The Grants Overview and Scrutiny Sub-Committee of Wandsworth Council met on Thursday 26 September 2024 to consider applications for two grant funds: the VCS Cost of Living Grant Fund, Round 1, and the Wandsworth Grant Fund, Round 27. A total of £150,216 in grants was recommended across both funds.

VCS Cost of Living Grant Fund, Round 1

The committee considered applications for the first round of the VCS Cost of Living Grant Fund, which has a total budget of £350,000 across two rounds. This round focused on community spaces and food provision to help projects get up and running for the winter months. Fifteen applications were received, requesting a total of £147,136. Officers recommended six applications for a total of £61,375.

The committee recommended awarding grants totalling £66,941 to seven organisations. Notable awards included £14,467 to Katherine Low Settlement¹ for their lunch clubs for the elderly, £15,000 to Rackets Cubed² for their social supermarket and community cuppa services, and £14,414 to the PCC of St Michael’s with St Stephen’s Church³ for a new community hub. An amendment was made to support the SW15 Women's Network⁴, granting them the full £5,566 requested, despite an initial officer recommendation not to support the application.

Organisations that were not recommended for funding included Balham Salvation Army⁵, BlindAid⁶, Doddington and Rollo Community Roof Garden⁷, Estate Art CIC⁸, Sport4Health CIC⁹, and The Arty-Crafty Crescent Club CIC¹⁰.

Concerns were raised by Councillor Lynsey Hedges¹¹ about the number of rejected applications and whether organisations received sufficient support in completing their applications. Harriet Steele¹², the Voluntary Sector Partnership Manager, explained that online information and Meet the Funder workshops were available, along with individual support. Councillor Hedges also inquired about the capacity of the team assessing applications, and it was confirmed that the headcount had not increased but the team managed the volume within current capacity, with support from other council officers during peak times.

Councillor Hedges also raised a question about tracking how often organisations receive grants and other council funding, expressing concern about Katherine Low Settlement¹³ appearing frequently. Bruce Murdoch¹⁴, Senior Grants Development Officer, confirmed that records were kept for grants managed by their team, but acknowledged that information on other council funding was not always known. Ms Steele added that work was underway to map grants across the council, though it was in its early stages.

Wandsworth Grant Fund, Round 27

The committee then considered Round 27 of the Wandsworth Grant Fund, which received 20 eligible applications requesting a total of £177,031. Officers recommended awarding £76,856 to eight organisations.

The committee recommended awarding grants totalling £83,356 to ten organisations. Key awards included £10,000 each to Share Community Ltd¹⁵ for their Inclusive Health and Wellness project and Wandsworth Bereavement Service¹⁶ to enhance their assessment capacity. Spectacle Media CIC¹⁷ received £10,000 for their Participatory Video Archives: Places near Battersea project.

An amendment was made to support BACTA (Balham & Tooting Community Association)¹⁸, granting them a partial fund of £1,500 for venue hire, despite the officer recommendation not to support the application. Similarly, the Rotary Club of Battersea Park¹⁹ received the full £5,000 requested, a reversal of the officer recommendation, with the understanding that this would be the last grant from this fund for this activity.

Organisations that were not recommended for funding included Bertie Collective²⁰, Carey Gardens Co-operative²¹, Elays Network²², Friends of Trinity St. Mary's Primary School²³, Katherine Low Settlement²⁴ (for a capital works project), Smallwood Primary School PTA²⁵, Sport4Health CIC[^26] (for ongoing activities), St. Mary's Church Putney[^27] (due to outstanding permissions), The Good Gym[^28] (for ongoing activities), and The Baked Beans Charity[^29].

Mr Murdoch explained that a portion of the Wandsworth Grant Fund budget is allocated to arts and culture, and if recommendations were agreed, £37,040 would be contributed to the London Borough of Culture funding stream. He also noted that additional funding of approximately £25,000 from the Wandsworth Community Fund, managed by the London Community Foundation, would be added to the Wandsworth Grant Fund for the final round of the year.

Concerns were raised about the number of projects from previous rounds (Rounds 21 and 22) where projects were finished but final reports had not been submitted. Mr Murdoch stated that officers were working to engage with these organisations to obtain the outstanding reports.