Parish Development
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PRIORITY AREAS STAFFING FUND
Background and purpose
Policy and management
- Who can apply and posts supported
- What support is available
- How to apply
- If a grant is agreed
- If a grant is not agreed
Background and purpose
The Priority Areas Staffing Fund was approved by the General Assembly of 2006 with the purpose of supporting the funding of parish-based staffing within Scotland’s economically poorest communities.
The Ministries Council has agreed to commit £0.5 million per annum from 2007 – 2009. This money will cover grants to part-fund local work and the cost of administering the Fund. It is hoped that further funding might come from the public and private sectors. The success of any application is ultimately subject to the availability of sufficient funds.
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Policy and management
The Ministries Council is responsible for setting the guidelines and strategy for the use of the Fund. The Parish Development Fund Committee is responsible for the management of the Fund and is accountable to the Ministries Council through the Priority Areas Committee.
Who can apply and what type of posts will be supported?
We can consider applications from local churches serving priority area parishes (as defined on either the main list or the supplementary list produced by the Ministries Council) or other organisations working with them. Applications need to be supported by the Kirk Session(s) of the appropriate Church of Scotland congregation(s) for the area concerned. The Parish Development Fund Committee will also seek the opinion of the Presbytery concerned. |
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Grants can be given towards posts which are:
- …in addition to those specified within approved Presbytery plans (please note that enquiries about filling posts which come within approved Presbytery plans should be made directly to the Ministries Council)…
- …community-focused and have been developed in response to local needs and issues.
In addition, applications should be developed within an overall framework which:
- …encourages local churches to act with others for the benefit of the whole community – and take risks in living and sharing the Gospel in relevant ways…
- …improves the quality of life for people in greatest need in your community…
- …explores different ways of doing things…
- …actively encourages the participation of local people, groups and other churches.
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What support is available?
- The Parish Development Fund Committee will award grants according to the level of need in each case. Grants will not normally exceed half the total costs of a project, up to a maximum of £45,000 over a three year period.
- The Committee will consider supplementary applications for ongoing support after an initial three year period. These can be submitted during year three of the initial grant award if applicants are able to demonstrate how their work is making a significant difference, for example by means of a clear evaluation framework. Supplementary grants will not normally exceed one third of the total costs of the project, up to a maximum of £20,000 over a two year period.
- Please note that any grants agreed will only be released once you have raised the matched funding required from other sources, based on your original application. If you are unable to raise the original level anticipated and change your plans as a result, we may reduce the level of any grant agreed.
- Our staff will also seek to offer general support, advice and training, again depending on the level of need in each case.
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How do we apply?
- Contact the staff for informal discussion of ideas and proposals as early as possible.
- To begin the application process, ask for a copy of the Initial Proposal Form. You should complete this form and send it to us (this can be submitted at any time - there are no deadlines for this first stage of the application process).
- We will give you feedback on your initial proposal as soon as possible and if appropriate, send you a copy of the full grant application pack.
- We consider formal applications twice each year in April and October and the closing dates for formal applications are the end of February and August respectively. We will normally let you know the outcome by the end of April or October.
- Our staff can offer support and advice to help you complete the application and can liaise with you before the closing dates to comment on draft applications.
- Once we receive your application, we will send it to one of our committee members, who will contact you by telephone to discuss the application in detail.
- The committee member concerned, in consultation with our staff, will prepare a report on your application. This report will be considered by our full Committee, along with a summary of your application.
- The Committee will make a final decision about your application.
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Faith in the community
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If a grant is agreed:
- We will write to you making a formal offer of grant.
- We will ask you to accept both our standard conditions of award and any specific conditions set by our Committee.
- We will make appropriate arrangements to begin paying the grant once you have raised the match funding required for at least the first year. Grants are normally paid in two annual instalments at the beginning of January and July, subject to the receipt of appropriate reports.
- During the lifetime of the grant, we will ask you to submit certain progress reports – on occasion these will be in a specific format requested by us and at other times they can be in a format of your choice. In addition, we expect you to submit annual accounts which have been independently examined or audited, in accordance with current Scottish charity regulations.
- From time to time we may offer people involved in your project the chance to meet with others involved in similar work around the country.
- Our staff will try to offer as much ongoing support and advice as possible.
If a grant is not agreed:
- We will give you an explanation about the reason(s) for this.
- We will indicate whether we feel it is appropriate for you to resubmit the proposal at a future date and any steps we feel you need to take before doing this. You should bear in mind, however, that re-submitted applications may not necessarily be successful.
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