Local Levy Grant Funding for Small Scale Flood Alleviation Schemes

Bulletin – 19th October

Local Levy Grant Funding for Small Scale Flood Alleviation Schemes

Staffordshire County Council has secured funding for Small Scale Flood Alleviation Projects within Staffordshire for 2017/2018. Applications can be made for up to £5,000 per location to be used for works, studies, or projects that will remove, educate or mitigate known flood risk in the catchment. Applications can include proposals such as:-

• Grab bags for communities at risk of flash flooding

• Personal Protective Equipment where a community has already developed a working incident action plan such as torches and appropriate clothing

• Small scale telemetry in order to link small scale measures, such as cameras on culverts, to local websites, smartphones and alarm systems

• Small scale modelling or surveying to help identify an unknown cause of flood risk

• Small scale physical interventions, such as temporary barriers and storage facilities

• Communication material, such as leaflets, advertisements and notices to say how to prepare and what to do in a flood event.

The grant is available to Town Councils, Borough and District Councils, Parish Councils, Community Groups, and Flood Action Groups within Staffordshire. Applications forms must be submitted for consideration and evaluation by 30th November 2017.

All applications will be evaluated and scored and Staffordshire County Council reserves the right to not to fund low scoring schemes where there are higher priority needs.

Information packs with application forms are available by emailing and expressing your interest to

Crowdfund Staffordshire is launched – sign up now for free advice sessions

Community based organisations, charities, social enterprises, sports clubs, community groups and even individuals are being encouraged to use a new fundraising platform and get their great idea off the ground. ‘Crowdfund Staffordshire’ has now been launched by Staffordshire County Council to help people access the thousands of pounds that are donated to good causes in the county every month. Crowdfunder has already helped raise over £30m for good causes and is the biggest fundraising platform in the UK.

Now ‘Crowdfund Staffordshire’ offers the potential to tap into donations from new sources such as individuals and companies, who may be passionate about the cause and keen to make a positive, tangible difference in the community. The new platform provides groups with an additional tool to help them raise money for equipment, programmes or projects that benefit local individuals and communities.

The county council will also be launching the ‘Children and Families Fund’ in November. The £50,000 fund is designed to support eligible organisations or individuals with the money they need to help improve the independence and wellbeing of vulnerable families, and avoid the problems that might mean they rely on social care and health services in the future. Up to £5,000 is available for projects that also gain the support of local communities. Voluntary organisations are being encouraged to get in touch with the council now to register their interest and secure the best support possible.

Running a crowdfunding campaign is easy with Crowdfund Staffordshire! Sign up now to join a free live webinar on Thursday 26th October at 12noon about planning your crowdfunding campaign. It’s suitable for anyone who is thinking about crowdfunding, but needs to find out how it works and wants to learn from the experts.

Find out more about Crowdfund Staffordshire at http://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/funds/crowdfund-staffordshire

Read the eligibility criteria and start a conversation about the Children and Families Fund here

http://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/funds/crowdfund-staffordshire/extra-funding

Jonathan Owen, NALC CEO, writes…

Council tax referendums campaign

We met recently with officials from the Department for Communities to discuss parish precepts and the technical consultation on local government finance; as a result of this meeting and our discussion with Marcus Jones MP at Conservative Party conference I wanted to let you know about the approach we are proposing to take to the consultation. Last year the government proposed extending council tax referendums to parishes and we mounted an extensive mobilisation campaign to successfully oppose this. The government decided to defer its proposals, keep parish precepts under close review and challenged councils to demonstrate restraint and increase transparency.

However, this year the consultation strikes a different and less threatening tone but does invite evidence of how the sector is responding to the challenge by considering all available options to mitigate the need for council tax increases, including the use of reserves or for ‘invest to save’ projects which will lower on-going revenue costs. We will be responding to the consultation making the case for continuation of the current position as well as pressing for more certainty through a multi-year settlement, along with providing evidence on specific issues we know the government are interested in. Therefore I would again welcome help from councils who increased their precept by telling us: the ways in which you engaged with local people about increasing the precept before and after budget setting; how you considered or are already using other sources of income such as reserves – so please email .

As I know most local councils are already underway with budget preparations for next year, can I take the opportunity to urge you to be alert to the government’s challenge and strongly encourage you to take steps to ensure you are engaging with local people over precept setting, be as transparent as you possibly can and consider other funding sources to take the pressure off the precept. Ultimately, however, you know your place and your people, so are best placed to make spending decisions on local priorities and be held accountable locally for those!

Longdon Parish Council

SPCA Bulletin 17/42 (19th October)