One of the key ways the Parish Council supports the Holme Valley community is through its grant awards. In the year 2022-23, the Parish Council awarded £170,000 in grants. Check out all the grants we have awarded in the last couple of years:
Also check out the rolling list of grant awards.
The Parish Council requires that all community organisations fill in a Grant Evaluation Report, once their project is complete. This is to ensure that public money is spent appropriately. You can read all the Grant Evaluation Reports we have received here.
In the current financial year (2023-24), £53,000 is available through the Council’s Finance & Management Committee for "Other Community Assets" which means grants awarded to fund developments or repairs of physical assets like community buildings, facilities and outdoor spaces, as well as to pay for things like large pieces of "permanent" equipment. Funding may be awarded from this budget to buildings and services that have been transferred from Kirklees Council to the Parish like the Civic Hall, Holmfirth public toilets and Honley Library. The maximum award is £5,000 though, in very special circumstances, full Council may make awards greater than £5,000.
The Finance and Management Committee also oversees a pot of £20,000 available for all other grant applications such as community projects, events and festivals, and anything else that benefits the people of the Holme Valley. The maximum award is £1,500. Again, full Council may make discretionary awards greater than £1,500.
Other Committees may give out grants as well following approval by the Parish Council. Currently, the Parish Council also makes awards for Christmas events, for patient transport schemes, and for CCTV.
The Council can only award grants using certain legal powers. Specific powers allow the Council to provide funding for specific activities or projects which members feel will be of benefit to the Holme Valley, - e.g. grants to a sport club, for a music festival or towards community celebrations of special events. Where no other power is available, the Council may decide to use its power under Section 137 of the Local Government Act 1972, to award a grant where it feels that to do so will benefit some or all of its residents. The critical words are "some" or "all". This means that grants where the activity would not obviously benefit the people of the Holme Valley are problematic – however worthy Members of the Council may feel the project to be.
The Clerk and Responsible Finance Officer are happy to advise on which category grant applications will fall into but we have simplified the process by having one application form for all and one set of criteria. The grant applications will be considered only at two occasions during the year, September and February, so that they can be assessed against each other for relative merit. However, the Parish Council would consider applications that are urgent outside of this cycle. The closing date for September applications is 31st August and the closing date for February applications is 31st January.
To a
significant extent, the Parish Council is limited by national law in terms of
to whom and to what it can make grant awards. It is further guided by its own
processes and priorities. This guidance below reflects both national law and
the Parish Council's own priorities.
Who can apply?
Voluntary groups and societies, clubs, not-for-profit organisations, charities operating in the Holme Valley where the benefit will be for some or all of residents of the Holme Valley. Such groups would be expected to have a constitution.
Who cannot apply?
- Individuals
- Churches
- Schools
- Fundraisers
- For-profit organisations
Furthermore:
- Regional or national charities are unlikely to be considered unless it is for a specific project in the Holme Valley where there will be obvious benefit to the Council’s area.
- Applicants for items or services that should ordinarily be provided by a statutory body (like, for example, the NHS or Department for Education) will not be considered by the current Council.
- The Parish Council resolved in 2023 not to consider applications from school support groups unless what the proposed award was for would benefit the wider community as well as the school, its pupils and families.
Community Interest Companies and similar groups:
Local projects, rooted in the community, run by volunteers, doing something for the local community are likely to be preferred to those Community Interest Companies (CICs) which are only run by the paid workers themselves.
- Only companies and groups with volunteer directors or with a committee/board of trustees/management board will be considered.
- CICs which hold money for volunteer-led projects would be considered.
- Only CICs who can submit a constitution or Aims and Objectives document will be considered.
What does the Council give grants for?
- The Parish Council gives grants out that will pay expressly for specific things or services identified by the applicant. The applicant has to supply information on the breakdown of costs of their project for this purpose.
- Capital projects, such as the purchase of equipment, works to buildings, improvements to premises.
- The Council may support a community event, a festival or special event in commemoration which is held within the Holme Valley or clearly benefits the people of the Holme Valley.
Are there any criteria or conditions?
- Much of the criteria is laid out here above.
- Grant recipients are expected to complete a Grant Evaluation Form after the project is complete, providing a report to the Council on how the grant has been spent. Since the grant is public money, receipts and invoices of expenditure are required to be kept.
- Details of the project may appear in the Council’s newsletter, or on its website.
- If a club has permanent bar premises from which it can raise an income, award of a grant will be at the Council’s discretion.
How often are grant applications considered?
- Grants applications are considered as a twice yearly cycle in the months of September and February at the meetings of the Finance and Management Committee and the Service Provision Committee. To allow time for processing or applications the closing dates are 31st August for the September meetings and 31st January for the February meetings.
- However, if community organisations experience an urgent need for funds, applications can be submitted outside of that cycle to a Committee or to full Council.
- Completed applications must be accompanied by all the documents listed on the grant application form.
How do I apply?
- Application forms may be downloaded here or obtained from the Council’s office. Please read the list of criteria before completing a form, and remember to include all the accompanying paperwork that is requested.
- To cut down on waste, we prefer to receive applications in digital format (Word or PDF) though, of course, people can apply in paper if they so wish