Awards for All is a special lottery grants programme for small community groups looking for small sums of money. The programme involves sportscotland, the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Scottish Arts Council and the National Lottery Charities Board, Scotland.
Who can apply?
Applicants must be non-profit making groups with an annual income of under £15,000 and awards must be spent within a year of payment.
Applicants are expected to contribute something in cash and / or kind towards the costs of their project. No awards will be made to part finance larger projects.
Awards of £500 - £10,000 are made towards projects.
The programme’s main aim is to fund projects that involve people in their community, bringing them together in a wide range of activities.
How to apply
Applying for an Awards for All grant is simple and straightforward. There is one booklet of excellent guidance notes and a comprehensive application form written in plain English with helpful notes alongside each section telling you what sort of information to provide. You need to complete those parts of the application form that are relevant to your specific project. If you are just starting to plan a new development in your club, then you will find the application form to be very helpful planning tool in clarifying your aims for the project and how you will go about making it happen. If you already have a very clear idea about the project, how it will work and what it will achieve, you should be able to complete the application form in around an hour. There are links to the Guidance Notes and to the Application Form in the side panel.
Top Tips for a successful funding application
The Awards for All officer within sportscotland has developed a list of 'top tips for sports clubs seeking funding of up to £10,000 based on his experience of successful and unsuccessful applications over the last few years. Whilst some of these tips relate to the way in which you present your application, others are reminders about some basic do's and don'ts that have caused problems for previous applicants.
- Projects must show a development on current activities;
- Ask for how much you need, not the maximum available;
- Apply at least eight weeks ahead of staging your project to allow time for assessment - retrospective funding is not available;
- Ensure that the names on your constitution, bank account and application form are identical;
- Writing-over or Tippex-ing on application forms makes them invalid - mistakes should be scored-out and initialled;
- It should be clear how the project meets the aims or priorities of Awards for All;
- Costs should be clear and represent value for money;
- Only one-off costs will be funded so don't apply for running costs such as rent or heating;
- If the total project cost is more than the award requested, match funding must be secured;
- At least two committee members, who can't be related, are required as bank signatories.
Case studies of successful sports clubs
Here are several examples of successful applications from Scottish sports clubs in the last year or two to illustrate the range of sports and the type of projects that have been put forward.
Westfield Colts Boys Club
| Activity |
This is an established club that provides training and competition opportunities for 36 young people in football. |
| Project |
Coach development, the first-time attendance at a tournament in Blackpool and the purchase of additional training equipment. |
| Expenditure |
Goals and nets, training ladders, agility hurdles, cones, hurdle bags, bibs, marker poles and bag, balls, portacabin for storage, tournament costs, coaches courses and a first aid course. |
| Award |
£3,968 (£1,336 capital, £2,632 revenue) |
Lady Alice Bowling Club Junior Section
| Activity |
This is an established group that provides its 100 young members with the opportunity to train and participate in outdoor bowling. |
| Project |
The purchase of additional equipment to facilitate increased participation and the improvement of access to the green for disabled and wheelchair users. |
| Expenditure |
Access ramps, bowls cases and slings, bowls, shoes, measures, umpires kit, marker labels, jacks, mats, rink marker, white pins, scoreboard, number plates and tie sheets. |
| Award |
£4,225 |
Mull Athletic Club
| Activity |
This is a new group established to provide 150 young people with support and training in all aspects of athletics activities. |
| Project |
Start-up costs. |
| Expenditure |
A range of basic athletics equipment (hurdles, javelins, etc.), coach education courses and the first-time costs of competing at a variety of district, regional and national competitions. |
| Award |
£5,000 (£1,800 capital, £3,200 revenue) |
Unst Boating and Swimming Club
| Activity |
This is an established club that provides 30 people of all ages with the opportunity to participate in yachting, boating and swimming. |
| Project |
To develop sailing opportunities for beginners and single-handed novice racers. |
| Expenditure |
Three Pico sailing dinghies and a three-boat road trailer. |
| Award |
£4,420 |
Loch Ewe Cricket and Sports Club
| Activity |
This is an established club that provides training, coaching and competition opportunities in cricket and a range of new sports for 75 people of all ages. |
| Project |
To equip the club for its new multi-sports role and enter two junior teams in the Scottish National Handball League. |
| Expenditure |
Coaching courses, first aid kit, participation costs relative to eight handball events and basic training equipment for badminton, basketball, cricket, football, hockey, tennis and handball. |
| Award |
£4,250 (£1,500 capital, £2,750 revenue) |
Scottish Ski Training Trust
| Activity |
The group provides ski training for young people drawn from across the whole of the country |
| Project |
The introduction of fitness training activities and the improvement of performance measurement capabilities to develop the skills of 250 school aged children. |
| Expenditure |
Fitness equipment, ski poles and timing equipment. |
| Award |
£5,000 |
Find out more
You can find out more at the Awards for All website, or call the hotline on 0845 600 2040.
