A person we support clinking cups with a support worker at the kitchen table

Six top Community Fund tips for a successful bid

The Community Fund is one of the three distinctive parts of Discovery that makes us unique (see the end of this article for the other two!).

The Community Fund is special because, as a not-for-profit, we work with Somerset Community Foundation to reinvest 33% of any surplus profit back into organisations across the county. These grants help organisations become more inclusive to autistic people and people with learning disabilities.

So, if you are:

• An organisation in Somerset that needs funding to become more autism or learning disability friendly.
• An autistic adult or a person with learning disabilities who has an idea that needs funding to make it happen.

Welcome to six top Community Fund tips for a successful bid:

This article will make it easy for you to have a successful application because we time stamped our recent online seminar “Applications Open!”. So whilst you might want to watch the whole 42 minute video below, you can also navigate easily to the information you need by clicking your chosen link below the video:

Click a tip (in green) below and you will be taken to YouTube to see the clip in a new window, close it to come back here when you have finished:

  1. What The Community Fund is, does and how it can help you – Alex Seddon, Discovery’s Head of Supported Employment and Community Enterprise
  2. The Small Sparks Grant – Who is it for, what it does and what makes a successful application – Jamie, Discovery’s Council Chair and Beccy Simmonds, Discovery Engagement and Involvement Officer
  3. What Mark Smith did with his Small Spark – supported by Gina Pring, Supported Employment Officer for Discovery
  4. What OpenStoryTellers did with their Inclusion Grant – OpenStoryTellers Frome
  5. How Somerset and Avon Rape and Sexual Abuse Support (SARSAS) will be using their Big Changes grant (plus tips on how to apply for a Big Changes grant)– Sadie Webber, Project Co-Ordinator for the Learning Disabilities and Autism Team
  6. How to write a good grant application – Andy Ridgwell Somerset Community Foundation

And finally – hear what our Managing Director Helen Orford talk about The Community Fund on BBC Radio Somerset here – it will open in a new page and you can leave it playing whilst coming back here.

Now, you are all set to make a world of difference with your application and help people with learning disabilities and the autistic community get more from life.

Click on a grant below to get started:
Inclusion Grants (up to £10,000)
Small Sparks (up to £500)
Big Changes (up to £100,000)

Together, let’s continue to make Somerset a more inclusive place to live and work, along with Supported Employment and Community Outreach – the other two distinctive parts that make Discovery unique.