Surrey County Council (SCC) has recently announced the development of The Community Projects Fund (CPF). This fund will support community-led projects aimed at improving people’s local area. It is much larger in scale than previous grant funds, so will help support projects that can make a real difference.
The CPF will provide £100m of capital funding over a five-year period. It specifically provides capital funding – e.g. funding for building works, equipment, vehicles, greenspaces, rather than cover revenue costs, such as for the running costs of an organisation.
The Fund was already being developed prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, however it will help support the recovery and rebuilding of local communities and groups that have been affected.
Co-design workshops
The Council wants to ensure the CPF meets the requirements of accessibility and deliverability for all communities and potential applicants. It want to ensure the fund is a success and communities benefit.
The aim of the co-design workshops is to test the grant criteria and process that has been developed with residents and community representatives to ensure they will enable the Fund to operate successfully and do not exclude any parts of the county or groups in the community from being able to access it. During the workshops participants will be taken through the application process; helping SCC to identify any potential barriers to accessing the Fund, or parts that can be streamlined or simplified. The workshops are also being designed to identify the level of support those putting bid applications together, and subsequently delivering projects, may require.
The workshops are being designed in collaboration with Council officers and undertaken by an external provider who will facilitate the sessions. They will take the form of five remote 90-minute workshops, each with 4-5 participants. Three of the workshops are proposed to include representation from the voluntary, community and faith sector (VCFS). Ideally the Council would like to identify a range of VCFS organisations – in terms of skills, scale or focus – who would be willing to participate.
The findings and recommendations from the co-design work will be used to inform any changes to be made to the process and criteria as required prior to the launch of the Fund.
To confirm, the workshops will be remote and take place via Zoom.
| Thursday 20th – 14:00 – 15:30 | Reps from VCSF groups focused session |
| Monday 24th – 14:00 – 15:30 | Reps from VCSF groups focused session |
| Monday 24th – 18:00 – 19:30 | Residents focused session |
| Tuesday 25th – 14:00 – 15:30 | Reps from VCSF groups focused session |
| Tuesday 25th – 18:00 – 19:30 | Residents focused session |
If your organisation would like to participate in any of the workshops, please contact Elspeth Andrews at Woking Borough Council (contact details below) with your preferred date and time. Elspeth will pass your details over to her colleagues at Surrey County Council who will be in touch with further information on how to join the Zoom session.
Elspeth L Andrews
T.: 01483 743851
E.: Elspeth.Andrews@woking.gov.uk
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