Deadline: 09-Oct-23
The AHF is provoding grants to help with assessing the viability of a project, or to help fund development costs for historic building related regeneration projects based in Scotland.
The AHF helps communities across the UK find enterprising new ways to revitalise old buildings. They do this by providing advice, grants, and social investment loans. Grants are targeted towards early-stage project development, while loans may be used at any stage in a project. Their social investment loans (repayable finance) is also available for the acquisition of buildings, to provide working capital, for bridge / cashflow funding, or to kick-start enterprising activities.
Aims
- Delivering targeted investment that leads to the sustainable reuse and management of historic buildings.
- Supporting charities and social enterprises to take ownership of, develop and sustain new uses for historic buildings.
- Championing the impact of heritage and community-led regeneration.
Types of Programmes
- Project Viability Grant (PVG)
- Project Viability Grants (PVG) are to fund studies to look at potential uses for a building and at its current condition, and usually produce a Viability Report to a standard template. Successful completion of this will be used to judge whether applicants can then apply for the AHF’s Project Development Grant funding, and can be used to secure further funding elsewhere. This grant is administered on a monthly rolling basis. They aim to let you know whether you have been successful within six to eight weeks.
- Project Development Grant (PDG)
- The Project Development Grant (PDG) scheme is intended to assist an organisation to cover some of the costs of developing and co-ordinating a project and taking it towards the start of work on site.
- To qualify, an organisation must have established that the end use of the project is likely to be viable and have decided to take the project forward.
- William Grant Foundation Tailored Support Fund (TSF)
- Projects in Scotland which are eligible are able to apply to the Tailored Support Fund. This is intended to help organisations and projects that may not fit will within the criteria for their other grant programmes.
- Projects applying to this fund will generally be characterised by:
- A strong community-led ethos.
- A desire to give new purpose to a building valued locally for its architectural heritage.
- Plans that demonstrate strong social, economic or environmental benefits that help meet local need.
- They’re particularly keen to hear from projects that might be aiming to create something unique and exceptional; or which will contribute more widely to enriching Scotland’s built environment fabric through trying new and better ways of doing things, i.e. innovative approaches with potential for replication and wider learning.
Funding Priorities
Priority will be given to Projects that:
- Involve a new use of a vacant historic building.
- Are in the top 30% most deprived areas (with reference to the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation).
- Involve and support diverse and marginalised communities.
- Have a strong focus on environmental sustainability and energy efficiency.
- Contribute to local regeneration schemes.
Funding Information
- Project Viability Grants (PVG)
- Grant amount: Up to £10,000 (average offer: £6,000)
- Project length: Up to one year
- Funding covers: Exploring options for re-use
- Match-funding: They can fund up to 100%
- Location: Anywhere in Scotland
- Project Development Grants (PDG)
- Grant amount: Up to £40,000 (average offer: £15,000)
- Project length: Up to one year
- Funding covers: Project development costs
- Match-funding: Prefer 50% in place or being sought
- Location: Anywhere in Scotland
- William Grant Foundation – Tailored Support Fund
- Grant amount: Up to £10,000 (average offer £7,500)
- Project length: Up to one year
- Funding covers: Various – see below
- Match-funding: They can fund up to 100%
- Location: Anywhere in Scotland
Who can apply?
Wherever you are in the UK, your organisation must be one of the following not-for-private-profit organisations or lowest tiers of local government:
- Unincorporated organisations that are intending to incorporate (for Project Viability Grants only).
- Charitable Incorporated Organisations (CIOs or SCIOs).
- Charitable Companies Limited by Guarantee.
- Charitable Community Benefit Societies.
- Community Benefit Societies.
- Not-for-private-profit Companies Limited by Guarantee.
- Community Interest Companies (CICs) Limited by Guarantee.
- Parish and Town Councils.
Ineligibility Criteria
- Private individuals.
- Local authorities and other public sector bodies other than Parish and Town Councils (unless applying on behalf of an organisation still in formation).
- Universities, colleges and other mainstream educational institutions including independent schools.
- For-profit companies, unless in a partnership led by a not-for-profit organization.
- Unincorporated organisations (e.g. charitable trusts and associations) that are not intending to incorporate.
- Organisations with fewer than three Trustees or Directors. If there are only three Trustees/Directors, none of these should be spouses or otherwise related to one another.
- Limited liability partnerships.
- Churches or other places of worship, where the building or the space within the building you are enquiring about will be used as an active place of religious worship – defined as hosting regular religious services or religion-based activities such as prayer or religious study.
For more information, visit Architectural Heritage Fund.
