1. User Guide

1.1 Generally

The Mid Wales Commercial Property Investment Fund is the Mid Wales Growth Deal's (MWGD) funding programme for coinvesting with enterprises based in the region (or those who are looking to relocate here) to:

• Enable the development of new commercial property, including the provision of infrastructure and utilities as necessary;
• Enable the extension, renovation/refurbishment, retrofit or conversion of existing commercial property.

It is intended to support the provision of new and modern floorspace to allow our businesses to scale up and invest locally for the good of the region.

There are three key investment objectives for the Fund that you will need to take into account in your application. A wider set of fund objectives (called Critical Success Factors) have also been established. Performing well against these will improve your chances of success and help us achieve our ambitions for economic growth in Mid Wales.

1.2   Our investment objectives

Three investment objectives guide all MWGD's grant decision making:

• Investing in the right opportunities to enable business growth, especially where private sector finance or funds can be leveraged.
• Improving regional wealth and the strength of the local economy
• Creating new, sustainable, and valuable jobs

You must take all three investment objectives into account in your application. You can do this by respectively:

• Seeking a level of grant funding that is appropriate to the scale of your project; one that levers private sector finance/funding, minimising the viability gap that you need this grant to fill.
• Demonstrating how your project can add to the Gross Value Add of the region.
• Telling us how many new, sustainable jobs your venture will create.

1.3  Fund Limitations

Projects supported are expected to have a works cost^[1] value in the range of £250k to £2.5m. The programme will provide viability gap funding as a 'last port of call' to help secure project viability so you will need to consider how you can finance the remainder of the whole project cost (including those excluded from the works cost estimate) and tell us about this in your application.  Each project will be subject to an agreed intervention rate (or payment percentage). In any case the Fund's contribution cannot exceed 45% of the whole project cost or £1m.

The Fund is open to companies operating in particular business sectors, but is NOT open to the region's Local Authorities, or other Public Bodies or Charities. It also not a fund to support the private property development market.

1.4  The Application Process

You should have an initial conversation with our Fund Management Team to assess whether the Fund is right for you. If this is agreed, you will be invited to submit a 'Viability Proposal' which you will have 2 months to submit. If you are successful at that stage, you will then be invited to submit a 'Developed Proposal.'  You will need to meet any costs incurred in developing your proposals. There are time limits in place for progressing your proposals through each and the Delivery Stage (beyond any grant award).

The Fund Management Team can be contacted by email here growingmidwales@ceredigion.gov.uk.

1.5  Is this the right programme for you?

Ask yourself these key questions:

• Is your business looking to grow but is restricted from doing so because of an accommodation issue?
• Will your project respond to our three investment objectives?
• Do you require a grant to close a financial viability gap?
• Will your project run for no more than two years beyond any grant award?

If you answered yes to all of them the Fund could be for you.

[1] Measured in accordance with RICS NRM1: Order of cost estimating and cost planning for capital building work. Typically the works cost estimate contains no allowance for project/design team fees, other development/project costs, risk.

2.1  Likely

Any private business formally constituted as a Company (Limited Company or Limited by Guarantee), or Partnership (constituted through a Partnership Agreement) is eligible to receive grant under the Fund if it operates in one of the following sectors:

• Construction.
• Electrical, Gas, Steam, Air Conditioning and Plumbing.
• Information and Communications.
• Manufacturing.
• Professional, Scientific and Technical Activities.
• Real Estate.
• Wholesale, Retail and Motor Trade.

Enterprises submitting applications must be registered at Companies House, have a bank account, a governing document, and two or more registered Board Members that are not related or living at the same address.

2.2  Unlikely

The Fund is NOT open to those seeking to develop property where the beneficiaries do not ultimately occupy the facilities created using fund monies. This is NOT a fund to support the private property development market.

The Fund is also NOT open to the region's Local Authorities, or other Public Bodies or Charities.

If you are unsure whether you are eligible to apply, contact the Fund Management Team. They can be contacted by email here growingmidwales@ceredigion.gov.uk.

2.3  Partnerships

We do not anticipate projects generally to be of sufficient scale to involve enterprises entering into partnership with other businesses or third-party bodies to deliver the project. If you do plan to work with another business to carry out a significant proportion of your project you must formalise your relationship with a partnership agreement.

In this instance you will also need to decide which business will be the lead applicant. The lead applicant will complete the application, and if successful, receive the grant and provide project updates. We usually expect the owner of premises to be the lead applicant. If the lead applicant is not the owner some particular grant conditions may be imposed.

Partners are not subcontractors. They will take on an active role in the project and help with reporting, attend regular progress meetings, and provide project evaluation information.

3.1 Main Principles

First, you must have an initial conversation with our Fund Management Team who can be contacted by email here growingmidwales@ceredigion.gov.uk.

• Your project must not start before we invite you to develop a Viability Proposal.
• Timescales apply for the completion of each Stage of the application process.
• You must be able to contribute at least 55% of your whole project costs.
• No advance funding of project development costs is available, but as soon as your full bid has been approved and a grant award confirmed eligible costs can be claimed in arrears.
• All eligible delivery costs can be claimed in arrears on a quarterly basis.
• We provide lots of good practice guidance. We recommend that you read the guidance fully to help you develop and manage your project.

It is important to plan your project carefully, including costs, timescales and getting support for your project before you start forming your proposals. The guidance below will help you think about what you should consider and the costs to be covered.

3.2  What We Fund

Each project will be subject to an agreed intervention rate (or payment percentage). In any case the Fund's contribution cannot exceed 45% of the whole project cost or £1m.

We fund projects that:

• clearly focus on commercial property improvements
• take account of all three investment objectives
• have a clear plan with a defined start, middle and end.
• have not already started.
• can demonstrate the need for MWGD investment.

The Fund can support a broad range of activities and direct project costs, e.g.:

• capital works: new build, extension, modernisation, and conservation work.
• professional fees and services
• promotional / event costs
• project related insurance costs.
• acquisition of land and costs associated with the purchase.

Particular guidance is available on Eligible Capital Costs that can be included.

3.3  Your Contribution to Project Costs

MWGD funds are expected to lever co-funding from project partners across its whole portfolio of activity.

You must be able to contribute at least 55% of your whole project costs. This can be made up of cash and non-cash contributions, site costs or a combination of all of these.

If your project is receiving funding from other fund distributors this can count as part of your co-funding. However, the value of such a contribution/s will be added to the value of grant being sought from this Fund. The combined value of all such contributions cannot exceed 45% of the whole project cost or £1m. i.e., the intervention rate from this Fund will be factored lower to account for co-funding from other fund distributors.

The Fund application process has been split into four stages with the last one seeing your project being implemented and the benefits being realised; the Delivery Stage.

4.1 Open Call

An 'Open Call' will be raised for enterprises to come forward with their ideas for our consideration. Open Calls will be widely advertised across a number of communications channels to optimise their reach as far as possible.

Whether you become aware of the fund through the Open Call or not, you must have an initial conversation with our Fund Management Team. They will discuss the fund parameters with you and establish whether your ideas meet with the general aspirations of the fund. If they do, then you will be formally invited to submit a 'Viability Proposal.'

Your project must not have started before we invite you to submit a proposal. Any costs incurred for work done up to that time cannot be included.

Any application for grant under this Fund will be in competition with other projects.

4.2  Viability Stage

If invited, you will have a maximum of 2 months in which to submit your 'Viability Proposal.'  Your proposal must be submitted using our Viability Proposal Form, attaching any necessary additional information to this.

Once we receive it, we will assess your application within 1 month. Following assessment, it will be assigned to the next scheduled decision meeting.

If we decide not to invite you to submit a 'Developed Proposal,' we will explain our reasons why. You may reflect on these and seek to enhance your application but must wait until the next Open Call before resubmitting anything.

Accepting an invitation to submit a 'Developed Proposal' does not guarantee that you will receive a grant award.

4.3  Development Stage

You should allow adequate time to work through your proposal in more detail and ensure it is fully considered by the time you submit a 'Developed Proposal.'  Your proposal must be submitted using our Developed Proposal E-Form, attaching any necessary additional information to this.

You should gain a better understanding of the costs, resources, timeline, and the needs of your enterprise (which may also require consultation with your customers) and use this information to inform your proposal.

You will have a maximum of 6 months in which to submit your 'Developed Proposal'. Once we receive it, and all the necessary supporting documents, we will assess your application within 1 month. Following assessment, it will be assigned to the next scheduled decision meeting.

Bid development work is likely to include:

• consultation with people outside your business
• review of your governance
• business planning
• detailed design and planning work
• any surveys or investigations needed.

If your 'Developed Proposal' is approved, we will make a Provisional Grant Award to you. If we decide not to approve your proposal we will explain our reasons why.

4.4  Delivery Stage

This will occur post-grant award and principally entails the creation of the new facilities we have agreed to support (typically incorporating RIBA Stage 4 to 6 activity). We will discuss your Project Delivery Plan with you during the Development Phase. You should provide detailed information about your delivery proposals in your application.

Once RIBA Stage 4 is completed we will ask you to confirm that you remain in a position to proceed with the project and deliver the stated outputs and outcomes. Once you have confirmed this to us you will receive a Final Grant Award.

You will have up to two years to complete the Delivery Stage (including RIBA Stage 4) unless we have agreed a longer project duration with you.

4.5  Target Timeline for End-to-End Process

5.1  RIBA Plan of Work Alignment

Capital project delivery is often aligned with the Royal Institute of British Architects or RIBA Plan of Work 2020 (PDF, 75 KB), a way of progressively developing your proposals in logical steps with each being clearly defined in terms of inputs and expected outputs. There are eight RIBA Stages, as explained below.

For your 'Viability Proposal' we would expect you to have completed RIBA Stage 0 requirements (project viability work).

For your 'Developed Proposal,' we would expect you to have completed RIBA Stages 0 to 3 inclusive. By this time, the design of your project should be well advanced and submitted to the Local Planning Authority for approval where relevant[1].

You may not have completed the full technical designs, but you should have well determined costings that tell you what financial outcomes to expect when proposals are put out to tender.

We have prepared a Design Strategy to guide you and your project designers. Adherence to the Strategy is a requirement of any grant award, and its aim is to ensure that best-quality bids come forward that optimise social value outcomes for your project and wider Value for Money considerations.

You will also be expected to evidence that you have (or have assembled) the necessary knowledge, skills, capacity, and ability to design and deliver your project successfully.

5.2  Reviewing Progress During the Development Stage

Our Fund Management Team will review the progress of your project during the Development Phase to see how you are getting on and to assist you through the bid process. We will agree appropriate timings for progress discussions with you, but you might expect to have a monthly catch up with us as a minimum.

The main purpose of these reviews is to confirm:

• the project is developing well and is continuing to address the Fund's objectives appropriately.
• costs and partnership funding levels are up to date and continue to indicate your project to be viable.
• project risks are manageable.
• there is a clear Project Delivery Plan in place to steer further development of the bid.

The reviews will also provide the opportunity to look at any significant changes and highlight any areas where further work is needed. If there are serious concerns, we may recommend that you do not continue your bid preparation work.

Please choose when to submit your 'Developed Proposal' carefully. Do not rush to submit it before you are ready, and make sure you have fully thought through the impact of your proposal and how you are going to manage both during the Delivery Stage and when it is completed.

5.3  Evaluation and Reporting

Good quality evaluation helps you understand your impact and provides the opportunity for others to learn from your experience. In turn, this information helps us identify the difference our grants are making.

We recommend you build in evaluation from the beginning of your project. Our evidence shows that the more carefully projects budget for their evaluation, the higher the quality of the final product.

Please include a budget for evaluation and reporting costs within your 'Developed Proposal.'

[1] As a condition of any grant award you must commit to securing full Planning Approval for your project (if applicable) and confirm that you will comply with any imposed Planning Conditions in full.

You will need to provide some Core Supporting Documents with your 'Developed Proposal,' as detailed below. Further Supporting Information may also be required if they are relevant to your project, as also mentioned. Please do not submit documents that do not appear in our list of requirements as we will not use them in the assessment of your proposal.

6.1 Core supporting documents

You must provide the following mandatory documents:

• Governing Document for your Business
• Business Accounts information
• Project Delivery Plan (timetable/Gantt chart)
• Project Risk Register
• Full Cost Plan detailing all eligible project costs.
• A Business Case for your Project; to include a Cashflow Forecast

6.1.1     Governing document

You must provide a copy of your business' governing document. You must have at least two people on your board or management committee who are not related by blood or marriage or living at the same address. Your governing document should include the following:

• the legal name and aims of your business.
• a statement that prevents your business from distributing income or property to its members during its lifetime
• a statement which confirms that, if your business is wound up or dissolves, how the business' assets will be disposed of
• the date when it was adopted and the signature of your chairperson or other authorised person.

6.1.2     Business accounts

You must provide your most recently audited or accountant verified accounts for the last three years and your management accounts for the current year. If your business' accounts are older than 18 months, or your business was set up less than 14 months ago and does not have a set of audited accounts, you must provide your last three bank statements or a signed letter from your bank.

6.1.3  Project delivery plan (Timetable/Gantt Chart)

You must provide a timetable/Gantt chart for your project. This should include information about the development and delivery of your proposals, as it runs through RIBA Stages 0 to 6 inclusive. It should importantly include timelines for the creation of your Business Case for the Project.

You should identify key milestones you expect your project to pass, providing a comprehensive overview of how you expect your project to evolve over time.

We have created a Gantt Chart template for you to use but would equally accept a Project Delivery Plan in an alternative format, provided it communicates planned activity effectively.

6.1.4     Project Risk Register

You must submit a fully evaluated Project Risk Register. This is a document, usually set out as a table, which lists all the risks identified by a business, prioritised in order of impact and therefore importance to control closely.

All projects will face threats and opportunities that you need to identify and manage. We want you to be realistic about the risks your project and business may face so that you are in an acceptable position to manage and deliver the project successfully.

We have created a Risk Register template for you to use but would equally accept a Risk Register in an alternative format, provided it communicates such risks effectively.

6.1.5 Detailed project cost plan 

Your project costings will evolve and become clearer the more you understand and articulate your requirements.

The info-graphic here illustrates the increasing level of cost detail that should emerge as your proposals progress through the RIBA Stages.

By the time you are ready to submit your 'Developed Proposal' your cost advisers must be able to provide a 'Detailed Project Cost Plan' for our assessment.

We require a detailed spreadsheet of project expenditure, with reference to the budget headings used in your application, itemising each aspect clearly.

You should also carefully consider inflation and contingency costs within your cost plan.

Inflation for capital projects is likely to remain high for the foreseeable future. You should account for inflation based on the project timescale, plus other factors such as material costs, labour demands and location.

We have created a template Financial Appraisal and Cashflow Proposal template which MUST be submitted with your proposal. The supporting 'Detailed Project Cost Plan' can be in any format but MUST reference the budget headings in the Financial Appraisal Form detailing each aspect clearly. Your 'Detailed Project Cost Plan' MUST be prepared by a suitably qualified Quantity Surveyor.

Particular guidance is available on Eligible Capital Costs that can be included.

6.1.6  RIBA Stage 3 Financial Risk Transfer 

The level of grant being sought from the Mid Wales Commercial Property Investment Fund should be clearly set out in your full bid. This must be related to the costings you have established by that time. If successful, your grant award will be in line with your request.

There is a financial risk to consider once a grant award has been made. You may develop the technical design further, bringing about a change of scope, or tender costs may return higher than your expectations.

You will not be able to revert to the Fund for additional grant beyond the initial award should your project costs increase, so you will need to manage that risk accordingly.

6.1.7     Full cost recovery

Full cost recovery means securing funding for all the costs involved in running a project. We have provided some guidance on Eligible Capital Costs that can be included, for you to consider.

In any event Value Added Tax (VAT) should be excluded from your project costs and all VAT liability must be met by yourselves unless you can clearly demonstrate to us that certain VAT costs are irrecoverable by you.

6.1.8  Cashflow Forecast

You must provide a complete overview of the cash flow of your business throughout the duration of your project. This should include a forecast income and expenditure account that is representative of your day-to-day operation and your financial model; a cashflow forecast showing the expected quarterly cashflow and statements of assumptions underlying the forecasts.

Include detail of assumptions made in your calculations. An assumption is anything that you are relying on to make forecasts. For example, the anticipated growth in income the previous year. Make sure you also include details of any reserves that may be impacted as the project proceeds.

If you have a trading subsidiary, please tell us and seek further guidance on any additional information you may need to include in your forecast.

We have created a template Financial Appraisal and Cashflow Proposal template which MUST be used for this purpose.

6.1.9  Project Business Case

For all projects supported by the Mid Wales Growth Deal, including this fund, there is a mandatory requirement to submit a developed business case supporting the need for your project, what benefits it will bring to your business and the wider region, how you will commission the work, how you will meet the costs of the project and how you will oversee and manage its delivery.

We have created a Business Case template for you to use which includes some supporting guidance for its successful completion. Our Fund Management Team will also be able to support you through the process, but you will have to retain full accountability for its content.

6.2 Other supporting information

6.2.1 Project images (if applicable)

If relevant, please provide up to six images that help illustrate your project.

Please make sure you have all the permissions required, such as copyright ownership and participant consent forms, to share these images with us, as we may use them to tell people about your project, including our decision makers.

6.2.2     Evidence of support (if applicable)

Provide up to six pieces of evidence of support, for example letters, emails, or feedback forms, from other businesses or individuals who are supporting or taking part in your project.

Providing evidence of support is an effective way of showing us that you have spoken to other people and that they are interested and committed to your project.

6.2.3     Partnership Agreements (mandatory if applicable)

If you do plan to work with another business to conduct a significant proportion of your project you must formalise your relationship with a partnership agreement. This document should reflect the needs of your project, and you may need to seek independent advice on how to best write an agreement.

6.2.4     Ownership documents (mandatory if applicable)

If you are planning any capital works, or intending to purchase buildings or land, you will need to provide copies of any documents relevant to your ownership. Requirements are set out in more detail in this regard (see 'Ownership' and 'Security for a Grant').

If your project includes the acquisition of a new site this must already be allocated for Employment Use (or other established and relevant use) from a Local Development Plan perspective.

6.2.5     Management and Maintenance Plan (mandatory if applicable)

Where you are the owner (or intended owner) of the property, we will ask you to prepare a Management and Maintenance Plan (MMP) as part of your Business Case.

The MMP tells us how you will look after the new facilities once your project is complete, including how you expect to maintain the benefits of your project in the future. We will expect you to make sure that the work we have funded is kept in good condition. We will expect your business to adopt the MMP and to provide financial resources needed to implement it.

7.1 Performance reporting

We are keen to hear about how your project is progressing and the achievements you have made with the funding. As part of your formal reporting on your grant, you must provide us with project updates during the lifetime of your project. We will expect a project update usually every month, and at each time you request a payment.

We will reference the key milestones identified in your Project Delivery Plan and agree some performance criteria with you to help keep your project on track. We may agree some corrective action measures with you should you run into difficulty in delivering the project successfully. Should you be unable to complete the project your grant will be subject to financial claw-back in line with the grant terms.

7.2  Ownership

We expect you to own or hold a significant legal interest in any property (land, buildings etc.) on which you spend the grant. You must own the freehold or have a lease with at least 15 years left to run after your Project Completion Date. All leases must meet the following requirements:

• we do not accept leases with break clauses (these give one or more parties to the lease the right to end the lease in certain circumstances)
• we do not accept leases with forfeiture on insolvency clauses (these give the landlord the right to end the lease if the tenant becomes insolvent)
• you may be able to sell on, sublet the whole or part, and mortgage your lease but if we award you a grant, you must first have our permission to do any of these.

7.3 Insuring works and property

You must, with your contractors, take out appropriate insurance for any property, works, materials and goods involved in your project. All of these must be covered for their full reinstatement value against loss or damage, including inflation and professional fees.

If your project is affected by fire, lightning, storm, or flood damage to the extent that you cannot complete the project as detailed in your application, we may consider claiming back our grant.

7.4 Procurement and Social Value

You must follow our Procurement Guidelines. You will be asked to set out the wider Social Value aspects of your proposal, referencing the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015 including aspects that protect culture, heritage, and the Welsh language where relevant.

7.5 Welsh Language

You must include the Welsh language in all aspects of your work. Tell us how you will promote and support the Welsh language and reflect the bilingual nature of Wales.

You must comply with the requirements of the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011 and adhere to the principles set out in Ceredigion County Council's Welsh Language Standards, a full copy of the which can be found on the Council's website insofar as they relate to the delivery of a Project.  When applications are being assessed we also refer to the CCC Welsh Language Policy for Contracts to ensure proposals are in compliance with this.

7.6 Subsidy Control Scheme SC11278

Where any grant comes from public funds it is subject to the requirements of the Subsidy Control Act 2022. We ask that you familiarise yourself with this legislation. A subsidy is where a public authority provides financial support from public money that gives an economic advantage to the recipient, where that recipient can be engaged in economic activities.

The Fund has been assessed and registered as a new Subsidy Scheme in compliance with the Act, as Registered Scheme number SC11278. Consequently, there is no need for individual projects receiving grant monies from the Fund to submit subsidy control assessments, but each award must be notified on a 'transparency database.'

It is our responsibility to make the final determination of whether your grant complies with the parameters of the Registered Scheme. We reserve the right to impose further requirements and seek further information in this respect and we will expect you to provide us with any assistance we may require in completing our assessment.

7.7  Security for the grant

Where any grant award is over £250,000, we may seek a charge over the grant-funded property.

You will need to send us your solicitor's contact details as soon as possible if you are awarded a grant. Your solicitor will need to provide copies of official title from the Land Registry (together with the title plan and other the necessary information) to enable us to draft the charge documentation. This will include an undertaking from your solicitor to act on our behalf to conduct all relevant pre-completion searches and to register the charge at the Land Registry and at Companies House (if appropriate).

You will be responsible for the fees and costs of your solicitor, but you may include the cost of legal advice as part of the project costs in your application.

7.8  Government Embargoes and Sanctions

Our grants must not be used to fund businesses who are supporting extremism, criminal activity and/or who are subject to government embargoes and sanctions.  You must follow all legislation and regulations that apply to your project and conduct your own due diligence on any funds, contracts or individuals linked to places that may be subject to government embargoes and sanctions. We reserve the right to withhold grant payments if we consider public funds are at risk.

7.9 Promotion and Acknowledgment of Funding

Acknowledging any grant from the Mid Wales Commercial Property Investment Fund is an important consideration for your project. It is your opportunity to show how MWGD funding is being used to support the local economy.

Planning promotional activity early will help you to meet our requirements and to acknowledge this support in ways that are creative and proportionate to the size of the grant.

Please include a budget for publicity and promotional costs within your proposals.

Use our Publicity Guidance to help plan your promotional activities.

8.1 Assessing your developed proposal

Once you submit your 'Developed Proposal,' we will check everything is in place and will be in touch to let you know when you can expect a decision. We will not be able to start its assessment until we have all the relevant information and supporting documents. It is unlikely that you will hear from us again until we notify you of our decision.

We will conduct some initial checks on the information you provide us with before undertaking a full assessment (we may additionally check out some other matters at this time, such as your history with us, or financial, identity and fraud checks). Provided these are found acceptable we will continue to assess your full proposal.

When we do so we will consider it against a range of performance measures that we term Critical Success Factors. We need to be able to prioritise where our investment makes the most difference. If your application does not meet our detailed criteria, it may be rejected. Performing well against these will also help us achieve our ambitions for economic growth in Mid Wales.

8.2 Considering risk

When assessing your proposal, we will make a measured judgement on the potential risks to your project and current business risks - and we will look to see if you have identified these adequately and told us how you will mitigate against them.

8.3 Decisions

An Evaluation Panel will meet to discuss all proposals as they reach us. However, we will need some time to technically evaluate them beforehand. The Panel's recommendation will then be referred to our governing body for a final decision. We aim is to complete appraisal / approval processes within two months of submission.

8.4 Provisional and final grant awards

If your 'Developed Proposal' is approved, we will make a Provisional Grant Award to you. You must wait to receive permission from us before beginning your project. You will also need to sign up to our Terms of Grant.

Once RIBA Stage 4 is completed we will ask you to confirm that you remain in a position to proceed with the project and deliver the stated outputs and outcomes. Once you have confirmed this to us you will receive a Final Grant Award.

You will have up to two years to complete the Delivery Stage (including RIBA Stage 4) unless we have agreed a longer project duration with you.

8.5 How we pay your grant claims

For all grants we will make payments in arrears, this means you will have to incur costs up-front and provide evidence to us that they have been incurred (usually by way of bank statements) i.e., evidence of 'defrayed costs', to be claimed on a quarterly basis.  A Grant Claim Cycle will be agreed with you for this purpose.

At the end of each claim period, you will need to submit a Grant Claim Form. This will be reviewed by the Fund Management Team and others to ensure that claims are valid, supported by appropriate and robust evidence, demonstrate value for money and demonstrate that the required progress outcomes are being delivered in accordance with the terms of grant award.

Once these checks are complete the claim will be authorised for payment of the appropriate amount. We will pay your grant as a percentage of your project costs. We describe this as the intervention rate (or payment percentage). For example, if your total project costs are £800,000 and your co-funding contribution is £440,000, your grant will be £360,000 and your rate/percentage will be 45%.

We will aim to pay a successful claim in the month following the claim period e.g., for a claim period January - March, the Council will aim to pay the claim in April.

We will also hold the last 10% of your grant until we are satisfied that the project is complete, that the grant has been spent appropriately, and you have sent us your final evaluation report.

8.6  If your developed proposal is unsuccessful

The assessment process is competitive, and we cannot fund all the good quality applications that we receive. If your application is unsuccessful, we will tell you why.

You may reflect on these and seek to enhance your application but must wait until the next Open Call before resubmitting anything.