Financial support for NPOs and Lead CPP organisations

When do applications open?

The fund will open for applications at 12pm (midday) on Tuesday 12 May 2020.

The deadline for applications will be 12pm (midday) on Tuesday 19 May 2020.

Step 1: Read the guidance

You can download the guidance for applicants below where you can find all of the information you need including the eligibility criteria, the application process and the questions and character counts in the application form.

Step 2: Any questions? Check our FAQs

Our Customer Services team are responding to an exceptionally high volume of emails at the moment.

To help us out (and possibly get your answer quicker) read the FAQs for the funding on the next sections of this page before you get in touch. 

These pages are updated regularly, with all our latest information and FAQs.

Step 3: Begin your application in Word

We’ve created Word document versions of the application to give you the chance to draft your application offline before you enter it into Grantium. 

We will not accept this document as an application form. To submit your application, you will need to paste the answers to the questions into the online form on Grantium.

The document does not automatically count how many characters or words you have entered. You can use www.charactercountonline.com to check if each of your answers is within the character limit for that question.

Download application >

Step 4: Enter your application into Grantium

When the portal opens for applications, you will have seven days to make an application. Once you have completed your draft application in Word, paste the answers from that document into the application form on Grantium in order to submit.

Get all the information that you need about how to access the system and complete your online application from our guidance document ‘How to start and submit your application’.

We will aim to notify all applicants the outcome of their applications on Tuesday 30 June 2020. 

Update history:

Update #1, Fri 1 May - new FAQs on budget projections, applying on behalf of an NPO or CPP consortium, furloughing staff, use of reserves and personal access costs found at the bottom half of this page.

 

Update #2, Mon 11 May - new FAQs on early payments and the Government’s Job Retention Scheme at the bottom of this page. 

Who is eligible for this fund?

NPOs (including Sector Support Organisations) currently in receipt of 2018-22 funding or that have withdrawn from the current National Portfolio and are being funded through another mechanism. 

For NPO consortiums, only the lead organisation is eligible to apply for this fund – this can be for activity and/or costs that relate to the lead organisation only and/or to the consortium programme. 

Creative People and Places lead organisations are also eligible to apply for activity and/or costs that are directly relevant to the CPP programme.

NPO and CPP consortium partners that are not the lead organisation may be able to apply to our Emergency Response Fund: For organisations not in the National Portfolio.

When can I apply?

The portal will open for applications at 12pm (midday) on Tuesday 12 May 2020, you will then have seven days to make an application (by 12pm (midday) on Tuesday 19 May 2020).

Why are you focusing on earned and contributed income?

Organisations that are most reliant on earned and contributed income are likely to be the hardest hit. We will have to make difficult decisions based on the greatest need and widest benefit to sustaining the overall ecology of the arts and culture sector.

What evidence do I need to provide to demonstrate losses incurred and/or that are likely to incur due to Covid-19?

You need to tell us about any income you have lost and are expected to lose, and any additional or ongoing costs that you are unable to cover due to Covid-19. We would expect to see all projected income and expenditure reflected in the budget and cash flow forecast. 

You will also need to tell us how you are making use of your free reserves and/or investments to sustain the organisation, or explain any decisions made not to make full use of reserves. We may bring in external financial consultants to help us look at some of the applications we receive for larger amounts of funding, to support us in determining whether an applicant has provided us with an accurate and appropriate picture of their reserves. 

We will expect to see evidence of how you have used any grant awarded through this fund when you submit management accounts to us as part of your National Portfolio (or Creative People and Places) grant monitoring, and we might contact you to ask for further evidence of this at a later date, so you should keep a record (such as your own financial and project management records, emails, copies of contracts etc).

What do you mean by ‘meeting basic costs’?

This funding can be used to support the costs of NPOs and CPPs continuing to operate on an emergency basis (such as digital costs required to transfer business online and associated accessibility costs), as well as the cost of any additional IT and other equipment or related costs to support home working while your organisation is closed.

It can also support additional costs associated with the Covid-19 emergency, including, but not limited to:

• additional cleaning costs 
• additional security
• the cost of mothballing buildings

Do I need to give you a budget for how I would spend the funding?

Yes, alongside your application you will need to attach a budget for the period 1 March 2020 to 30 September 2020 and a monthly cash flow forecast from 1 June 2020 to 30 September 2020.

You can find a detailed explanation of what needs to be included and the format we require in the guidance for applicants.  

My organisation was already experiencing financial difficulty before Covid-19. Can I apply for funding to help with this?

No. We cannot consider applications that include any costs related to debt that was incurred before 1 March 2020 (referred to as historic debt in the guidance for applicants) unless specifically related to Covid-19.

We also cannot accept applications from organisations that are in administration, going through an insolvency process or that have been dissolved.

Can I provide projections in the budget for the period 1 March to 30 May 2020?

Yes. We have said in the guidance that organisations should provide a budget with actuals for the period from 1 March 2020 to 30 May 2020 where available. We understand that some organisations won’t be able to provide actuals to 30 May 2020 due to the deadline for applications, but actuals should be provided as far as possible, with projections to cover the remainder of the period to 30 September 2020.

As a consortium partner, can I apply to the NPO/CPP fund in my own right?

No – only the lead organisations can apply on behalf of the NPO or CPP consortium.   

As the lead organisation of a consortium, can I apply to the NPO/CPP emergency fund on behalf of the whole consortium?

Yes – you can explain this in your application and make it clear in the budget and cash flow which organisation would benefit from each element of funding applied for.

As the lead organisation of a consortium, I have sufficient reserves to cover my own costs/loss of income to 30 September, while consortium partners are at risk of insolvency without additional support. Can I still make an application?

Yes – you should explain in your application why you aren’t using your reserves and make it clear in the budget and cash flow which organisation would benefit from each element of funding applied for.

I have applied for financial support from the government, does this mean my organisation is ineligible for Arts Council Emergency Funding, or will it affect my application for support from government?

You are eligible to apply for both our support and the government’s, but we ask that you apply for our funding as a last resort. We are encouraging all organisations that might benefit from government support to look at which schemes they are eligible for, and how those might help, before seeking support from our emergency funds. 

If you have questions about this support you should direct them to the relevant government department.  We have confirmed with government that cultural organisations, including National Portfolio Organisations, Creative People and Places Partnerships and Music Education Hubs, that are in receipt of regular revenue funding, are eligible for the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, which enables organisations to furlough employees. Organisations will need to demonstrate that they are eligible for this scheme, further information can be found here.

I have furloughed staff. Can I top up their salaries to 100% by using my existing NPO grant or by including the 20% in my application to the Arts Council?

Yes, you could use your existing NPO grant to top up your furloughed staff’s salaries if you choose – topping up salaries is a decision for each organisation’s board to take. You could also include this in your application to our emergency funds. In looking at the balance of need across applications submitted, however, we may not be able to offer a grant, or at the full level requested, to cover costs relating to topping up staff pay. It should also be noted that any organisation in receipt of restricted funding specifically for staff costs cannot use the Government’s Job Retention Scheme to cover those same staff costs. 

I have restricted funding from the Arts Council for activity that includes staff that are focused 100% on this activity. Can I furlough these staff? If not, can I still use my existing funding to cover these costs, even if the staff aren’t able to work (or, if applicable, repurpose my project grant)?

You will need to follow the relevant Government guidelines and seek advice on whether you can furlough staff (see here). 

Please note that any organisation in receipt of restricted funding specifically for staff costs cannot use the Government’s Job Retention Scheme to cover these same staff costs. If the restricted funding isn’t specifically for staff costs, you may be able to apply to furlough these staff. If you are unable to furlough staff, you can use your existing Arts Council funding to cover the staff costs even if staff are unable to work or to carry out their usual job, but you should get in touch with us to let us know that you are using your grant in this way.  

Can I include personal access costs in my application?

Yes, you can include personal access costs in your application.

I have a ‘live’ capital project – can I apply for any additional costs or loss of income?

You can apply for ‘revenue’ costs, such as additional security, extending the lease on alternate office premises or storage facilities or extended/amended insurance costs, all up to 30 September. You cannot include ‘capital’ costs, such as increased construction costs or reduced partnership funding. 

If you were due to move back into your building before 30 September, you could also apply for loss of income e.g. from confirmed hires up to then.

Should NPOs or lead CPP organisations use all of their reserves before applying to us, or maintain sufficient reserves for redundancy costs/winding up?

We hope that organisations are able to use their reserves to help them through this difficult time and will expect these to be used where possible before making an application to the Arts Council emergency fund. In your application we will ask you to tell us about your reserves, and use of them, as well as including an explanation if you aren’t planning to use them fully. 

Can I include redundancy costs in my application?

As this is an emergency fund designed to help organisations stay afloat until 30 September 2020, it is not intended to support any transitional or restructuring costs that will help prepare organisations for the period beyond the end of September. You could only include redundancy costs in your application if these form part of your emergency operating budget until 30 September 2020. 

Do I have to have requested an early payment from the Arts Council (payments through until September 2020) before making an application to the Emergency Response Fund? 

You don’t have to have requested an early payment, but we do expect organisations to do all they can to take advantage of other support available to them such as early payments.

What period of expected income from the Government’s Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) should I include in my application?

It has now been announced that the CJRS will continue beyond the end of July, until the end of October 2020, but that there will be some changes to the scheme to be announced by the end of May. This means that if your organisation has furloughed staff under this scheme, and you’re applying to our Emergency Response Fund, you will need to account for an uncertain level of CJRS receipts for August and September in your application.

We suggest when making an application, organisations who have furloughed staff assume their CJRS receipt in August and September will be at the same level as in July. We will know the details of the changes to the scheme by the end of May, before we make our final funding decisions. Taking this into account, we may adjust the amount of any grant offer.

If I haven’t had confirmation that my application to the Government’s Job Retention Scheme has been successful, should I include the income in my application to the Arts Council’s Emergency Response Fund?

Organisations should include any expected income from the Government’s Job Retention Scheme in their application/cash flow, and let us know of any significant change to this (and any other expected income). However, the amount that you request from us in your application should not include what you expect to receive through the Job Retention Scheme.

Can my organisations apply to both the Arts Council and the British Film Institute for emergency funding?

We would ask you to consider which of these funds is most relevant for you to apply to, and if you do choose to apply to both you must indicate this in your application. You should only accept funding from one funder, unless the funding is clearly for discrete and separate activities and costs. 

 

Can I speak to a Relationship Manager?

Relationship Managers, our Customer Services team and our other staff will not be able to offer specific, one-to-one advice about how to write your application or to read draft applications for this fund because we are currently making decisions on applications to our other emergency response funds.

We have designed this application process to be as straightforward as possible, requesting only the information we need.

However, we understand you will still be in regular contact with us about your ongoing situation, and someone from our Area team will continue to have these conversations. Your Relationship Manager will continue to be the first point of contact in most cases.

Our Customer Services team can help you to use the online application form or make any required updates to your applicant profile.

Are access funds available to support people to use Grantium and to make applications?

Although we will not be providing direct access support funding to help you make an application, we are committed to being open and accessible to everyone and will offer support. 

If your organisation is disabled-led and you require further support to complete your application, please contact our Customer Services team. 

We are currently producing this guidance in a range of alternative formats including Easyread, BSL and Large Print. We will publish these as soon as possible. 

Is the guidance for applicants available in accessible formats?

Yes, you can download the guidance for applicants in large print and Easy Read formats below or access it in British Sign Language.