LCCC Community Support Grant 2026/27

Overview

Introduction

The Community Support Grant is designed to assist local community and voluntary sector organisations with a primary focus on community development. We understand that smaller groups are engaging people and connecting them to others; that larger groups are providing support services and creating active citizens and that all groups are adding value through volunteering fundraising and building networks across the council area. In doing so they are contributing to the delivery of the wider strategic (population) outcomes of our Community Plan.

Grant Objectives

This grant scheme aims to assist local community and voluntary sector organisations to:

Strengthen the ability of community and voluntary sector organisations to operate effectively, by supporting initiatives that enhance governance, leadership, financial management, and sustainability.
Provide opportunities for staff, volunteers, and community members to gain new skills and knowledge that improve service delivery and community engagement.
Enable local organisations to design and deliver projects that respond to identified community needs, promote inclusion, and contribute to the overall well-being and resilience of local communities.

Who is eligible?

The Community Support Grant is open to community/voluntary organisations based in and or delivering their services the Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council area that meet the following criteria:

an open and accountable governing document (Constitution or Articles and Memorandum of Association, or applicable governing document) that has been properly adopted;
has Community Development as the primary focus of the organisation, as outlined in the governing document;
a bank account in the name of the organisation, which requires at least two (unrelated) signatories;
an annual set of independently examined financial accounts, endorsed at an Annual General Meeting;
a Management Committee or Governing Board, elected by its membership at an Annual General Meeting, and elected office bearers;
a minimum of £5 million Public Liability Insurance, to cover all risk associated with the activities of the organisation;
in operation more than 12 months

We do not fund organisations:

Not operating on a not-for-profit basis (taken from the governing document) as we cannot support commercial projects or projects that could be carried out commercially. If, in the reasonable opinion of the council, the organisation applying for funding is a de facto commercial organisation, whatever the legal make-up of the organisation, then the council shall not fund that organisation. The decision of the council shall be final in this regard;
able to share out profits (taken from the constitution or memorandum and articles of association);
not prepared to share learning from their project with us and other relevant groups;
such as local authorities, public-sector organisations or regional voluntary organisations with a focus wider than LCCC area;
whose primary focus in not community development, this includes groups who deliver community development outcomes however have a different core focus. i.e. sports, arts, religious & Culture;
in operation for less than one year;
providing no potential benefit to the public, either in the short or long term;
are party political in intention, use or presentation;
promoting a particular religion.

Examples of what we will fund (not exhaustive):

Overheads including heat, light, water for facility.
Venue hire.
Running costs.
Insurance costs.
Training and capacity building programmes.
Costs associated with community programming.

Examples of what we will not fund (not exhaustive):

Costs which are not clearly linked to the project.
Costs that are poor value for money, or procured outside of Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council’s procurement guidelines.
Contribution towards salary costs.
Building/capital costs.
Costs that are already covered by other funding or income sources.
Costs related to private or unfunded pensions.
Amounts for gifts and donations.
Reclaimable VAT.
Alcohol.
Prizes and trophies.
Funding towards uniforms.
Equipment costs unless they have an on-going use throughout the project and are essential and necessary to complete the project.
Contributions towards general appeals.
Funding towards campaigning around a single issue.
Activities related to the promotion of religion or political parties.
Areas of statutory responsibility or where such funding has been withdrawn.
Retrospective payments or the repayment of loans.
Awards ceremony or industry events.
Holiday schemes.
Organisations that are in poor financial health or cannot show effective financial control.
Activities which have already taken place or are already underway at the time of the assessment.
Duplication of programmes or activities.
Primarily fundraising events, for charitable purposes, or deploy potential sources of income to a charity.
Are contrary to any Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council policies.

How much is available?

The Community Support Grant Scheme has £265,000 available. Organisations will be able to apply for financial assistance based on the following three levels:

Lease or owner of facility – a maximum of £5,500.
Community House or daily/weekly hire of premises – a maximum of £4,250.
No premises – a maximum of £2,500.

All funding awarded should be incurred from the date of the Letter of Offer to 31st March 2027.

There is no minimum level of funding.

Application Process

The required supporting documentation must be sent with the application unless we have received it in the last 12 months and no changes have been made to it.
Before applying, please check that:

your organisation is eligible to apply;
your application meets the priorities of this fund;
you have completed every question on your application form;
you can provide all the information.

Once your application is received, we will:

perform an Eligibility Check on your application and then assess it against the Programme Criteria;
contact you with questions should we need to, so please keep a copy of your Application Form for reference;
not assess your application if it is incomplete.

If your project is successful, we will:

send you a Conditional Offer and our Terms & Conditions of Grant by email for your organisation to sign and return to the council;
clearly indicate the eligible expenditure for the funding offered;
request the grant to be acknowledged through the inclusion of the official Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council’s logo on all related promotional material associated with the project and that an Elected Member or Council Officer from Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council, is invited to the event/activity to which the grant is awarded.

If your application is unsuccessful, we will:

contact you by email informing you of the reasons why your application has not been successful, for which there is no right of appeal.

The assessment process

Projects will be assessed against four criteria – eligibility, feasibility, deliverability and affordability. Eligible projects will be assessed against a prioritisation matrix based on the above criteria.

Scoring system overview

Section 3, 4 & 5	Max weighted score	Pass mark to move to next section
Sections 1 & 2: About your organisation
All sections must pass to move to Section 3	Pass/Fail
Programme details	35	17
Capacity to deliver	45	23
Funding request	20	10
Total score	100
Section 6: Details and declaration	Pass/Fail

Sections 3,4 and 5 will be assessed drawing on the evidence you provide in relation to each of the questions asked. Each question will be given a score out of 5 as follows:

0	No evidence presented
1	Very little, weak or irrelevant evidence presented
2	Some evidence presented but lacks in either conviction or relevance
3	Clear, relevant answers with limited evidence
4	Clear, convincing answers with strong evidence
5	Strong, clear and relevant convincing evidence from a variety of sources (Proportionate to scale)

Each question will be weighted to reflect its importance. This means the score is multiplied by the weighting number to give a weighted score.

Projects must achieve a minimum threshold score of 50 in order to be successful and will be ranked according to individual scores.

Successful projects must provide feedback to monitor progress, evaluate results and capture learning and good practice. This may include attendance at council facilitated workshops and/or meetings.

The Scoring Matrix

Section 1 & 2: About your organisation

	Pass/Fail
Legal name of organisation	Name reflects governing document
Based in Lisburn & Castlereagh	Statement that funded service is 100% in LCCC
Date formed	Date of incorporation on document is more than 12 months ago
Contact for the group	Clear contact details for organisation
Charity Registration	Registered with Charities Commission NI or pending registration
Main purpose of group	The description reflects the purposes set out in the governing documents The organisation’s role is consistent with community development.
Premises	Clear indication of type of premises
Bank Account / Signatories	At least two unrelated people to sign any withdrawal
Most recent audited signed accounts	Accounts less than 18 months old
Policies	All appropriate policies provided e.g. H&S, safeguarding etc. as evidenced through supporting documentation.

If all passed, applications can move to section 3.

Section 3: Feasibility

	Evidence	Weighting
Programme	Clear outline of programme / project and what they hope to achieve	3
Need and response	There is evidence of proportionate efforts to demonstrate needs and to shape the work on input from	2
Work in partnership or complement the work of others	There is evidence the group is aware of other services and can identify the gaps it fills or added value it brings (e.g. different people, locations, particular approaches, skills, experience)	1
Activity, dates and number of participants	Clear indication of activities, dates of when activities will take and number of participants	1

Requires a minimum score of 17 to pass and move to the next section.

Section 4: Delivery

	Evidence	Weighting
Capacity to deliver	The number of people and their roles, skills, past experience	3
Promotion	There is evidence: the group is aware of appropriate means to communicate with intended users or participants and has a system in place to do this of thought being given to reaching specific groups as relevant to the list of main beneficiaries	2
Barriers	There is evidence the group has thought about what may stop people taking part and has made reasonable plans to address them e.g. timing, cost, physical, sensory or intellectual access, transport, culture	2
Risk management Contingency Plans	There is evidence that the group has considered and identified those risks most likely to occur and have the greatest impact and has taken reasonable and proportionate steps to manage them	2

Requires a minimum score of 23 to pass and move to the next section.

Section 5: Funds and value for money

	Evidence	Weighting
Funding needed	The funding requested falls within the rules and parameters of the scheme. The budget adds up, appears to cover key elements and is proportionate to the scale of work and the nature of the needs of users or participants.	2
Other sources	There is evidence that: the group has made efforts to raise funds from elsewhere and is meeting with some success our funding will leverage funds from elsewhere across the three years	1
Value for money	The funding requested offers value for money given the number of people engaged and the nature of the needs being met	1

Requires a minimum score of 10 to pass and move to the next section.

Section 6: Bank details and declaration

	Pass/Fail
Account information	Details completed Details for signatories given
Acknowledgment agreement	Accepted with signatures, below
Declaration	Signed by contact Signed by a member

Application will proceed to allocation if Section 6 is completed in full.

Apply now

Information workshops have been arranged to support the application process. As outcome of applications is based on merit, it is strongly recommended that potential applicants attend one of the following workshops:

Monday 10th November at 7.00pm in Island Arts Centre
Thursday 13th November at 7.00pm in Moneyreagh Community Centre
Wednesday 19th November at 7.00pm – Online workshop (link will be provided upon registration)

To register for a workshop, please contact Community Services on:
T: 028 9244 7713
E: community.services@lisburncastlereagh.gov.uk

Please note the closing date for completed applications is Friday 28th November at 5pm.

Click here to apply