Advancing Community Assets Fund

Financial support may be available to support community-controlled bodies that aspire to take on a Council-owned asset (land and property) through ownership, lease or other rights such as rights to manage, occupy or use the asset for a specified purpose, with the aim of promoting or improving economic development, regeneration, public health, social wellbeing, environmental wellbeing or reducing socio-economic inequalities for people living in South Ayrshire.

Who is eligible to apply?

Financial support may be available to community-controlled bodies operating at a South Ayrshire wide level. To qualify as a community-controlled body, the body's constitution, Articles of Association or registered rules must include the following:

1. A definition of the community to which the body relates. The group may represent the community in a particular area or people who have a common interest or characteristic. The definition should be clear enough to show whether a person is a member of the community or not.
2. Provision that membership of the body is open to any member of that community. Membership of the body must be open to anyone who is a member of the defined community. There must not be any additional requirements.
3. Provision that the majority of the members of the body are to consist of members of that community. If the asset transfer request is for ownership, the governing documents must require the body to have at least 20 members.
4. Provision that the members of the body who consist of members of that community have control of the body. Having control of the body means that the members of the community are in charge of the decisions made by the body.
5. Statement of the body's aims and purposes, including the promotion of a benefit for that community
6. Provision that any surplus funds or assets of the body are to be applied for the benefit of that community

What costs can organisations apply for?

The Advancing Community Assets Fund has two categories:

Development

The first category of grant is a development grant, which may be available to eligible bodies interested in making a community asset transfer request but who are at the early stages of the process (known as a Community Asset Transfer ("CAT") Stage 1-Expression of Interest).

Sums of up to a maximum of £12,000 for costs associated with all types of property surveys and investigation relating to the land and property asset may be available for the development of an asset transfer proposal and to help towards preparing a Stage 2 CAT application.

This grant request will be determined at Community Asset Transfer Stage 1 Expression of Interest where it is identified that a community transfer body should be encouraged and supported to move forward to a Stage 2 application.

Capital

The second category of grant, the capital grant, may be available to bodies at the later stages of the process, which are in a position to make an application for a community asset transfer request (known as a Stage 2 CAT application.)

Costs may be available for capital works, relevant to the condition of the asset being requested. The Council expects that requests for capital costs would not exceed £100,000; however the Leadership Panel will consider grant requests in excess of £100,000 on a case by case basis. Capital grant funding may only be requested through the Stage 2 CAT application form.

An asset may be requested without a request for a capital grant however a capital grant through the Advancing Community Assets Fund will not be considered by the Council without submission of a formal Community Asset Transfer request for lease or ownership.

An award of a capital grant would be released at the point of the legal transfer of the asset and must be used within 12 months of the date of legal transfer and used for the purpose that the grant was awarded.

Further details

For further details and conditions of the Advancing Community Assets Fund please download the  Applicant guidance (PDF) [110KB]  or to find out more about community asset transfer and the Advancing Community Assets Fund, please contact the Community Asset Transfer Team:-
 

Robin Jamieson, (Co-ordinator)
Email: cat@south-ayrshire.gov.uk
Tel: 01292 612073