Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) Emergency Fund
What is the Emergency Fund?
We have a vision to support and invest in the Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) to help it improve the lives of residents.
To support this vision the council provides funding to local VCS organisations who are facing an emergency.
The Emergency Fund has an annual budget of £100,000 per year and organisations can apply for up to £10,000 per year.
What organisations will we fund?
To be considered for funding, organisations must:
- be a VCS organisation
- have a Constitution, Memorandum and Articles of Association or other recognised governance document
- have a registered office in Tower Hamlets, a base within Tower Hamlets or be able to demonstrate a track record of successful service delivery within the borough, for at least one year
- have received council funding in the past two years
- have a bank account in the organisation’s name
- have a live and up to date safeguarding policy in operation if it works with children and/or adults at risk of abuse
- have current insurance cover in operation
- be able to show long-term financial viability, in the event of any Emergency Fund grant being awarded to the organisation
- be in danger of closing or unable to continue to provide funded services
- have already taken measures to address the emergency
- not have a debt with the council of £1,000 or over
How much money is available?
The total budget for the Emergency Fund is £100,000 per year. Organisations can apply for a one-off grant of up to £10,000 per year.
What will we fund?
The Emergency Fund will fund:
- building repairs for essential emergency work or health and safety requirements
- legal costs
- redundancy costs
- staff salaries/wages (to cover unforeseen medium/long term absences)
- recovery from damage or accidents to an organisation’s building or other assets
This is not a complete list. If you are unsure whether the issue you are seeking funding for is an emergency, please contact the Voluntary and Community Sector team. Email: vcs@towerhamlets.gov.uk.
We will not fund
The Emergency Fund will not fund costs which are not related to the emergency or for which the organisation has the funds to cover. We will not fund:
- consultancy costs not directly related to addressing the emergency
- delivery costs for terminated projects that were previously funded by the Council or another funding body
- delivery of new projects or enhancing of existing projects
- project match funding
- insurance or accreditation fees
- staff or volunteer training, volunteer expenses or team-building away days
This is not an exhaustive list. If you are unsure whether the issue you are seeking funding for is an emergency, please contact the Council’s Voluntary and Community Sector team
Application process
There is no deadline for submitting bids. Applications will be considered when they are received.
Applicants will be expected to submit an application form, which is made up of two sections:
Please apply using our online portal, Blackbaud Grant Management.
Emergency Grant Application form
You may need to create a new login for your organisation, even if you have previously received a grant from us. If you need support using the portal, please email us.
Organisation Section
The assessment of the organisation section is to see whether your organisation meets the standards of governance, management and financial competence that we expect of organisations it supports with public funds.
The organisations section questions will be scored as a pass or fail, so if your organisation fails on any of these criteria, you will not be eligible for funding
Organisation Section
| Criteria | Standard required | Evidence |
|---|
| Governance |
You must have a Constitution, Memorandum and Articles of Association, or other recognised governance document
|
Copy of your constitution or other governance document
|
|---|
| Borough connection |
Have a registered office in Tower Hamlets , a base within Tower Hamlets or be able to demonstrate a track record of successful service delivery within the borough, for at least one year
|
Confirmation of registered address (e.g. bank statement or utility bill within last 12 months)
Or
Copy of your rental agreement for the premises in Tower Hamlets where you deliver activities (this should cover a period of at least one year)
Or
Other evidence that you have successfully delivered services in Tower Hamlets for at least one year.
|
|---|
| Managing money |
A bank account in your organisation’s name
|
Details of your organisations bank account including (please provide a copy of your recent bank statement which contains following information):
- name of bank account
- sort code
- account number
|
|---|
| Geographical area served |
Confirmation of which part of Tower Hamlets your organisation serves
|
Provide information on organisation assessment form of which council wards your organisation covers
|
|---|
| Safeguarding policy |
Live and up to date safeguarding policy in operation if your organisation works with children and/or adults at risk of abuse
|
Copy of your organisation’s safeguarding policy
|
|---|
| Insurance |
Current insurance cover
|
Copies of relevant insurance certificates
|
|---|
Emergency Fund Proposal Section
The assessment of the proposal section is to determine whether your reported emergency is in line with the criteria for the Emergency Fund and that your proposal to address it is realistic or not. It includes questions relating to your organisation’s current financial position and future financial viability.
Emergency Fund Proposal Section
| Criteria and Requirements | Application Question | Maximum Score | Maximum Number of Words |
|---|
| About your organisation |
Please describe:
- the purpose of your organisation
- how your activities benefit Tower Hamlets residents
- how these activities link to Council priorities as outlined in our Strategic Plan 2022-2026
|
15 |
500 Words |
|---|
| About your emergency |
Please describe:
- the emergency your organisation is facing.
- the impact the emergency will have on your service users
- the impact the emergency will have on your organisation?
|
20 |
500 Words |
|---|
| How you have addressed the emergency previously? |
What steps has your organisation taken to deal with the emergency so far?
What has been the impact of these steps?
|
25 |
500 Words |
|---|
| What you want funding for? |
Please describe:
- What you will use the funding for?
- How will the funding help your organisation have long-term financial viability?
- Budget
|
20 |
500 Words |
|---|
| Reserves and Financial Management |
Please explain how much reserves you have available and why these cannot be used to tackle the emergency?
Apart from reserves does your organisation have any alternative sources of funding to address the emergency?
Please attach your recent year-end accounts
|
20 |
500 Words |
|---|
Each scoring criteria for the proposal section assessment will be allocated a weighted score between 0-5. Applicants will not be eligible for funding if they score a 2 out of 5 on any of the questions.
Assessment
We will assess your application against the grant criteria and will aim to let you know if you have been successful within four weeks from when we have received your application.
The assessment is to see whether your organisation and emergency meets the standards the council expects of organisations it supports with public funds.
We will ask you questions about:
- your organisation
- your emergency
- how you have previously addressed the emergency
- what you want funding for
- your reserves and financial management
Monitoring and evaluation
All successful organisations will be required to complete a monitoring and evaluation form three months after the grant award.
This will ensure that the grant has been spent correctly and that the council is able to continue to improve the fund.
Contact
If you have a question or need support, then please get in touch with the Voluntary and Community Sector Team by emailing vcs@towerhamlets.gov.uk.