How to Guides

The Children and Young People's Team at Action in rural Sussex has develped a number of how to guides for community groups working with children and young people.

How to write a successful application for LNF

The Government's Every Child Matters' Strategy has five outomes

1. Being Healthy
2. Staying Safe
3. Enjoying and Achieving
4. Making a Contribution
5. Achieving Economic Wellbeing

In East Sussex, West Sussex, Brighton and Hove, all applications are scored against a list of set criteria which reflect these outcomes. There is a minimum score which applications must reach to be awarded a grant. The first two criteria carry more available points than the others, which are all weighted equally.

Below is a brief outline of the scoring criteria used and an indication of what the Assessment Panel is looking for.

1. Demonstration that the project will address poverty, deprivation, or access to services: Applications should show that their proposed project will have an impact on poverty, deprivation, or access to services, and support their assertions with evidence whenever possible.

2. Project is community driven: Projects should be a community-driven initiative. Groups are led and controlled by their users.

3. Good use of volunteers: Projects should show how volunteers are used to deliver the project, have clearly defined roles, are supported through training or other means, and are involved in planning and evaluating the project.

4. Children and young people involved in project: Children and young people have the initial idea for the project and are involved in planning, managing, and evaluating the project.

5. Level of previous funding to group: The scoring system favours groups who have received little or no previous funding from external sources. Income from fundraising events or contributions from members or users of the group are not taken into account.

6. Good value for money: The project should make best use of resources, research costs and demonstrate that they are reasonable, and contribute to long term solutions.

7. Total project cost covered by grant: Preference will be given to small projects where the majority of the project costs are covered by the Local Network Fund

8. Targeting hard to reach groups: The scoring system favours projects from or projects that target traditionally hard to reach or socially excluded groups.

9. A small number of additional points are available on a changing basis to ensure that our grants reflect the geographical spread of the area and reach the full range of children and young people who live in our communities.

For more information, contact Claire Reynolds at Claire.Reynolds@ruralsussex.org.uk or 01273 407 305

How to Develop a Child Protection Policy and Procedures
This guide is intended for community groups who do not currently have a child protection policy or for those groups who would like to update their existing policies and procedures. It is a step-by-step guide that takes you through the policies and procedures that your group needs. The guide is divided in two sections - a basic child protection policy and the associated procedures to implement that policy.

How to write a Constitution
This guide is intended for community groups who do not currently have a constitution or for those groups who would like to update their existing constitution. It is a step by step guide that will take you through a series of questions. In each step, this guide asks questions about your group and offers suggestions of how your group might answer.

If you would like a hard copy of these guides, or for more information, contact Claire Reynolds at Claire.Reynolds@ruralsussex.org.uk or 01273 407 305