Are you a Tenant and Resident community group/association or looking to set a new group up in your area?
Do you need assistance with the basics to run a group? Room hire, insurance or stationary costs? The Better-Connected Communities start up or annual grant may be able to help.
Groups can apply for up to £500 to set up a new group or £250 annually to help with running costs.
Email the Tenant Voice and Engagement Team about what support is available to you.
Who can apply
Local constituted Tenant and Resident Community groups/associations.
Groups must be locally led, meaning they are managed by people who live in the area where activities take place or have proof of community support.
What we will fund: this list isn’t comprehensive; we advise that you speak to a Tenant Voice & Engagement officer before applying to discuss your application.
- Room hire for monthly and Annual general meetings
- Equipment
- Resources, promotion material
- Stationary
- Public liability insurance
Criteria
- Tenant and Resident Community group/association within the eligible areas - View Eligible Funding Boroughwide Area map
- Must have at least 3 people (unrelated) on the management board
- Have a signed constitution
- Groups must have a bank account, in the group name with at least 2 (unrelated) signatories
- Must have a recent bank statement from the last 3 months
- View Funding Boroughwide Area map
How the Decision is made
All applications will be checked to ensure they meet the criteria, you may be contacted by the Tenant Voice and Engagement Team to discuss in more detail.
How to apply
Email your Tenant Voice and Engagement Officer – they can offer advice and support with your application.
Note: you will need to show us a copy of your constitution and bank account before any funds are awarded.
Do you have a great idea for a community project, but need a little help to get it off the ground?
The Better-Connected Communities Fund enables local groups, individuals and organisations to apply for funding up to the value of £2,000 for projects and ideas which benefit our neighbourhoods up to 3 times per year (1st April - 31st March).
Successful applications are chosen by a tenant led funding panel, and applications need to meet at least one of the following themes:
- Helping to build happy, resilient and safe communities – bringing people together!
- To improve the places and spaces that matter most to your community.
- Raise aspirations and create opportunities – through volunteering, training and improving digital skills.
- Increase Tenant Voice in shaping and improving services and neighbourhoods.
We will look at projects to involve and have the local people at the heart of everything they do, and who better to know and understand a community than the people that live there!
Who can apply
- Local constituted community groups, tenant and resident associations and individual community champions.
- Groups must be locally led, meaning they are managed by people who live in the area where activities take place or have proof of community support.
- Wigan Council officers or partnership organisations – they must be able to show how their project is supported by the community.
- Groups must have a bank account, in the group name with at least 2 (unrelated) signatories – individuals would need to be able to link in with a local group to hold their funds (We cannot pay funding into a personal bank account)
- Tenant and Resident Community group/association within the eligible areas. View Eligible Funding Boroughwide Area map
What we will fund
This list isn’t comprehensive; we advise that you speak to a Tenant Voice & Engagement officer before applying to discuss your project/event.
- Room hire for training, community events and meetings
- Training courses that relate to one of the funding themes
- Community events, fun days that look at community spirit, tenant voice etc.
- Equipment for projects
- Resources, promotion material
- Refreshments of up to £5 per person
- Reasonable transport costs.
What we won’t fund
- Trips and excursions
- Staff costs
- Alcohol
- Projects that have already taken place
- Religious or political activities
- Project planning and consultant fees
- Contingency plans, loans etc
- Projects that only benefit an individual
- Tenant & Residents group running costs please see the start-up/annual grant fund
Match funding
Although we do encourage match funding, we believe that people volunteering their time and support to improve the community they live in is more important, so match funding is desirable but not a mandatory requirement for the funding.
How to apply
Email your Tenant Voice and Engagement Officer – they can offer advice and support with your application.
How the Decision is made
All applications will be checked to ensure they meet the themes and criteria, the Tenant Voice and Engagement officer’s will be asked to comment on all applications – are they aware of the group, project etc.
Once an application has been passed to meet the basic criteria this then gets passed to our virtual Tenant Funding Panel. The funding panel is made up of tenants who want to support and encourage local projects and activities.
The panel will scrutinise all applications and decide:
- Will they support the application fully or partially.
- If partially, what will they fund and how much will they award.
- Decline the application.
- In some circumstances they may suggest the Group relooks at their application – the Tenant Voice and Engagement team can support.
If an application is declined the group will be notified, that the application has been declined for one of the following reasons:
- Does not benefit enough of the community
- Does not meet the criteria or have community support
- The project/activity is already happening in the community
- The funding for this financial year has been spent.
Successful Applications
If your application is successful, we will contact you directly with the next steps.
Note: you will need to show us a copy of your constitution and bank account before any funds are awarded.
Evaluation
Following your project/activity, all groups will be required to complete a simple evaluation document, this shows the benefits your activity has had on your community. A Tenant Voice & Engagement officer can support groups to complete.
Groups must also agree to store all receipts from your project, the Tenant Voice and Engagement Team will randomly audit 10% of projects across the 12months funding period.