New Scots Engagement Event Fund
Application Guidance Notes
What is the New Scots Engagement Event Fund?The Scottish Government, COSLA and the Scottish Refugee Council are working to develop a new refugee integration strategy for Scotland. We want to hear the views of a wide range of organisations, groups and individuals with an interest in refugee integration to inform the new strategy.
The Scottish Government New Scots Engagement Fund provides grants of up to £300 (in exceptional circumstances up to £500) to small voluntary organisations and community groups in Scotland to help them run an event or engagement activity with a group of five or more people to discuss refugee integration and provide feedback which will help to shape Scotland’s next New Scots refugee integration Strategy.
The Scottish Refugee Council are administering grants for the fund on behalf of the Scottish Government.
Discussions and engagement should cover three key questions:
· Thinking about refugee integration in Scotland, what issues are important to you now?
· What changes do you want to see by 2020 and why?
· What can you, your community or your organisation do to contribute to that change?
Discussions and engagement events should take place by 7 September 2017. Feedback should be returned to the Scottish Government no later than 15 September 2017. A facilitation guide to help plan events and with details of how to return feedback can be downloaded from the Scottish Government website: https://consult.scotland.gov.uk/equality-unit/new-scots/
Who can apply?
To apply for a grant, groups must have:
o A constitution and an annual income below £50,000 in the last financial year (excluding any income for capital items such as buildings and equipment)
o A bank account in the name of the group with 2 signatories on all cheques
Groups without a constitution or bank account can still receive funding, but the application has to be made by another body submitting the application on their behalf. If successful this other body will receive the grant and is responsible to Scottish Refugee Council for how it is spent. Applicants on behalf of unconstituted groups can have an income above £50,000.
Groups that are not charities will be considered for a Grant if:
o Their purpose and activities could be considered charitable
o Their constitution or set of rules makes it clear that any assets or funds that belong to the group can only be used for the group’s purposes and cannot be distributed amongst members.
What can be funded?
There are few restrictions on what can be applied for. However, costs should relate to holding an event for or engaging with five or more people to discuss their views on refugee integration. The minimum grant is £75 and the maximum grant is £300.
An organisation or group can apply for more than one grant if holding multiple events or engagement activity which involve different people.
In exceptional circumstances, larger events or engagement activities will be considered up to a maximum grant of £500.
The main purpose of the grants is to enable groups to engage and mitigate barriers for individuals to participate. Costs can therefore include:
o Venue hire
o Catering costs
o Childcare costs
o Travel costs
o Interpreter costs
o Translation costs (including post-event translation of feedback from events held in a language other than English)
What cannot be funded?
The New Scots Engagement Event Fund will not consider funding:
o Individuals or activities that promote a political party or religion
o Core costs of your organisation
o Costs for capital items
o An event or activity that would have taken place anyway which would not have incurred costs
How to apply
Applications should be sent to the Scottish Refugee Council before the deadline of 24 August 2017. We will let you know within 2 working days of receipt of your application whether your application has been successful or not.
Complete the electronic application form which can be downloaded from the Scottish Refugee website: http://www.scottishrefugeecouncil.org.uk/get_help/community_support/engagement_event_fund
The completed electronic application form along with your constitution/governing document and accounts (or most recent bank statement if a new organisation) should be emailed to:
If you do not have, or cannot make, electronic copies of these documents, paper copies should be sent by post to: Scottish Refugee Council, Community Development, 6th Floor, Portland House, 17 Renfield Street, Glasgow, G2 5AH.
The email submitting the application should have your organisation’s name in the subject line.
If you are unsure if you can apply, have difficulties completing the application form or require any assistance please contact the Scottish Refugee Council Community Development Team by telephone on 0141 223 7936 / 0141 223 7924 or by email at
The Scottish Refugee Council receives funding from the Scottish Government.
Scottish Charity Number: SC008639