USE OF AWARDS FOR ALL FUNDING WITHIN THE COMMUNITY GAME
A Guidance Note
This paper is designed to provide information and ideas that might be utilised in making an Awards for All application. Although it does not guarantee a successful bid, it will direct your application to what Awards for All seek to support, and how to best use the available funding for your project. It should be read in conjunction with ‘Awards for All – A Brief Introduction’, also published on the RFU website.
Bearing in mind that Awards for All funds projects that support community activity, it aims to:
Extend access and participation
- Funding used to provide more opportunities for people to enjoy a chosen activity or activities
Increase skill and creativity
- Helping local groups (clubs) to raise the quality of their sport and improve standards
Improve the quality of life
- Projects that improve people’s opportunities, welfare and environment
Each application does not have to fulfil all of the aims, but it does have to meet at least one to be successful (two or three would increase its chances)
Awards for All have published a number of ideas that a grant could be spent on; under each heading you will find suggestions as to how this might apply to rugby union.
- Putting on an event, activity or performance
Club / school link programmes; festivals; priority group initiatives; pub; beach; university rugby programme; 6th form college programme
- Providing training courses
RFU coaching / referee courses (both award and education courses); courses provided by other agencies – First Aid, Health & Safety, ScUK, Sport England ‘Running Sport’ courses
- Setting up a pilot project
Open invitation…senior section recruitment, marketing and promotion; coach mentoring; inter-hall university rugby programme; funding RU Ready for RU support programme
- Running a conference or seminar
Coach / referee / volunteer conference / seminar – CB, regional, supra regional; club development seminars; health & safety seminars
- Improvements to community facilities
Club upgrade work – improved changing facilities to include women / girls, young people; grounds improvement / drainage; floodlight improvement
- Start up costs, including staff and premises
Women / girls rugby; youth sections; new senior teams; disability; structure for employment of coaches
Associated with any of the above
Associated with any of the above – architects fees, tutor fees, as part of overall application.
Data inputting for M&E study; feasibility study, as part of overall application.
- Equipment and materials
For any of the above
- Volunteers expenses
For any of the above
- Updating facilities / equipment for health and safety reasons
As stated above
Applications
Each region its own focus on areas and communities with whom they will work to encourage applications; this should not prevent applications from outside of these groups, but it may be a reason for not being successful.(The application pack contains this information from your region).
The Application Form – guidance notes
Q1 Contact Details
Tell Us About Your Group
Question 2
- Most clubs will tick the ‘Community group / club / society’ box
- If a club is an ‘IPS’ then it should indicate in the ‘other’ box
Question 4
- If you are a rugby club then explain what you do, ie what are your aims and objectives?
- ‘XXXX RFC provides opportunities to play and enjoy rugby union at all ages. The club runs xx adult XV’s and junior rugby from 7-18; girls are also encouraged to play in the girls section (13-16)’ etc.
Question 5
- The Constituent Body and thereby RFU
Question 6
What project or activities will take place if you receive a grant?
- Bullet point your answer here
- Aims and objectives will be answered in question 10 – keep it practical here
- Be specific; if you are to run a programme, explain what it is – how many schools, how many visits, and how many weeks of club training? What are the training implications for coaches?
What difference do you hope the grant will make to people in your community?
- Bullet point again here
- Who is your community? Rugby club, local schools, local area.
- Use demographics to back up your case and show how the project will make a difference – visit
www.nationalstatistics.gov.uk
Again, aims and objectives answered in question 10 – keep it practical; ‘open XXXX RFC to new members in the mini / junior section from local schools and the surrounding area’; ‘to allow young people in and around the area to develop new ruby skills’
Question 9
What if any special safety issues are related to you project / activity?
- Stress non-contact nature of tag rugby
- Use of qualified coaches in school visits, and additional checks, ie CRB
- Use of qualified coaches in the club environment where contact game is learned
- Indicate implications for resourcing of training / education requirements
- Name of affiliated governing body is the RFU
Question 10
Please tell us how this project meets the aims of Awards for All
- It is very unlikely that you can tick all 3 boxes; most of our applications will ‘extend access and participation’ and / or ‘increase skill and creativity’
- For ‘extend access and participation’ ensure that targets are included: ‘we will have a new 15 squad by …’, ‘we will work with partners to produce …’
- ‘Increase skill and creativity’ may be better floodlighting – ‘to provide the correct environment for …’
- Remember the additionality – what else improves? ‘Better floodlighting means more players training and that required more / better coaches to be qualified (RFU Awards, Child protection, CRB checking, etc)
Question 11
Tell us how much money you need for your project and give us a breakdown of what the money is for
- Read the guidance notes carefully and ensure that you do what they ask
- Be specific – ‘5 x RFU Level 2 Youth Courses @ £50 per unit’ rather than ‘further coaching development’
- If you intend to run a schools / club coaching programme, ensure that the coaching cost is shown per unit – ‘5 sessions x £15 per visit per school x 6 schools’
- Do not add items that have not been mentioned earlier in the application
- Remember to add where any additional funding will come from, ie club funds, other grants, etc
Question 12
Please describe any contribution you are making towards this project
- In kind contribution is usually the most obvious format here; this might be volunteer time, venue hire or materials / equipment
Questions 13-18
- Straight forward factual answers
Additional Information
Question A1
- Committee members, coaches and assistants, managers, kitchen staff, shop / kit / equipment personnel ad all other ‘ backroom’ volunteers
Question A3
- Keep this accurate and relevant to previous information, ie for a primary school coaching programme to not tick the ‘17-18’ box – unless you have stated that local secondary pupils will be trained to deliver part of the programme
Questions A5 & A6
- Again, keep this accurate – do not tick ‘women and girls’ box unless you have stated previously that they will be a key group
Finally, ensure that you have completed all relevant sections and included all paperwork required of your application – good luck! |
