a Community Funding Grants Framework. This model would see decision making and awarding of community funding implemented on a Directorate / Departmental basis across the Council with little coordination. This option is not recommended for reasons including:

• there will be different funding policies, principles and standards applied to these grants;

• there will be an increased risk of challenge due to inconsistencies of officer decision making without a framework being in place;

• risk of duplicating funding to organisations and/or projects; and

• inconsistency for ensuring these grants address the Council’s corporate plan, strategic aims, objectives and priorities.

Not to approve the proposed Community Funding Grants Framework. This would lead to the Council having no mechanism to guide community funding grant awards, therefore having a detrimental effect on the consistency and quality of our decision making which is likely to be detrimental to the VCS and residents of West Northamptonshire.

At the Chair’s invitation Councillor Smith presented the report and summarised the salient points.  The framework would provide a consistent platform for both existing and new grants.

Councillors made the following comments:

·         The report was welcomed.

·         Could there be a representative from the voluntary sector on the community funding panel?

·         Would there be one member from each group on the cross-party advisory group?

·         Promotion of partnership and collaboration was important to prevent duplication.

·         It was important that the application process was not over-complicated.

·         Multi-year grants were preferred because this enabled organisations to plan and recruit staff.

·         Were community transport groups eligible to apply for these grants?

·         It was disappointing that there had not been an increase in budget this year.

Councillor Smith responded and made the following points:

·         The grants were one-off rather than ongoing funding.

·         A cross-party working group had worked well in the past.

·         Voluntary sector representation on the grants panel would be considered.

·         Community transport groups could make an application for a grant.

Councillor Brown welcomed the report and had seen the value of the grants in the sporting and performing arts sectors.  The flexibility of one-year grants could be useful for those starting out.

Councillor Golby also supported the report and advised that the anti-poverty oversight group spoke highly of the way WNC had been engaging with the voluntary sector.

RESOLVED: That Cabinet

a)    Approved the proposed Community Funding Grants Framework for West Northamptonshire Council for implementation from 2023/24.

b)    Approved the composition of the Community Funding Panel and the role of the Cross-party Advisory Group.