St Stephen's Green Trust

General Grant Scheme

The following criteria apply to the General Grant Scheme.

What type of funding do we offer?

• The Trust will consider project or core costs. If core costs are being requested, the applicant will need to make a case for sustaining these costs in future years. The Trust generally makes one-off annual grants, although 2 year applications may be successful in particular circumstances.
• Grants levels are generally from €1,000 to €12,000. In 2011 the average grant was €5,700.
• The Trust accepts applications from voluntary or community organisations operating on the island of Ireland, with a CHY or XR (NI) number. If the number is pending or if there is no charitable status, the Trust will require information on the legal status of the organisation. If your group does not have any legal status, a strong case will need to be made for funding the organisation.
• In 2012, the Trust is only inviting applications from organisations with annual income below €500,000. When considering whether your organisation is eligible, please look at the total income in your organisation’s audited accounts, not the income of your particular department or project. If you are not sure, please check with the Trust.

What we don‘t fund

The Trust cannot consider applications for building costs; general appeals; retrospective funding and individuals.

There is one grants meeting in 2012. Deadline for receipt of applications:

Thursday, 23rd February, 2012. Successful grantees will receive their grants in April.

Programme Areas 2012:

Grants will be made to organisations working in 3 specific areas. They are homelessness, prisoners / ex-prisoners and Travellers.

Homelessness:
SSGT thinks it vital that quality initiatives seeking to tackle and prevent homelessness are consistent across the country. We invite applications from projects which:

1. Focus at a local level, particularly outside of the Dublin region (area under the remit of the Homeless Agency);
2. Concentrate on the key target areas of ex-prisoners; people with psychiatric difficulties and victims of domestic violence; and
3. Supports dissemination of good practice among voluntary and statutory agencies.

Prisoners / Ex-prisoners:
The Trust is interested in all organisations working with prisoners, ex-prisoners and their families. We will consider progressive initiatives that promote:

1. Alternatives to custody;
2. The availability of options to integrate the ex-prisoner back into society; and
3. Initiatives working with prisoners‘ families.

Travellers:
The Trust recognises the multiple layers of disadvantage and racism experienced by Travellers in Irish society. We have a particular interest in locally-based projects seeking to increase the participation of male Travellers in the development of their own community. Initiatives breaking new ground in the area of family support, culturally-appropriate employment initiatives and personal development are especially welcome. We will also support projects seeking to disseminate best practice in these areas.

Darndale/Belcamp Grants Scheme

Application and Assessment Process

We encourage applicants to contact us before completing the application form to ensure the project meets the Trust’s criteria. We receive many more applications than we can support, and we examine each to assess the likelihood of it making a difference within your area of work. We will be looking for your application to address the following:

• What are the project objectives
• How the objectives will be measured
• Inclusion of beneficiaries voice in the design of the project.
• Breakdown of the project costs
• What is your long term funding strategy
• Measurable outputs
• Up to date accounts explaining any large reserves or deficits.
• Attention to good governance practice within the organisation

During the assessment process, we may contact you for further information, by email or telephone and may arrange a visit to see first hand the work you do. An assessment report is written and presented to the Trustees at the grants meeting - mid-April 2012. You will receive notification of the Trustees’ decision within 2 weeks.

Organisations in receipt of a grant will be required to provide information relating to the grant e.g. reports, updates and newsletters. The Trust also requires acknowledgement of the grant in annual reports and accounts and any other appropriate publication or event.

How to Apply

Application forms are not freely available. This is to ensure organisations meet the criteria before writing the application. If you feel your organisation is eligible, please contact the Trust giving brief details of the project and an application form will be sent to you.