SNG (Sovereign Network Group) is excited to announce the launch of the new Positive Pathways Fund. The fund will support local grassroots/community organisations to deliver projects that make our communities safer. We will be awarding grants from £1000 to £5000 for innovative projects and activities that reduce serious antisocial behaviour (ASB) and crime affecting young people in communities across Basingstoke and Deane.
The fund forms part of our wider Positive Pathways Programme. This initiative was developed by SNG and brings together partner agencies and community organisations with the goal of delivering a co-ordinated approach to tackle and reduce ASB and serious and violent crime across the Basingstoke and Deane area, with a particular focus on engaging young people involved in or at risk of being involved in ASB.
The programme embeds a preventative, pro-active and reactive framework so that all partners and community organisations involved can focus on their strengths, join resources and agendas and therefore deliver community safety and positive pathways for young people, their families and the wider community.
Funding will support organisations to deliver activities developed by the local community and young people with lived experience, including positive diversionary activities, support programmes for parents and families, skills-based training, and specialised support services.
The fund will launch on 14 October and the application window will remain open until 15 November, and we hope to let organisations know about the outcome of their application in mid-December.
SNG (Sovereign Network Group) is a leading housing association, striving to provide quality, affordable homes and places, that people love for generations.
We have deep roots in the south of England, with over 82,000 homes focused in a core area covering Berkshire, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Hampshire, Hertfordshire, London, Oxfordshire, the Isle of Wight, the West of England and Wiltshire.
We’re driven by our social purpose, with customers at the heart of everything we do. We build homes and provide great services, but our work doesn’t stop at the front door – we invest for the long-term, creating great places to live, working with customers and partners to support them in realising their potential. Read more about who we are.
To apply for this fund, you must be a local/grassroots not-for-profit group, community organisation, or registered charity and you must be able to demonstrate how your activities will aim to reduce antisocial behaviour in the Basingstoke and Deane area and benefit SNG customers.
Please note, funding will be limited to one project per organisation.
While we will accept applications from the entire ward of Basingstoke and Deane, we have identified the following priority neighbourhoods:
- Brighton Hill/Hatch Warren
- South Ham/Buckskin
- Black Dam
- Popley/Oakridge
Our funding will prioritise groups that are operating within these areas.
If you have a potential project within these areas but you would like more information about the location of our communities, please get in touch with us at - Community.Investment@sng.org.uk
Our funding is flexible, but we will only fund capital/equipment costs up to 25% of your total budget. For more detailed information about what types of costs you can include, please see the “how to apply” section below.
The following organisations are not eligible for this fund:
- Private Businesses
- Organisations set up as trusts (including charitable trusts)
- Individuals
We are also not able to support the following:
- National appeals
- Activities which are of a wholly and exclusively political or religious nature, or organisations supporting political activism
- Retrospective funding of activities/projects/equipment
At the point of applying, you will be required to provide data about your organisation, including your charity/company number (where applicable, or equivalent) and contact details.
If your project is successful, you will also need to provide additional organisational data, including additional contact details and banking information. Please note, informal organisations without their own bank account must ensure that their money is held on their behalf by a trusted (registered) non-profit.
We will support a broad range of activities if they meet our key eligibility criteria and can demonstrate how they will contribute to the reduction of ASB, serious violence and crime in the identified areas in Basingstoke and Deane. We are looking for projects to be innovative and to be developed with the community, including the voice of people with lived experience.
Projects could focus on:
- Positive diversionary activities. This includes projects that provide a positive alternative setting for young people through activities like sport, music, or arts, supporting development opportunities and leading to positive outcomes like reduced school-based exclusion, better communication and increased confidence and self-esteem.
- Specialised support services and programmes. This could be dedicated programmes or support groups focused on assisting young people involved in ASB through mentoring or 1:1 support schemes. Programmes could also work with families with children that are caught up in ASB or where there is concern around how this behaviour may develop, focusing on improving communication and conflict resolution.
- Improving the provision of community resources. For example, funding for improving and expanding community centres or to deliver community-led safe events & clean-ups to help bring communities together and prevent areas from becoming neglected.
- Specialised health services. This includes recovery hubs or substance misuse services, dedicated mental health services and counselling.
Priority will be given to applications that can clearly demonstrate their objectives, the outcomes that their project will achieve and the difference that will be made by their project. We want to see how your organisation’s work will have a positive and long-lasting impact on the local community.
If you have a potential project but are unsure if it aligns with the Positive Pathways objectives, feel free to contact us and speak to a member of the team at Community.Investment@sng.org.uk.
Grants from £1,000 to £5,000.
The application window will be open from 14 October until 15 November. All projects should start in January 2025 and be fully delivered within 12 months of receiving funding.
To apply for funding, you will need to register your project on the ActionFunder website. ActionFunder is a digital fundraising engagement platform that connects funding bodies with non-profits with the goal of supporting thriving local communities. By launching your project on ActionFunder, you will have the potential to match with multiple different funding pots, not just this fund.
When registering your project, you will be asked for the following information, so please have this on hand when starting your application:
The pitch
The first section of the application is where you will identify why your project is needed and what you intend to deliver.You have the option to provide this information in written form or by submitting a video pitch describing your project idea, why it is needed and why you are best placed to deliver.
For written applications, you will be asked to answer the following three questions:
1. Problem statement
Your problem statement should identify the issues or barriers that the Basingstoke and Deane community faces in relation to ASB and why your project is needed. Using quotes and statistics can help us understand the specific needs of your community.
2. Solution
This answer should summarise your project idea and key outputs. By reading this, you should be able to understand what exactly the applicant intends to deliver. This is where we want you to demonstrate how your project will help to reduce antisocial behaviour in the area.
3. Why are we best placed to deliver?
Here you should tell us why your organisation will be able to deliver this project well. Do you have specific relevant experience? A team of volunteers? Any relevant qualifications?
Delivery plan
The second section of the application is where you provide more detailed information about how much your project will cost and what the impact of your activities will be.
1. Budget breakdown
This section is for you to record your project budget. Whilst we are looking for budgets to represent good value for money, we also want them to be realistic. It is important to know exactly how much you will need to carry out your activities effectively, and not underestimate costs, as this can lead to long-term financial problems and can impact project delivery.
What we will fund:
- Overheads/core running costs
- Capital/equipment costs (as long as they form 25% or less of your total budget)
- Staff costs
- Marketing and engagement costs
What we will not fund:
- Expenditure not clearly linked to project activities
- Items that do not appear to have been costed
- Activities that fall outside of your delivery timeframe e.g., retrospective funding.
2. Beneficiaries
Here please specify the total number of beneficiaries you will engage with during your project. You will then have the option to choose specific groups from a multiple-choice list below.
3. Expected impact
This answer should explain what impact you hope to achieve from your activities. Try to be as specific as possible with your outcomes and link this back to your problem statement.
4. Track record
This is an opportunity to give us additional details about what your organisation has previously delivered and could include quotes from previous beneficiaries or partners.
Here are some of our top tips to consider when completing your application:
Do you meet the eligibility criteria?
- Your application will not be considered if you do not meet the key eligibility criteria listed above. Please carefully consider if you are eligible to apply before submitting your application. If you are unsure, please don’t hesitate to contact us at grants@sng.org.uk.
Pay close attention to your budget
- One of the main reasons that funding applications are unsuccessful is due to poor budgeting. Above we identify the things we will and won’t fund, please read these carefully before producing your project budget. It is good practice to plan your budget for the whole year and get quotes for all the items included. The more detail you can include the better, but we also understand that some things may change over the course of your project and will work closely with you to resolve any issues that arise.
Evidencing need and linking to SNG communities
- We want to know how the money they provide will make a positive difference. Using statistics, quotes and other testimonies can help bring your application to life and showcase why you are best placed to deliver the project. This can be figures to show why the project is needed in your community (through using local surveys, council websites, Government reports) or through testimonies of how your previous work has benefited the community.
- Particularly important for this fund is demonstrating how your project will address our core objective of reducing antisocial behaviour, crime and serious violence in Basingstoke and Deane.
Be clear and concise in your language
- Try to avoid using complex jargon and abbreviations. If you are submitting a written application, keep your writing concise and stick to the key details of your organisation and project. It can be helpful to share a draft with someone who doesn’t know about your project to see if they understand what you are aiming to achieve. If you would prefer to submit a video application, you can do this via the ActionFunder platform.
Embed sustainability
- We want to ensure that funding has a long-lasting impact, so we recommend embedding sustainability into your project design. For an environment and place project, this may look like incorporating maintenance costs into your project budget. For a project focusing on employment support, this could include providing training qualifications or electronic devices for long-term use.
Consider how you will monitor and evaluate progress
- It is important to read over what will be expected of you in terms of reporting on your project and incorporate this into your project model to save you time and difficulty later (see more details regarding reporting expectations below). Consider how you will track financial information as well as other key project data both numerical and qualitative.
All projects that meet the criteria set out above will be reviewed and assessed by an expert panel to determine which projects will be offered funding. If your project does not meet the eligibility criteria, it may be rejected before the panel meeting, and you will receive a notification of this via ActionFunder.
We may request further information from you following the panel discussion, and in some cases, may encourage you to reapply for funding with amendments to your project.
Should we offer you funding, you will have the opportunity to accept or reject the grant via the ActionFunder platform. Before a payment can be approved and released to the applicant, all checks will need to be completed in respect of relevant permissions, policies, and insurances.
We will provide feedback to all shortlisted applicants who are unsuccessful at the panel. Please note, we will be unable to provide feedback for applicants do not progress to the shortlist for panel.
You will be expected to provide end of project reporting via the ActionFunder platform as well as one additional project update that we will ask for about halfway through your project. At the point of accepting your funding offer you will receive information on the exact information that you will be required to provide at the end of the project.
In addition, we will expect you to work closely with our Community Investment and Partnership Lead for the region who will be your key point of contact throughout your project. You may be asked to provide occasional updates and information about your project’s progress, and we may request to visit your project.
By uploading your project to ActionFunder, you consent to ActionFunder’s terms and conditions which allows for the material you upload to be used for marketing and promotional purposes by both SNG and ActionFunder. Please read ActionFunder’s terms of use for more information.
Successful applicants must acknowledge financial support of SNG in its documentation and publicity material by following our communications protocol and brand guidelines. To see a copy of these please email grants@sng.org.uk.
We will be hosting an online webinar on Monday 21 October at 3pm BST to share more details about the fund and how to apply, and to give you the opportunity to ask us questions.
Sign up to our information webinar.
Please let us know if you have any accessibility requirements when registering or email us at grants@sng.org.uk and we will be more than happy to accommodate.