Grants of up to £30,000 up for grabs for good causes

Organisations can apply for cash to fund a range of up-and-coming projects which aim to support the community. These could include playgrounds, art projects, community transport schemes and village halls. Applications would be considered by a panel of Rother officers, lead cabinet members and, depending on the application, representatives from Rother Voluntary Action and Action in Rural Sussex. The panel, which meets twice a year, makes its decisions based on a scoring template. Unsuccessful applications can be carried over to a second panel meeting if all the criteria are not initially met or there were insufficient funds available. Community groups can apply to the council for either the small or large grants scheme. The small grants scheme provides a one-off grant of up to 5,000. This is limited to 50 per cent of the total cost of the project and 30 per cent of the funding must be found through local support. The maximum amount of cash for the large grant scheme is 30,000. Rother will fund a maximum of 50 per cent of the project and it is necessary to show how the on-going costs will be met in the long term. Cllr Ian Jenkins, Rother member for building stronger and safer communities, said: "The grant scheme demonstrates Rother's willingness to work in partnership with other organisations and to help communities achieve some of the aims set out in their parish and town plans. "It is hoped this scheme will 'pump prime' new projects and give them a good start." For more information on the sort of schemes eligible for grant funding and the application criteria, contact Scott Lavocah at scott.lavocah@rother.gov.uk or call 01424 787863. Guidance notes and application forms are also available at www.rother.gov.uk or from Rother community help points. Rother District Council especially welcomes applications that support the broad objectives of its corporate plan. For more information on the corporate plan, visit the website at www.rother.gov.uk/corporate plan.