NEW Funding Opportunity – Community Action Against Crime Innovation Fund

The Home Office is launching the Community Action Against Crime Innovation Fund to encourage fresh ways to tackling crime and community safety problems.

Worth £5 million nationally  in 2011/12, and with a further £5 million set aside for 2012/13, the Innovation Fund will be used to support groups who adopt new approaches to existing community safety problems or who adapt existing approaches that have not been carried out previously.  This is a chance to try out new ideas here in Bolton which tackle crime issues that matter to YOU!

The Innovation Fund is open to not-for-profit organisations, social and community enterprises and groups with a social purpose within England.  New groups are particularly encouraged to apply.  Small Grants of between £1,000 - £15,000 are available per year and Large Grants of £15,001 - £50,000 are also available.

You can apply between 5th September and 1st December 2011.  However, the fund will be offered on a rolling basis, which means that applications will be assessed in order of the date of submission until all funds have been allocated.  Therefore you are advised to submit your application AS ¬SOON AS POSSIBLE as demand is expected to be high.

The following criteria will be used to make funding decisions - all applications must show that they:

• Are innovative
• Deliver lasting benefit
• Have involved local communities
• Tackle crime issues that matter to the local community, 

with a particular focus on one of the following areas: 

• Anti-social behaviour
• Crime in local neighbourhoods
• Drug and alcohol related crime
• Reducing re-offending
• Violence against women and girls
• Youth crime

Desirable criteria

Additional credit will be awarded to applications that can demonstrate that they meet the following desirable criteria:

• Partnership working between the voluntary and community sector, and the local community safety partnership, or one of its constituent statutory agencies
• Partnership working between the voluntary and community sector and local private sector organisations.  This could be through joint project working, or through match-funding (in cash, time, or goods and services provided without payment as a public service)
• Local community involvement in the design or the delivery of the project

The Bolton Community Safety Partnership (CSP) is keen to support as many applications as possible for the Innovation Fund.  

Voluntary and community groups interested in applying and who require the support from the CSP can contact daniel.ladd@bolton.gov.uk, 01204 331081 who will be able to liaise with you on seeking advice and formal support.  

CSP would encourage local groups to use the publicly available crime data at www.police.uk to help inform the evidence base for proposals.  

All applicants seeking support from CSP are urged to contact Daniel well in advance of the deadline as some time will be needed to understand proposals and liaise with key practitioners so that CSP can be in a position to formally support your application going forward.

Application forms and guidance notes are available from the Community Development Foundation (CDF) website:

http://www.cdf.org.uk/web/guest/crime-innovation-fund

If you have any queries you can ring CDF on: 020 7833 1772 (press option 3) 

Or email: Crime.Innovation@cdf.org.uk