Covenant | 33


Projects must show how they will bring the civilian and military community together to improve integration and understanding and awareness of the two communities or they must deliver an important service to support the Armed Forces Community in health and wellbeing, social or emotional support, financial wellbeing, employment, education or training. In addition, successful applicants under this priority can receive additional support from the digital development programme which offers training and support to organisations to help them improve their digital capabilities and good practice in managing governance in the digital age.


There are lots of good examples of funded projects within the guidance document – it is highly recommended that this is studied at length before beginning an application: covenantfund.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Covenant-Fund-Local- Grants-Guidance-for-applicants-APRIL-18-.pdf


NO


Many applications have been rejected that would have been better served applying elsewhere. There are multiple funding streams which should be considered and it may be that grants can be awarded from several different sources. Familiarise yourself with other funding streams (e.g. Heritage Lottery Fund, Central Fund, Annington Trust, RAF Benevolent Fund) and consider carefully if the Covenant Fund is the right funding stream to apply for.


The most frequent reasons funding has not been granted are:


•Lack of evidence of need – if there is no real evidence that the service you are wanting to fund is needed, you will not get funding


•Duplication – the RDABoards are made up of representatives from the military and charitable sector in the local area, they are aware of what services are already available so if the bid replicates what is already in place, you will not get funding


•Infrastructure projects – Local Grant bids from units are always very welcome however if it is abid which is classed as infrastructure, it cannot get funded. We know there is areal need for repairs to many buildings but this remains the contractual obligation of DIO and external funding is not available for this purpose


•Lack of evidence of partnership working – some candidates have gone so far as to state they are working closely with the local unit when in fact there is no relationship at all! The best way to ensure your project is fully evidenced and supported by all key stakeholders is to build those important relationships and gain input and credibility by referencing them in the bid


•Sustainability – some projects don’t include any reference to evaluation or ongoing impact. The Covenant Grant Team need to be satisfied that, if held to account, the funded projects are able to provide evidence of impact and governance


MAYBE


Even if you meet all the eligibility criteria, have written the strongest bid possible and followed all the guidance to the letter,you might still not be granted funding. It could be that when the bid reaches the central London panel it doesn’t fit in with the wider national picture and that there were many other bids equally as strong and eligible that meant that there simply wasn’t enough funding to go round on that occasion. It could be that the Trustees are unable to fund your project because it would mean too much funding going to one particular geographical area and it’s important that there is agood spread of funded projects.


There are no restrictions on applying again –there may be less competition in the next round but you should ensure you get detailed feedback as to why you were unsuccessful. There is no guarantee of course that if you re-apply,this will lead to success.


It is highly recommended to engage with your local Covenant Manager from the RAF Families Federation: raf-ff.org.uk/ armed-forces-covenant/. The team all have aseat on their regional RDApanel and have much experience to share.


Follow the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust Tweets: @ArmedFund RAF Wittering’s Community Learning Centre ©RAF FF. raf-ff.org.uk |Autumn 2018 | ENVOY


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