The National Lottery Community Fund's Platinum Jubilee Fund is a new £3.5 million grant programme designed to commemorate Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee, following 70 years after her coronation on Wednesday 6 February, 1952. Around 70 projects across the UK are expected to be funded.
Organisations will be given up to 2 years to deliver their activities from their award in Spring 2022. Funded projects must be running in time for the Queen's Platinum Jubilee Central Weekend on Sunday 5 June 2022.
Revenue grants of between £30,000 to £50,000 are available, with no matched funding requirement, for local projects which create lasting change for communities in line with the National Lottery Community Fund's 3 priority areas of:
1. Across Generations - strengthening relationships between generations and creating a legacy for future generations.
2. Community Renewal - supporting new opportunities for people to develop skills and experiences in their local community, as well as opportunities to bring people together in new ways, and in new or different places and spaces, and
3. Shared Natural World - deepening care and action locally for the natural world.
Projects must meet a minimum of 2 of the following criteria:
o Connects people across generations through doing activities together.
o Considers future generations and how the Jubilee can leave a legacy for them in the community.
o Creates new opportunities for the people that live locally to contribute and/or to build skills and experience.
o Is designed and led by young people who want to be more active in shaping the future of their communities.
o Makes use of significant local sites or spaces, eg parks, heritage buildings, community spaces.
o Starts collective action in relation to the natural world, giving more people the opportunity to care for the planet at a local level, and/or
o Starts something new (a set of activities, a group, a community space, a service, a network) that marks the jubilee as a turning point in the community.
Priority will be given to groups which:
o Are smaller or medium-sized organisations with an annual turnover of under £100,000, or can demonstrate that they have significant reach into communities and are able to engage a large number of people to get involved.
o Do not have a current National Lottery Community Fund award.
o Have not received a National Lottery Community Fund grant previously.
o Work in areas where communities face more challenging economic circumstances, and
o Work in communities where there is a history of fewer funding opportunities.
Priority will also be given to project proposals that:
o Are led by young people.
o Draw on the creativity of the community.
o Make use of sites of local significance.
o Provide new opportunities.
o Use multiple channels through which people can participate.
o Want to achieve something new and inventive, and
o Will have impact on more than one area of focus.
Grants can be used to cover the following costs:
o Equipment and materials.
o Events and activity costs (though not celebratory or one-off events).
o People's time (that may not be staff).
o Staff.
o Training.
o Translation.
o Transport.
o Utilities, and/or
o Volunteer expenses.
Funding is not available for:
o Activities or organisations outside the UK.
o Activities that generate profits for private gain.
o Alcohol.
o Capital costs including refurbishment or the purchasing of buildings.
o Contingency costs, loans or interest.
o Costs that have already been incurred.
o Feed-in tariff payments.
o Individuals.
o Items which will only benefit an individual or family.
o One individual or organisation applying on behalf of another.
o Organisations that are aimed at generating profits primarily for private distribution.
o Overseas travel.
o People under the age of 18.
o Political activities.
o Profit-making or fundraising activities.
o Religious activities.
o Sole traders.
o Statutory activities.
o VAT which can be reclaimed, or
o Work on land or buildings which do not meet the requirements around land ownership and permissions.
Further information, guidelines an an online application form is available on the National Lottery Community Fund website.
The application deadline is 5pm on Wednesday 15 December 2021 or once 700 applications have been received, whichever is the earlier. Successful proposals are expected to be announced in February/March 2022, and projects should be up and running by Sunday 5 June 2022.
