Transcript Armed Forces Community Covenant (AFCC) grant scheme The context The Armed Forces Community makes up approximately 10 % of the total population of Hampshire.

Armed Forces Community
Covenant (AFCC) grant scheme
The context
The Armed Forces Community makes up approximately 10 % of the
total population of Hampshire [1], a significant presence, which has
profoundly influenced the history of the County and shaped its communities.
Hampshire has the largest veterans population in the country with
Gosport and Fareham having the highest concentration of veterans by
district in the country.
Bases and garrisons are spread across Hampshire in a wide variety of
locations, some are close to and form part of urban areas, others are much
more remote and are located in the very rural parts of the County.
The Armed Forces Community not only includes Serving personnel and veterans
but those families/dependants of Serving personnel and Reservists.
[1] The total population of Hampshire is approximately 1.3 million. The Armed
Forces Community in Hampshire is estimated to be over 130,000 people.
AFCC grant scheme- the context…
The Armed Forces Community Covenant was introduced to complement,
at the local level, the Armed Forces Covenant and to encourage local
communities to support the Service community in their area and promote
understanding and awareness amongst the public of issues affecting the
Armed Forces Community.
The Hampshire AF Community Covenant was signed in June 2011.
The aims of the AFCC are;
 Encourage local communities to support the Armed Forces Community in
their areas;
 Nurture public understanding and awareness amongst the public of issues
affecting the Armed Forces Community;
 Recognise and remember the sacrifices faced by the Armed Forces
Community;
 Encourage activities which help to integrate the Armed Forces Community
into local life;
 Encourage the Armed Forces Community to help and support the wider
 community, whether through participation in events and joint projects, or
other forms of engagement
AFCC Grant Scheme
The AFCC grant scheme has been set up to fund local projects
which strengthen the ties or the mutual understanding between
members of the Armed Forces Community and the wider
community in which they live.
Do you have any innovative ideas project ideas to
achieve this in your local community?
There has been up to £30 million allocated to this fund across the
country over a 4 year period (2011 - 2015) to help communities
undertake projects that promote greater understanding between
the military and civilian populations. There will be £10m allocated
each year for the next two years.
AFCC Grant Scheme
Applications requesting support for projects that deliver tangible
results and meet the overall aims of the Community Covenant
Scheme can be submitted by any part of the community, this might
include volunteer groups, charities, public bodies such as schools,
and so on.
You can bid for between £100 - £250,000!!!
The next application deadline date is the 1st May 2013.
Applications submitted are then considered by the Hampshire AFCC
Partnership. If the Hampshire AFCC Partnership agree to endorse
your application it will be sent to the MOD AFCC Panel centrally for
their consideration. Currently these meetings are held 4 times a year.
Main consideration points








There is a genuine need for project – not something that is ‘plucked out of
the air’.
A project that brings both the armed forces and wider community together
The project must not be something that is aimed to ‘gap fill’ a service
that is or should be provided by others (e.g. other Government
Department, local authority, existing MOD provision);
Provides value for money
The beneficiary groups are clearly identified along with the impacts the
project will have on them.
While a lack of any matched funding or goods/services-in-lieu is not a ‘deal
breaker’, the Panel will always look more favourably on those projects
which have made an effort to obtain funds from other sources.
There is key stakeholder support from both armed forces and wider
community- the armed forces partners is preferably of high ranking
authority.
The project demonstrates a real and mutual benefit to both communities.
For more information, support and guidance please contact
[email protected]