FAQ Categories: Zero Carbon Cumbria Grassroots Community Fund

The Zero Carbon Cumbria Community Climate Grants can be used to fund project costs such as staffing costs, room hire, refreshments, promotion, publicity etc.  (these are known as revenue costs) or capital costs such as equipment, but excluding the purchase of vehicles, buildings, and land.

If an organisation is starting up, or is very small, we recognise that it will be difficult to separate a specific project from the organisation as a whole and therefore core costs are eligible.

For larger organisations, the fund will consider supporting indirect project costs e.g. an appropriate contribution towards the organisational overheads for an existing group to enable full cost recovery for their project, but this is limited to a maximum of 15% of the value of the grant.

It’s important that you think through carefully what funding you are likely to need for your project and can demonstrate ‘value for money’.

Start off by writing a list of all the items that you are likely to need to pay for. Estimate the cost of each item of expenditure as accurately as you can. If you have been running the same activities for a while, you can base your estimates on previous years – but remember to increase them in line with inflation.  Keep notes of how you arrive at your figures.  For example, note down that ‘hall hire’ is a known cost based on 26 weeks or that the figure for insurance is a rough estimate based on a quick search on the internet. The notes will be invaluable when you need to explain your figures to other members of your group or with CAfS.  Once you’ve constructed a draft budget, it’s important that you discuss it with your group and agree it at a meeting.

When you have finalised your budget, this will help you to make financial decisions and keep control of your spending during your project.  It means that it is unlikely that you’ll run out of money by mistake, but it could mean that you need to plan in more fundraising to sustain or develop the project further!

Please see our Guidance Notes for applicants for further details.

• All applications must demonstrate value for money and will either be for practical projects which will reduce carbon emissions, promote changes in behaviour within your local community, or development work to set up a new group or improve the skills of an existing group.
• Any practical or ‘delivery’ projects should show how they will use their work to raise awareness and promote more engagement in work to tackle carbon emissions.

Delivery projects should be focused on:

• Reducing carbon emissions including those relating to energy use, food, buying things and/or travel.
• Engaging with more people and building knowledge and understanding of climate change within your community.
• Linking with other projects or activities which will help achieve the target of a Zero Carbon Cumbria by 2037.

Development projects which help new and existing sustainability groups should:

• Develop skills and knowledge that will help you have more impact, such as skilling up to respond to consultations / making planning objections, conducting surveys, gaining media and communications skills, setting up a website and organising online events
• Build capacity, for example by recruiting more volunteers/members so that the group can take on more activities

You can apply for a wide range of different types of expenditure including:

1. 1. Salaries and running costs
   2. Publicity and promotion including website costs
   3. Engagement activities
   4. Equipment and refurbishment

Please see our Guidance Notes for applicants for further details.

The Cumbria Sustainability Network Coordinator would be pleased to help you, please contact [email protected]. You can also access help from a number of sources including :  

Cumbria Council for Voluntary Services: Cumbria CVS offers help, advice, training and support to third sector groups throughout Cumbria.  They have lots of really useful guidance on their website:  

Development | Cumbria CVS 

Action with Communities in Cumbria has a particular focus on supporting communities in rural areas: Rural and community development charity for Cumbria – Action with Communities in Cumbria, Penrith, Cumbria (cumbriaaction.org.uk) 

They have many useful resources on their website, including how to set up a new group:  

Setting up a group Cumbria – Action with Communities in Cumbria, Penrith, Cumbria (cumbriaaction.org.uk) 

Organisations must be based in Cumbria and must be locally controlled.  Only not-for-profit groups can apply and normally these will have one of the following structures:

• Charitable Incorporated Organisation (“CIO”) 
• Charitable Trust / Charity
• Co-Operative Society 
• Community Benefit Society 
• Community Interest Company limited by Guarantee
• Community Interest Company limited by Shares 
• Company limited by Guarantee
• Unincorporated Association/Organisation with charitable aims

Applicants also need to show that they have a clear environmental or sustainability objective either within their aims, within an environmental policy or within their current action plans.   

If your organisation does not fulfil this requirement you might like to consider forming a partnership with a local sustainability group.  Please see guidance on forming a partnership  and also CAfS’ website for details of local groups: Sustainability groups in Cumbria – CAfS 

The Zero Carbon Cumbria Community Climate Grants aim to support community groups and smaller grassroots organisations in Cumbria, especially those connecting with new audiences on climate change. We anticipate the fund being used for activities that spread awareness, build capacity, help people to take action, and which contribute to building and growing local community involvement in work which will achieve the goal of net zero carbon in Cumbria by 2037. (This means that Cumbria will no longer be contributing to harmful climate change and levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere will start to stabilise we will have a better chance of keeping global warming under the desired temperature rise of 1.5C).

We are particularly interested in applications from geographic areas or communities that have not previously had access to funds to develop projects which tackle the climate crisis.  If you are thinking about applying and need some help with planning and writing your proposal, please do email [email protected]