£20m Local Sustainability Fund for VCSE organisations providing services to vulnerable and disadvantaged groups

Delivered by the Big Lottery Fund on behalf of the Office for Civil Society, the new £20 million Local Sustainability Fund will provide grants to about 250 voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) sector organisations providing services to vulnerable and disadvantaged people in England. The deadline for applications is 26 July 2015 (23:59)

To be eligible, applicants should:

·         Provide frontline services aimed at and provided to vulnerable and disadvantaged groups in England.

·         Have a total income of between £100,000 and £1.5 million for the most recent year.

·         Be able to identify a local business or businesses that could offer advice on their plans for change.

·         Be able to provide information on how they plan to develop volunteering opportunities with local businesses.

The first step in applying is to set up an account on the VCSE Diagnostics site, where a copy of the Guidance Notes can be found.

The diagnostic tool (which takes approximately one hour to fill in) can be completed by any organisation interested in their sustainability, regardless of whether they apply to the LSF. The tool allows organisations to better understand their strengths and weaknesses, and every organisation that fills it out will receive a sustainability report.