FLiSCA

Freshford & Limpley Stoke Community Association (FLiSCA)

Freshford & Limpley Stoke Community Association (FLiSCA) was created in 2008 and obtained charitable status in 2009 (charity number 1129476).  It has the following objectives (for full text, please see Charity Commission entry):

• the provision,  or help with the provision, of facilities for recreation or other leisure time occupation in the interests of social welfare
• the relief of need particularly amongst those who are elderly, disabled, young or experiencing financial hardship and
• the advancement of education for the public benefit.

Membership

FLiSCA is a membership organisation with currently 161 members.  Membership is open to all residents of Freshford and Limpley Stoke.  Its Board of Trustees is re-elected annually at its AGM (usually in November) where the year’s accounts are presented and members are consulted on the spending of FLiSCA’s funds.  Initial 2-year membership costs £5, thereafter, rewewals are free.  Email FLiSCA for a membership form.

Income

FLiSCA handled the grant applications for the Galleries Shop & Café and, having managed to obtain substantial ring-fenced funds for setting up a community shop, decided to invest some of its charitable funds in that same enterprise, with the aim that this enterprise would earn the Association extra funds for its community projects.  This has turned out to be a sound financial decision because the Shop earned the Association some £8000 in its first year of operation – funds which are currently being allocated to community projects.

Trustees

FLiSCA currently has nine Trustees: Gitte Dawson – John Ager – Louise Kirby-Garton – Malcolm Shirley – Orla Morrish – Peter Wyatt – René Closuit – Sheila Reiter – Stephen Dawson.

Grant applications

A form of Application for Grant must be completed in all cases.  Where the funding sought does not exceed £250 please use the shorter form.  Please download either the FLiSCA grant application full or FLiSCA grant application short.

Applications which clearly link to the charitable objectives set out above will be preferred.

Typical projects

Last year, FLiSCA awarded the following grants:

Limitations

Grants will not be given to fund

• Groups or organisations outside the two villages
• Applications for private benefit, political or purely religious purposes
• Activities not meeting community needs
• Private sector companies
• Past events or activities.

Submitting the application

Once the Application has been received by FLiSCA it will be acknowledged as received and will be checked to see that it has been completed accurately.  You may be asked to amend the application to correct any errors and FLiSCA may seek additional information from you.

Consideration of the application

The Trustees of FLiSCA will seek to ensure a consistency of approach to their decision-making and to ensure that each application for funding will be determined on its merits.  In broad terms the Trustees would like to see a good spread of applications coming forward from the Freshford and Limpley Stoke community:  applications large and small, immediate and longer term, for the young through to the old, some specific, and some general, all in their own way providing some charitable benefit to residents of the two villages. Further, we are keen to encourage applications from Groups who care for or support those who are disadvantaged and who are unlikely to receive significant funding from other sources to meet the needs of those people.

The trustees will consider the following issues and all other matters relevant to the application:

• How well the application meets the charitable objectives
• The need for the project and for the funding
• The impact of the project and the benefit to the community
• The cost
• Whether the project is dependent also on receiving additional funding from another source
• The time span in which the project can be completed
• The potential outcome – what is to be delivered?

The Trustees may adjourn consideration of an application until their next meeting if they require further information from the applicant or if they need more time in which to consider the application.

Need for a bank account

The Form of Application anticipates that you hold a bank account into which funds can be paid if your application is successful. If you do not have an account then FLiSCA will explore with you how the funds can be transferred appropriately.

Reasons for the decision

In every case the trustees will give their reasons for their decision to either support or reject the application and will notify you of the outcome. We will try to be helpful and constructive in what we say. If your project is rejected and you wish to re-apply then you will find it helpful to address and rectify any areas of weakness identified by the Trustees in reaching their decision.

Deadlines

Applications for Grants up to £250 will be considered as and when they are submitted.

Applications for Grant for sums in excess of £250 (full applications) will be determined by the Trustees at their meetings in April and October of each year.

Annual review

The Trustees will undertake an annual review both of the procedure for Grants and the criteria for making awards of Grant to ensure that FLiSCA is operating efficiently and effectively in determining Grants.

Contact details

Should you wish to discuss any matter in relation to the making of or submission of an application please contact in the first instance the FLiSCA board representative named on the application form.