Community Relations grants are aimed at any group or individual that wishes to improve or promote community relations within the Borough. In addition we can offer support in the form of advice, guidance and by providing other resources.

Criteria:

1. A seeding grant, up to a maximum of £200, may be available to new groups that are developing programmes of cross-community activities. Such groups must be properly constituted and have their own bank account for this purpose only.
2. Special projects which meet the following criteria will be considered for a maximum grant of £600:
   • Provide opportunities for groups to explore cultural, political and religious traditions in their communities, as part of a programme that increases their capacity to develop inter-community contact.
   • Bring together people of different religious traditions to try and bridge divisions in a particular locality.
   • Develop programmes of reflection aimed at identifying similarities and differences between communities, and which promote an increased understanding and acceptance of these differences.
   • Create models of good practice in community relations work.
3. Grant aid is available for Skills training which will enable people to understand and deal with issues of cultural difference, prejudice, conflict and other issues related to cross community projects.
4. We will not allocate grant aid to recognised charities or commercial ventures.

Conditions:

1. We will award only one grant to any group or individual in each financial year (1 April to 31 March).
2. We will only accept applications on our official application form, which you can get from the Good Relations Officer: Tel: (028) 9034 0033 or by downloading the PDF version which you can print out and return to us when completed.
3. We will treat incomplete or illegible applications as ineligible and return them to you.
4. Your application must be for a nonprofit-making purpose.
5. How much grant aid we offer will depend on the funding we have available.
6. Our support should be acknowledged in all publicity material relating to the event.
7. Events must be widely publicised and open to the general public.
8. All events or projects should provide equal opportunity to all the community, whatever their age, gender, creed, ethnic or religious grouping.
9. Organisations or groups must arrange to have suitable insurance or public liability cover in place for all events funded by us.
10. Successful applicants must enter into a contract with us. Standard conditions of financial assistance will cover areas such as constitution, accounting procedure, legal requirements, acknowledgement of council funding, and monitoring and evaluation methods.

Other Information:

1. We will acknowledge all applications for grant aid, in writing, within 10 days of receipt.
2. Applications may be deferred if we need further information.
3. We will not consider a claim that your application was lost in the post, unless you have proof of posting.
4. If your application is unsuccessful, you can contact the Good Relations Officer to find out why your application was rejected. Tel: 028 9034 0033 Email: cfox@newtownabbey.gov.uk

Related Documents to Download:

Community Relations Grant Application Form (.pdf 43KB)

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