Capacity Building

People are being urged to nominate community groups and volunteers who have made a genuine difference to their local area.

The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service, a unique UK national honour, was created over a decade ago by Her Majesty to mark the Golden Jubilee in 2002 to recognise the outstanding contributions made to local communities by groups of volunteers. It has an equivalent status for voluntary groups as the MBE has for individuals.

Manchester City Council is shortly intending to put out to competitive tender the following services:
1. Advocacy Services
2. Carer Support Services
3. Employment Support Services
4. Dementia Support Services

Further information is available here

Community First funding is available in several wards across Manchester. You can apply for £250- £2500. Decisions are made by a local panel. Each panel has set local priorities for their area.

You can find out more about these priorities by contact Manchester Community Central on 0333 321 3021 or by checking the website: www.manchestercommunitycentral.org

How to apply
Identify a project that meets the priorities

In January 2012, both PRS for Music and PPL introduced joint licensing for community buildings run by voluntary organisations.

In response to the feedback received, they have commissioned a survey in order to see if the current tariff is representative of the usage of music within community buildings, and therefore ensure that their tariffs are fair and simple for licensees.

The Big Give runs annual Christmas Challenges where you can have your donation matched, making your support go even further.

The Christmas Challenge is proven to help charities increase voluntary income, recruit new donors and re-engage with lapsed donors, leading to a more secure and brighter future.

The Big Give is delighted to announce that the Cabinet Office will be supporting the 2013 Big Give Christmas Challenge with a generous grant of £250,000.

Localgiving.com, the online giving site for small, local charities and community groups, is to run its Grow Your Tenner campaign again in October.

Eligible charities in England using the Localgiving.com platform will be able to have donations up to £10 matched from a total of £500,000 from the Cabinet Office. When £500,000 has been matched and turned into £1 million, the campaign will end.

The campaign begins at 10am on 15 October 2013.

The judges, including the Lord Mayor of Manchester, have now met and decided on the shortlisted candidates for the first Spirit of Manchester Award! The nominations reflected all the exciting and diverse work happening in Manchester's voluntary and community sector. We will be making films of all the shortlisted applicants which will be voted on at the awards ceremony to determine the winner.

We are excited that the awards will be presented at the new NOMA building, thank you to the Co-operative who kindly donated the room.

Shortlisted organisations

The Community Theatre scheme aims to support the development of not for profit community theatre groups the length and breadth of the UK.

Grants awarded through this scheme will allow groups to carry out training, attract new audiences, encourage new members and raise their profile in their communities. Through the Fund the BBC wants to encourage groups to take on more challenging projects through commissions and encouraging collaboration with professional theatre makers and other local organisations.

New and existing community groups who live in Whalley Range can apply for funding for projects that will benefit the area.

Whalley Range has received some Government money to invest in the area.
The Whalley Range Community First Panel can recommend applications to the CDF from local groups who meet the criteria below.

Applications for £250 - £1000 can be submitted.

Equity Housing Group wants to hear from community projects in need of funding and support.

The Group launched the Equity Foundation in January to create employment and skills development opportunities and to promote better health. It’s already invested £150,000 in helping 47 new and established charities and projects to make a difference to peoples’ lives and communities. These include employment training centres, sports and leisure clubs and a range of activities for younger, older and disabled members of the community.