Merseyside Police Community Cashback Fund

Please read the Essential Information before applying. 

The Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) and Chief Constable have developed a scheme, which is designed to make funding accessible for grass root community projects that aim to support crime prevention initiatives or promote diversionary activities.  The scheme is funded by Proceeds of Crime Act recovered assets.

 

What is the fund?

Applications for funding must demonstrate how they will contribute to key themes that support policing activity and the force priorities.  Funding will be awarded across three themes:

• Prevention of crime and anti-social behaviour
• Diversion away from criminal gangs
• Promoting Diversity, Equality and Inclusion

 

Projects should contribute to the prevention of crime - For example, this can be through the promotion of community cohesion, by providing a sense of purpose and community to service users that diverts them away from negative behaviours; by educating service users and the community on the impact of crime and providing intervention for those at risk of becoming involved in such activity.  

 

Projects should focus on:

• Primary Prevention (situational and social prevention), i.e. is directed at stopping a problem before it happens. This involves reducing the opportunities for crime, reducing risk, and strengthening community and social structures.
• And/Or
• Secondary Prevention i.e. seeks to change people, typically those at high risk of embarking upon a criminal career. The focus can be on rapid/effective early interventions (e.g. youth programmes) and/or high-risk neighbourhoods.

 

How much funding can organisations apply for? Groups can apply for up to a maximum of £5000

 

Closing Date: 4pm on Friday 14^th July 2023

 

Any special criteria?

We strongly recommend to take note of the following special criteria before applying:

1. Applicants must have been constituted for a minimum period of 12 months

2. Groups who received a Community Cash Back grant last year (decisions communicated in June 2022) will not be eligible for consideration for the 2023 round. This is to allow other groups the opportunity to access a grant from this programme. If unsure on this, you can contact Community Foundation for Merseyside to check.

3. Groups are excluded from applying if their project has received funding from Participatory Budgeting within the same calendar year - 2023

4. The purpose of the fund is to support longer-term projects which will achieve longer-term impact. For this reason, the Community Cash Back fund does not wish to consider applications which are limited only to school holiday diversionary projects. Please refer to the PCC Youth Diversion Fund for grants which are specifically for school holiday diversionary activity. 

5. Priority will be given to applications from high harm areas as defined by socio-demographic data and police crime data.

 

Who can apply?

Voluntary, community and faith organisations, registered charities, not-for-profit social businesses and public sector bodies for non-statutory based provision operating in Sefton, Liverpool, Knowsley, St Helens and Wirral (Halton is not covered by this fund).

 

Examples of the types of projects that can be funded (this is not exhaustive):

• Coaching qualifications for young people
• Mentoring/peer support programmes
• Resources and capital equipment to enhance youth work activities
• Family support projects
• Educational courses to develop skills and build confidence
• Inter-generational projects to promote community cohesion
• Activities that seek to prevent and raise awareness about the impact of hate crime 
• Social action projects that seek to raise awareness and address issues affecting historically marginalised people and their rights
• Advice and information that allows people at risk of discrimination to know their rights
• Employability initiatives that seek to provide career pathways for at risk young adults not in education or employment
• Early intervention initiatives to support and divert at risk young people away from county lines
• Programmes for adults or young people which seek to challenge and change potential negative/harmful attitudes and behaviours towards other people of a different gender, or ethnic background, or sexuality/identity, or who are living with a disability.

 

What cannot be funded?

• Individuals
• Organisations with fewer than three unrelated Trustees/Directors/Management Committee members
• Projects and activities classed as a statutory responsibility
• Purchase/maintenance of vehicles
• Private Businesses or CICs Limited by Shares
• National organisations who do not have local governance and control or local finances
• Retrospective funding
• Politically connected or exclusively religious activities
• Projects or events which promote or condone extremist ideology, activities or terrorism;
• Academic research, educational bursaries or travel projects
• If you have already received funding for the same project (i.e. we will not accept multiple or repeat applications for the same project)

 

How to apply?

Please visit the Community Foundation for Merseyside’s website - www.cfmerseyside.org.uk – and complete an online application form (available on the fund page for this grant programme). Once you have submitted the online application, you will need to send the documents listed below. You can attach the documents to your online application, or email them to applications@cflm.org.uk

 

Documents which need to be included with your application:

1. A copy of your governing document

2. A copy of your latest annual accounts or income and expenditure document if a newer organisation

3. A copy of a recent bank statement for your group.

4. A list of your Trustees/Directors/Management Committee members

5. A copy of your current Safeguarding Policy

 

If you have applied to us within the last 12 months and provided this information, we do not need you to send it again although we do need a bank statement dated within the last 3 months.

 

What happens next?

Completed applications are considered by Community Foundation staff to check eligibility and complete due diligence checks. You may be contacted for more information after applying and a decision making panel will make decisions based on the fund’s criteria and the budget available.

 

Decisions will be communicated by the end of September 2023.

 

Community Foundation for Merseyside

Third Floor, Stanley Building, 43 Hanover Street,

Liverpool, L1 3DN

Email: applications@cflm.org.uk