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Details of Scheme Criteria

  1. What types of Project are eligible?
  2. Eligible Activities
  3. Ineligible Activities
  4. What types of organisations are eligible to apply?
  5. What types of organisations are ineligible?
  6. Essential Assessment Criteria
  7. Additional Desirable Criteria

1. What Types of Projects Are Eligible?

The types of project that can be considered for funding under the Climate Challenge Fund follow many different themes. These include energy, food, transport, waste, capacity building, behaviour change, feasibility studies, behaviour change, eco-builds, eco-refurbishment, awareness raising and community consultation.

2. What are the Eligible Activities?

The Climate Challenge Fund is designed to work alongside other Government grant funds and Climate Challenge Fund grants will not be available to duplicate or replace these funds. Your development officer will provide advice on funding that may be available to complement the Climate Challenge Fund and/or guide you to alternative sources of funding where necessary. All projects must be based in Scotland and all Climate Challenge Fund grant funding must be drawn down and spent by the applicant before 31st March 2011.

Climate Challenge Fund grant can be used for a range of activities but there are certain restrictions. For example, Climate Challenge Fund grant can be paid against feasibility studies and project management of power generation projects, but cannot pay for the purchase of equipment or the installation costs associated with equipment as other funding is available for these activities. Examples of this type of equipment would include solar panels, wind turbines, hydro-electric turbines, wave energy turbines, biomass boilers and wood pellet heating systems, but could also include a range of other systems.

The fund can support community organisations to develop carbon emissions reduction action plans and will pay for costs associated with feasibility studies or community engagement for carbon reducing projects and action plans. It will pay for community capacity building (awareness-raising around carbon emissions reduction, relevant training and skills development) and the costs of a community establishing a partnership, setting up a company or project management costs related to the community carbon emissions reduction project or action plan.

If in any doubt, contact a Development Officer for advice. See also II.2

3. What are the Ineligible Activities?

While Climate Challenge Fund grant funding can be used to fund a wide range of activities there are certain activities which cannot be funded. All activities must take place within Scotland and therefore any project activities which take place outside Scotland would be ineligible. Project costs which are incurred after the end of March 2011 would be classed as ineligible.

Making payments into Carbon offsetting schemes are not eligible under this scheme. These types of schemes will usually undertake activities which will neutralise the carbon emissions which are generated by another activity. An example of this would be if a community were to plant an area of woodland which would absorb sufficient carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to counteract the emissions that were released by driving cars, etc.

Climate Challenge Fund grant funding cannot pay for the purchase of energy generating equipment or the installation costs associated with the equipment as other funding is available for these activities.

Any project which shows that the Climate Challenge Fund grant will contribute directly to a company’s operational costs or profits is not allowed. Any form of endowments, loan repayments or activities which build up reserves or surplus within an organisation’s finances are also disallowed under the scheme rules.

Project activities which primarily promote religious or political beliefs will not be eligible. If a church, religious or political group were to apply to the Climate Challenge Fund, the project would be eligible for funding, provided that it did not promote the religious or political views of the organisation.

If in any doubt, contact a Development Officer for advice. See also II.1

4. What Types of Organisations Are Eligible to Apply?

Organisations which are eligible to apply to the Climate Challenge Fund include, but are not restricted to:

  • Voluntary, not-for-profit and charitable organisations
  • Community groups
  • Schools
  • Community groups working in partnership with Universities and Colleges
  • Community groups working in partnership with National voluntary, not- for- profit and charitable organisations
  • Community groups working in partnership with Local Authorities
  • Community groups working in partnership with Housing Associations
  • Community groups working in partnership with Community Planning Partnerships

It is important that each applicant demonstrates a clear, direct community engagement with the community that it represents. Consortia of not-for-profit distributing organisations are acceptable. Bids in which private industrial or commercial organisations collaborate as part of consortium bids with non-profit distributing organisations will also be accepted, provided that the private organisation is not the lead applicant/beneficiary and the project itself is non-profit distributing.

5. What Types of Organisations Are Not Eligible to Apply?

Organisations which are not eligible to apply to the Climate Challenge Fund include, but are not restricted to:

  • Universities
  • Businesses
  • Local authorities
  • National organisations
  • Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs)

6. What Are The Essential Assessment Criteria?

Below is a list of the essential criteria that projects must satisfy before they can be classed as being eligible for grant funding. There are other additional desirable criteria which communities are encouraged to meet.

  • All projects must place communities at the core of the proposal.
  • All projects must be located in Scotland.
  • The project must include a measurable and significant reduction in carbon emissions.
  • Plans for the monitoring and evaluation of the project must be included in any proposal.
  • The project should have a positive lasting legacy beyond the three years of the funding programme.
  • The project must meet all general legal, statutory and regulatory requirements.
  • There must be a satisfactory maintenance and management plan for any capital elements of the project.
  • Applicants must allow publication of grant assisted work and reasonable access to those seeking to replicate or assess the project.
  • The project should consider its impact not only in carbon reduction terms but also to ensure it has a positive, economic, social and environmental impact.

7. Are There Any Additional Desirable Criteria?

In addition to the essential assessment criteria that all projects must meet before they can be classed as eligible for grant funding, below is a list of additional criteria which are desirable. It will be beneficial if a project can illustrate that it fulfils these additional criteria as the project will be looked on more favourably by the grants panel than one which does not.

  • Potential for replication elsewhere including nationally and/or expansion locally
  • A clear plan to maximise the educational potential of the project for the benefit of both local and other communities across Scotland.
  • Additional sources of funding