Community Asset Transfer 2 (CAT2) Programme Questions and Answers About the programme 1. What is the Community Asset Transfer Programme? Community asset transfer is the transfer of land and buildings from the public or private sector to community ownership and management. 2. Why is The Big Lottery Fund involved in Community Asset Transfer? Previously; we worked in partnership with the Welsh Government to deliver the Community Asset Transfer Programme (CAT). Through the CAT programme, up to 13 million was invested in communities to help them transfer, develop, manage, and sustain assets to improve their livelihoods and neighbourhoods. In September 2012 our Wales Committee considered a paper recommending options for additional investment in 2014 / 2015 and Community Asset Transfer was one of those options. Following the success of the first Community Asset Transfer programme and through further consultation with stakeholders we have discovered that the need for a community asset transfer programme still exists within Wales. 3. Why is The Big Lottery Fund not working with the Welsh Government (WG) in this round? Previously WG had money available for this kind of investment. We have consulted with them about this round of funding and whilst entirely supportive of the programme they don t have resources available to work with us at present. 4. What do you mean by transfer? By transfer we mean the transfer of the ownership and management of an asset to the third sector organisation. Transfers can be freehold or leasehold. Where a leasehold agreement is made, this must be for a minimum of 99 years. Where this is not possible, and only in exceptional circumstances, a minimum 50 year term may be considered. Please note that we expect the transfer to be at nil cost or significantly below the market valuation 5. What do you mean by community? A community may be a community of place or interest. Communities of place will not normally be greater than one local authority. Should your organisation represent a community of interest, then you must demonstrate how you have given due regard to the local community. 6. What is the definition of a community asset? Community assets are buildings or land that can be enjoyed by a wide variety of groups. They must be sustainable in the long term. 7. Will assets that have already been transferred be eligible? Applications for assets where the transfer has already taken place will not be eligible. If you currently have a lease and wish to transfer the freehold for the asset, this will be eligible. The
end usage can include the existing activities, but should be multi-purpose and generate an income to sustain the asset. 8. What difference will the CAT2 programme make to Wales? We aim to achieve the following outcomes through the CAT2 programme: 1. To promote and strengthen the independence and financial viability of third sector organisations by enabling income generating social enterprise 2. To improve partnership working between the public sector, the third sector and other sectors 3. To contribute to the regeneration and economic sustainability of communities 4. To build the capacity of enterprising communities to take on and develop sustainable community assets that can provide solutions to the challenges they face. 9. Who can apply for a CAT2 grant? The applicant must be a constituted third sector organisation. They will be responsible for the project and must be the organisation to which the asset is transferred. A range of third sector organisations will be eligible which may fall into the following legal structures: Community interest companies (CICs) Companies limited by guarantee Charitable incorporated organisations or charitable trusts Industrial and provident societies. Applicants can work in partnership with organisations from other sectors and the asset must be accessible to groups within the wider community. We expect all lead organisations to work in partnership with the transferring organisation. 10. Would a small un-constituted or new group be eligible to apply and become a legal entity later? We accept applications from unregistered third sector organisations as long as they have a governing document. We would look at who s on the governing board and who the partners are. If as a new organisation you don t have any annual accounts yet, we d look at the financial projections for the new organisation for the first year. We funded a new organisation under CAT1 and have a lot of experience of working with new organisations. 11. Will there be any priority on which community organisation should lead on a project? The lead applicant must fit within our definition of the third sector and the eligible legal structures of these organisations, as set out within the guidance notes. The project must decide who is the best placed; and therefore most appropriate, organisation to be the lead applicant. 12. Are Town / Community councils eligible to apply? No, only third sector organisations are eligible to apply as lead organisations. Town and Community councils would be able to transfer an asset that they own and can also get involved in helping either new or established groups to apply and deliver the project. Town and Community councils can work in partnership with a third sector lead organisation. 13. Are religious organisations able to apply? We can consider applications where the asset is to be transferred to a religious group. However, we will not fund religious activities and would expect the primary purpose of the asset to be the delivery of activities that benefit the wider community, and not the religious activities or services. 14. Where can I get an application form from? Application forms and guidance will be available on our website from January 2015
15. What is the application process? Following the success of Rounds 2 and 3 of the previous programme, funding will be distributed via a two stage process. This approach allows more time for applicants to develop their projects and to access development funding. We will be holding briefing events during January 2015 across Wales. CAT2 Round 1 will open for applications early 2015. Your completed stage one application must reach us by noon on Wednesday 20 May 2015. We will let you know if we are inviting you to submit a stage two application by the end of October 2015. Successful applicants will need to complete and return their stage two application in April 2016. We intend to make final decisions on grant awards by the end of October 2016. Applicants will be required to complete a stage one application but will only be required to develop and submit a stage two application if stage one is successful. We anticipate inviting between 8 12 projects to proceed to stage two with up to 5 of these being awarded a stage two grant for each round. CAT2 Round 2 will be open for applications in spring 2016with the closing date for stage one applications in September 2016. We expect to make full awards under Round 2 in Dec 2017. Due to the timescales required to distribute the funds allotted to Community Asset Transfer within Wales; those applicants who unsuccessful under Round 1 stage 2 will not have sufficient time to apply for Round 2. 16. Is there a geographical split with funding allocation? Funding is based on how well each project fits with the programme and is not split geographically. CAT1 was also based on the quality of the application, we naturally had a good geographical spread. 17. Is the 9 million split equally between the two rounds? We don t currently have a set split between the rounds. We are committed to funding projects under both rounds and will ensure that we have an available budget to do this, but at this stage we don t have a specified amount. 18. Do you publish your scoring criteria? We ll assess your application against the following four criteria: 1. Need 2. Outcomes 3. Approach 4. Capability There is a section in the guidance which explains what we will be looking for when we assess applications against these criteria. Budget 19. How much money can we apply for? There is 9 million available over two rounds of funding. Grants will be awarded up to the value of 1,150,000, and must include a combination of both capital and revenue costs. Under the CAT2 programme, requests for capital or revenue only grants will not be eligible for funding. Stage one applications can include a request for a development grant to support the development of the capital element of their project. A development grant is available of up to 50,000 however we expect this to constitute around 5-6 per cent of your total capital costs.
The table below outlines the minimum and maximum amount for revenue and capital funding: Minimum Maximum Capital 50,000 Development Capital 250,000 800,000 Revenue 300,000 Combined Total grant up to 1,150,000 20. What activities, in addition to the running of the asset, would constitute eligible revenue costs? The kind of activities which staff could potentially be involved with as part of the work includes: Engaging the community to ensure that the activities and services offered through the facility continue to reflect the needs of the community Generating support from the local community, including recruiting and training volunteers to work in the facility Recruiting appropriate local stakeholders, including business and community leaders to participate in governance for the project Ensuring the long-term sustainability of the asset through, for example, applying for additional grant funding, or developing funding relationships with individuals, public or private sector supporters. 21. How will The Big Lottery Fund ensure that the 9 million budget for the programme is spread across both rounds? The Fund has not set a definitive budget for each individual round. However, we are committed to awarding grants under each of the two rounds. 22. If there is an increase in costs between Stage 1 and Stage 2 of the bid will that affect our chances? No. We allow some flexibility between stages 1 and 2. We can t change the amount awarded after stage 2 however. Partnership Funding 23. Are projects that have no partnership funding eligible? Yes. The Big Lottery Fund can fund up to 100% of the project costs. However, applicants are encouraged to consider other sources of funding to support the project where possible. 24. Where is partnership funding allowed from and does it have to be in place before we apply? We expect some of your funding to come from other financial sources (cash, grants, loan financing etc), or through in-kind contributions. Match-funding with the Big Lottery Fund s People and Places programme is not permitted, however other Lottery Distributors may provide matched-funding. For more information please see www.lotteryfunding.org.uk Partnership funding does not need to be confirmed at the application stage however you will need to demonstrate that any other funding is secured before we make any payments. 25. What can be classed as in-kind contributions? In kind contributions could include the difference between the market value of the asset and the cost of transfer. It can also be volunteer and staff time, including that by the transferring organisation. Staff time can include any time given free of charge to help support the successful working of the project if it is awarded a grant. Time spent working up the application cannot be included as this is retrospective funding.
Capital specific 26. Are disability access costs eligible as part of the application? Yes, we can fund these costs where they are part of a wider project. 27. Are listed buildings eligible? Yes, but you will need to ensure that any additional consents required are confirmed to all you to comply with the timetable for the round as outlined in the guidance notes. 28. How much information do I need to provide as part of my options appraisal? Your options appraisal should be brief and in your own format. It should cover the following areas for each option considered: explain why you have chosen the preferred option how it will address the need your project aims to meet how it will help deliver the project s objectives, benefits and outcomes the estimated costs (capital and revenue costs) risk assessment 29. Will our project have to comply with the British Research Establishment s Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) excellent standard for new build projects? All new builds must reach the BREEAM excellent standard. You can include within your development grant request the cost associated with procuring the requisite professional team to help you meet this standard if required. It is not mandatory for refurbishments, however you are encouraged to consider using the BREEAM method to assess the environmental performance of your asset. 30. Why must new build projects meet the BREEAM excellent standard? Achieving the BREEAM standard helps with our aim to fund buildings which deliver high levels of energy efficiency and are adaptable to the possible future impacts of climate change. You can include within your development grant request the cost associated with procuring the requisite professional team to help you to meet this standard if required 31. What environmental guidance regarding planning and design should applicants refer to? To encourage the move towards more sustainable and zero carbon buildings in Wales, applications should consider, where possible, the following government advice: Welsh Assembly Government s Planning Policy Wales, 7 th Edition (2014) Planning & Energy Act 2008 enabling setting of required levels of energy generation from local renewable sources Technical Advice Note 12 Design. (2014) A Climate Change Strategy for Wales (2010) Climate Change Risk Assessment UK (2012) You are also encouraged to consider using the British Research Establishment s Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) to assess the environmental performance of your project. BREEAM is widely regarded as a measure of best practice in environmental design and management. Running the project 32. Do we need an external evaluator to evaluate our project? If we award you a grant, we want to be confident that your project makes a difference and identifies opportunities for improvement. You are required to appoint an external contractor to support you to evaluate your project. The external evaluation should be complementary to your own monitoring activity rather than be a replacement for it.you should budget for this within your grant application under Monitoring and evaluation allowing between 5 and 10 per cent of your revenue costs.
33. How will members of the community be expected to contribute to the management of the asset? Lead organisations must demonstrate that the project will be community led and controlled and that membership will be open to community members. 34. Programme outcome 2 is to improve partnership working between the public sector, the third sector and other sectors What do you mean by partnership working? For more information about partnerships please refer to our web page on partnership working which can be found at: http://www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/research/making-the-most-of-funding/partnership-working 35. Can long term sustainability be demonstrated if a transferring public sector organisation commits to funding the project in the future? A mixed portfolio of future funding would be encouraged. This may be considered as part of a package, however, income generation must form a considerable and significant part of how you will ensure economic sustainability. 36. Do we need to consider the Welsh language as part of our application? Yes, it forms part of your terms and conditions to provide services paid for by our grant bilingually. You should take translation costs into consideration when preparing your project budget. 37. Can the same organisation make more than one application? The lead applicant can only submit one application per round. 38. Is the rural location of projects taken into account with beneficiary numbers and sustainability? We recognise that a rural project may not have the same level of beneficiaries that a more densely populated area will have. However, each project is considered on it s individual merits and we would expect your business model to consider your area and your target need. 39. Who do I contact for more information? If you have any questions please contact us on 0300 123 0735, textphone 0845 602 1659 or cat@biglotteryfund.org.uk