Main Grants Programme Capital Grants

Main Grants Programme
Capital Grants
Capital grants of £10,000 or more for work in the UK* are available through our Main
Grants Programme.
Capital grants are one off grants towards the purchase of equipment, or for the
purchase or refurbishment of a building.
Please read our Terms and Conditions of Accepting a Capital Grant before you
apply. If your organisation is awarded a grant, but is not able to meet our terms and
conditions, the grant will not be paid. Please pay particular attention to the need for
grants to be drawn down within three years of being awarded, and that you will need to
have the full balance of funding in place before payment can be made.
Each of our grant programmes has separate guidelines. For information about applying
for a Revenue grant through the Main Grants Programme, a Small or County grant, or
for any of our other grants, please refer to the guidelines for those programmes.
*including the Isle of Man and Channel Islands
How to apply for a Capital grant
Applications for Capital grants can be submitted at any time, provided that:
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you do not have an active grant from us;
we are not already assessing an application to one of our other programmes; and
if you applied previously and were unsuccessful, that more than 12 months has
passed since you received your declination letter.
There are no deadlines and we do not have an application form, but you must complete
an Application Cover Sheet. This can be downloaded from our website.
Mail shots and general requests for donations will not be considered.
The Application Cover Sheet must be completed and submitted as part of your
application. This provides us with key information; your organisation name, full contact
details, the name and email address of your main contact, gives us an idea of the
project or work you want us to fund, and the amount you are requesting. It also asks for
confirmation that your organisation has a Child Protection Policy (if applicable to your
work) and that Disclosure and Barring Checks (PVG checks in Scotland) are carried out
on all staff and volunteers working with children or vulnerable people.
Your application should be no longer than four sides of A4 and in font size no smaller
than 11 point.
Your application should describe the work your organisation undertakes, what evidence
you have that it is effective, and provide details of the project you are seeking funding
for. It is also important that you demonstrate an awareness of and engagement with
any changes to legislation or policy which affect your field of work. Please include all
the following information:
Your Organisation
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Your organisation’s status (e.g. registered charity, company limited by guarantee,
not for profit organisation or community interest company) and when it was formed.
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If you are a branch of, or related to, a larger organisation, explain the nature of the
relationship and whether it includes any financial support.
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The range of services or support your organisation provides, where you operate,
who you help, and why your work is needed.
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Please include evidence of the difference your service makes to your service
users/beneficiaries (i.e. the outcomes of your work) and explain how you monitor
and evaluate your work.
Your Project
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Outline of the work you propose to undertake, or equipment you wish to purchase,
and why it is needed.
 What existing facilities you have, how they are currently used and, if they are no
longer fit for purpose, the reason for this.
 The activities you will deliver in the new/refurbished premises, or using the new
equipment, and how your work will change or be improved as a result.
 The number of people who will benefit.
 How the project will be managed and by whom. Include information about their
experience and how they are qualified for the job.
 How you will ensure your project is cost-effective.
 Your plans for monitoring and evaluating its impact.
 Your fundraising strategy, including details of funds already secured and
applications you have made, or plan to make. Please note we will expect you to
have approached local and regional funders before applying to us. If it is not
appropriate to do, please tell us why.
 How you plan to fund any extra costs that will result from your project (e.g. because
of an increase in building running costs or levels of activity) and the ongoing running
costs of your organisation in the short and medium term.
Please keep your application as simple as possible and avoid the use of technical
language or jargon. You may include photographs or plans, but please do not send
electronic media (e.g. DVDs) with your application.
Your application must be signed and either printed on your organisation’s headed
paper, or accompanied by a covering letter on headed paper.
Referees
Provide the names and addresses of two independent referees (people who do not
currently benefit from your services or that will benefit from you gaining a grant, i.e. not
Trustees, employees or volunteers).
Supporting Documents
In addition to your four page application, include
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a detailed budget for your project. If you are asking us for part funding, please
explain where the balance of funds will be/has been raised and make it clear what
has been committed to date.
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a budget for your organisation showing the costs of running your organisation
once you have completed the capital project, and how you will meet them.
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your most recent audited or independently inspected accounts (full accounts are
required, not just a SoFA and Balance Sheet). If the accounts show a significant
surplus or deficit of income, or high reserves, please explain the reason for this. If
the year end date of your accounts is more than 10 months ago, please send
up-to-date management accounts as well as full accounts.
How Much Can I Apply For?
Over the past two years our Capital grants have ranged from £20,000 - £150,000. The
amount you ask us for will depend on a range of factors, including the size of your
project and your organisation. Details of grants awarded over the past three years can
be found on the Recent Grants page of our website.
What will happen to my application?
It will take up to six months to hear the outcome of your application (though
applications that are ineligible, or that are not being taken to full assessment stage will
be notified before this).
If an application is not signed or is received without accounts or a budget, it may be
declined or returned to you unread. Please read our guidelines carefully before
submitting your application.
We receive many more applications than we are able to fund. Unfortunately this means
that we often have to turn down good applications.
Our assessment process has four stages.
When we receive your application we will email you to acknowledge receipt, or write to
let you know if your application does not meet our basic criteria and is therefore
ineligible. We aim to do this within one week of receipt of an application.
Stage One: All eligible applications are reviewed by our Grants Team. It can take up to
eight weeks to conduct this assessment (although in practice you will often hear from us
sooner than this). During Stage One we may contact you if we need to clarify any
information in the application. The Trustees receive information about all assessed
applications and may be asked to comment on them. We will be in touch at the end of
the assessment to let you know whether your application will be taken forward.
Stage Two: If your application is successful at Stage One, we will email you to ask for
some additional financial information (e.g. management accounts and a budget for your
organisation) and to request an electronic copy of your application. Again, at this stage
a member of our team may contact you to seek more specific details on how you deliver
your service and the number people you help. In order to minimise delays in processing
your application, we aim to complete this stage of the process within two weeks so
please be prepared to provide any additional information requested.
Stage Three: If your application reaches this stage, one of our network of Volunteer
Visitors, or a member of staff, will then contact you to arrange to visit to your
organisation. The visit enables us to discuss your project with you in more detail and to
find out more about your organisation and the people you work with. Visits can take up
to three hours and, as well as exploring your funding request, will look more closely at
your organisation’s governance, management, and fundraising strategy. We would
normally expect to meet with staff and a member of your Board/Trustees. Once the visit
has taken place a report is prepared for our Trustees.
Stage Four: Trustees meet quarterly in March, June, September and December.
Decisions about whether or not to award grants are made by Trustees at these
meetings. A letter notifying you of the outcome will be sent to you within two weeks of
the meeting taking place.
Please note that we cannot guarantee that your application will go to a particular
meeting as this is dependent on the number of applications we receive.
Applicants who are unsuccessful are required to wait a minimum of 12 months
from the date of notification before re-applying.
We reserve the right to share with other grant makers information received from
applicants requesting funding and from those in receipt of a grant from us, unless an
organisation expressly requests otherwise. Knowingly providing false information will
invalidate any application or grant.
What we fund
The Henry Smith Charity makes grants for work throughout the UK, the Isle of Man and
the Channel Islands.
Priority is given to work benefitting groups experiencing social and/or economic
disadvantage (people with disabilities, for example) and to work that tackles problems in
areas of high deprivation (by which we mean areas in the bottom third of the National
Indices of Deprivation).
We make grants in the categories listed below, and have given some examples of the
type of work that we prioritise for support through our grants.
Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME)
Culturally appropriate services for Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities;
including those that promote integration and access to mainstream services.
Carers
Advice and support; including respite services for carers and those who are cared for,
and educational opportunities for young carers.
Community Service
Support services for communities in areas of high deprivation; including furniture
recycling projects, debt advice services and community centres.
Disability
Rehabilitation, support services, training and advocacy support for people who are
disabled; this includes people with learning disabilities as well as physical disabilities.
Domestic and Sexual Violence
Advice, support and secure housing projects for families affected by domestic violence
or sexual violence. Perpetrator programmes can be considered where organisations
have secured, or are working towards, Respect accreditation. We are particularly
interested in services which can demonstrate their outcomes measurement such as
data collected through the CAADA Insights programme.
Drugs & Alcohol/Substance Misuse
Rehabilitation and support services for people affected by, or at risk of, drug and/or
alcohol dependency, and projects providing support to their families.
Ex-Service Men and Women
Support and residential care services for ex-service men and women and their
dependents.
Family Services
Support services for families in areas of high deprivation.
Healthcare
Residential, health and outreach services, such as home care support. NHS operated
services will not normally be funded nor will core medical staff. In the case of
applications from Hospices, priority is given to requests for capital expenditure.
Homelessness
Advice, support and housing services for homeless people and those at risk of
homelessness.
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender
Advice, support and counselling services for people who are Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual or
Transgendered.
Mental Health
Advice and support services for people experiencing mental health problems, and
projects that promote positive mental health.
Older People
Residential, health and emotional support services, such as befriending services and
day care centres. Priority will be given to projects in areas of high deprivation and those
where rural isolation can be demonstrated.
Prisoners and Ex-offenders
Rehabilitation and resettlement services for prisoners and/or ex-offenders; including
education and training projects that improve employability, and projects that provide
support to prisoners’ families.
Prostitution & Trafficking
Advice and support services for sex industry workers; including advice on housing
support and personal health, escaping exploitation and exiting prostitution.
Refugees & Asylum Seekers
Advocacy, advice and support services for refugees and asylum seekers, and that help
promote integration.
Young People
Projects and services that help maximise the potential of young people who experience
educational, social and economic disadvantage; including young people in, or leaving,
care.
Not normally funded
We do not make grants towards:
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General Appeals or letters requesting donations (full applications that follow our
guidelines must be submitted).
Local authorities, or work usually considered a statutory responsibility.
Schools, colleges or universities, except for independent special schools for pupils
with disabilities or special educational needs.
We will not fund the following unless they are in an area of high deprivation (i.e. in
the bottom third of the Indices of Deprivation):
o Youth clubs
o Uniformed groups such as Scouts and Guides
o Community centres.
Counselling projects, except those that have a clearly defined client group and are in
areas of high deprivation.
Pre-school projects, out of school play activities or holiday schemes, unless these
are specifically for disabled children.
Community transport organisations or services.
Projects that promote religion (please see the Frequently Asked Questions page of
our website for more information on this exclusion)
Capital applications for places of worship.
Organisations that do not provide direct service delivery to clients (such as umbrella,
second tier or grant-making organisations).
Arts projects, unless able to evidence therapeutic or rehabilitative benefits to:
o older people;
o disabled people;
o vulnerable groups;
o prisoners, or
o young people experiencing educational, social and economic disadvantage
(such as young people in, or leaving, care).
Education projects, except those able to evidence practical and rehabilitative
benefits to:
o disabled people;
o prisoners, or
o young people experiencing educational, social and economic disadvantage.
Leisure, recreation or play activities unless they:
o are specifically for disabled people;
o are able to demonstrate a significant rehabilitative benefit to people with
mental health problems, or
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o significantly improve opportunities to maximise the potential of young people
experiencing educational, social and economic disadvantage.
One-off events (such as festivals, conferences, exhibitions and community events).
The core work of Citizens Advice Bureaux.
Projects that solely provide legal advice.
Running costs of Hospices.
Feasibility studies.
Professional associations, or training for professionals.
Organisations that do not have charitable aims (such as companies limited by
shares and commercial companies).
Start up costs, organisations that do not yet have a track record of service delivery,
or that have not yet produced accounts.
Individuals, or organisations applying on their behalf.
Projects taking place or benefiting people outside the UK.
Overseas trips.
Residential holidays (except those that qualify under our Holiday Grants scheme).
Heritage or Environmental conservation projects.
Social research.
Campaigning or lobbying projects, or general awareness raising work.
Projects where the main focus is website development or maintenance.
IT equipment (unless related to a member of staff we are also being asked to fund).
Capital projects that are solely to meet the requirements of the Disability
Discrimination Act.
Capital costs towards the purchase or adaptation of a vehicle.
Organisations that have applied to us unsuccessfully within the previous 12 months.
Pilot projects are not currently a high priority. If you are seeking funds for a pilot
project, please be aware you must be able to provide strong evidence from other
work that has already been delivered to support the case for funding. You must also
provide clear evidence that there is a need to develop a pilot.
Checklist
Please ensure that:
 your application is either printed on your organisation’s headed paper, or
accompanied by a covering letter on headed paper
 that it (or the covering letter) is signed
and that you have included:
 application cover sheet
 your application
 a budget for your project
 an organisational budget incorporating any additional running costs after
completion of the capital project
 full audited or independently inspected accounts.
Please send your application to:
Applications - Capital
The Henry Smith Charity
6th Floor
65 Leadenhall Street
London EC3A 2AD
These guidelines are available in large print or by email on
request. Please tell us which font size you would like to
receive them in, and whether you would like them posted
or emailed to you.
The Henry Smith Charity
Charity No. 230102
Tel. 020 7264 4970