Collaborate

BECAUSE WE ARE BETTER TOGETHER

The COLLABORATE programme is open to 2 or more charities coming together to tackle a social issue at a local level.

All collaborating charities must have individual income levels of £500,000 or less.

In line with the priorities of The Halifax Foundation, your charity must support people in greatest need. For example, supporting people living in poverty; those who are unemployed; those with disabilities or mental ill health. (This is not an exhaustive list – other areas of need will be considered.)

COLLABORATE is a rolling programme and will close when the budget is reached. We can support approximately 5 – 10 collaborating grants.

The programme is now open for applications however, you must arrange a pre-application meeting prior to completing an application. Contact grants@halifaxfoundationni.org to arrange.

We are delighted to collaborate with NICVA who will deliver one to one training for those who wish to avail of this funding. This will be arranged once you have completed a pre application meeting with a Foundation staff member.

This programme was oversubscribed in 2024. Please book your pre-application meeting early to avoid disappointment.

FLEXIBILITY COMMITTMENT – We recognise that costs you need supported at the time of application may not be what you need throughout the lifetime of your grant. We encourage you to speak to your grants officer should things change and we will endeavour to be as flexible as possible. (Please note – you must receive confirmation of approval before changes are made.)

TYPES OF CHARITIES WE FUND

Social and Community Welfare

Community Services: Family centres, youth clubs, older peoples clubs, afterschool clubs, self-help groups, childcare provision, preschools and playgroups.

Advice Services: Homelessness, addictions, bereavement, family guidance, money advice, helplines, suicide awareness.

People with disabilities: Residences, day centres, transport, carers, information, advice and advocacy.

Promotion of health: Information and advice, mental health support, independent living, day care.

Civic Responsibility: Young people at risk, crime prevention, promotion of volunteering, victim support, mediation, rehabilitation of offenders.

Cultural Enrichment: Improving access to the arts and heritage for those in greatest need.

Education and Training

Employment: Employability skills, personal development support, interview and job coaching.

Training and Education: accredited, vocational, personal development training, life skills.

*We have developed additional guidance for PTAs. Click here for further information.

TYPES OF COSTS CONSIDERED

COLLABORATE - ELIGIBILITY CHECK

1. All organisations involved in the collaboration must be registered charities

All groups involved in the collaboration need to be registered with the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland or other charity regulator within the UK or Ireland. This application must support people residing in Northern Ireland.

2. All collaborating charities must have at least one set of accounts published on the Charity Commission website

We will not ask you to provide your accounts, as we can view them on the charity regulator website. Accounts must be uploaded within 10 months of your financial year end, as per charity commission guidelines. If you have not uploaded your accounts within this timeframe, your application cannot be considered.

3. Each individual collaborating charity's income must be no greater than £500,000

All collaborating charities must have individual incomes of £500,000 or less as shown on their most recent set of signed and published accounts.

4. All charities involved must have at least 3 unrelated trustees/board members

In addition, you must follow the rules around the minimum number of Trustees/Board Members as set out in your governing document.

5. You must have a safeguarding policy in place, reviewed at board level

If you work with children, young people or vulnerable adults, you must have a safeguarding policy in place. For further information published by NSPCC, click here

6. You must have adequate insurance cover to cover any activities within this application (or this application must include insurance costs to cover the project within the project budget)

You will not be able to submit an application if you do not have adequate insurance to cover activities contained in your application.

7. Your application must fit within your charitable purpose as outlined in your governing document

For guidance published by the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland, click here

8. You must have a pre-application discussion with a member of the grants team prior to submitting an application.

To book the pre-application discussion, please email grants@halifaxfoundationni.org

9. Your application must not be completed by a fundraising consultant

We do not accept applications completed by a professional fundraising consultant. If you need support to complete this application, please discuss this with your Grants Officer at the pre-application call.

WHAT WE DON'T FUND

Non registered charities or groups using the charitable status of a parent, umbrella or third-party
Travel or activities outside of Northern Ireland
Grant Making charities
Individuals, including students
Hospitals or medical centres
Promotion of religion
The environment
Animal welfare

Fundraising – sponsorship, events or staff
Lost opportunity costs
Capital and associated costs (e.g. Architecture fees)
Bursaries, loans or business finance
Endowment funds
Charities in deficit (whether through authorised or unauthorised overdraft)
Charities with over 12 month running costs in reserve (unless earmarked for a specific purpose)

BEFORE YOU START

You will need an electronic copy of the following documents to attach with your application:

The governing documents of the collaborators involved (signed by an office bearer)
A recent bank statement (within last 3 months) unredacted
We will check the Charity Commission website for accounts of all collaborators, so make sure they are up to date.

In the application form, we will be asking you questions about:

Contact details of a main contact for the collaboration and chairpersons of all charities involved
The activities of all charities involved
The funding you need, including details of who will benefit
The budget
Most recent financial information, including income, expenditure and reserves of the lead collaborator

JOURNEY OF AN APPLICATION

Scroll to the right to view the time line.

Pre-application

You must contact us prior to submitting an application to discuss the project. Contact grants@halifaxfoundationni.org to book.

Application phase

Once your application is received, it is checked for completeness and an eligibility check is carried out. Should something be missing, we will email you and give you one week to send the outstanding information to us.

Assessment

A Grants Officer will be assigned to your application and will contact you to discuss your application further. The Grants Officer’s report is presented to the Grants Team. The team will agree a recommendation.

Decision

Your application will be presented to our Grants Committee who meet approximately every 9 weeks. The recommendations are sent to our Board of Trustees for final ratification. We ask that you give us approx. 12 weeks from the submission date to process your application, carry out the assessment and share the decision with you.

Acceptance

A Grant Acceptance email will be sent to you. The chair of the lead collaborator must sign up to the terms & conditions of grant on behalf of the collaborating charities. You must also sign the collaboration agreement prior to payment being released. Once received, your grant payment (in full) will be made to the lead charity bank account.

Monitoring

You are expected to retain all information relating to the grant including financial records. For more information, see our Financial Management Factsheet You may be asked to provide us with progress reports.

Evaluation

When your funding comes to an end, you are required to complete an evaluation form, highlighting the impact of your grant and how you spent the grant. You may receive a visit from a member of the grants team to close off the grant. You may then be eligible to reapply for further support.