NLCF Seeks Development Partners for New ‘You Decide’ Fund

As part of its vision for funding in England, and its commitment to its new funding strategy (It Starts with Community), the National Lottery Community Fund (TNLCF) is establishing the You Decide Fund which aims to directly involve communities in how TNLCF works and gives out funding.

TNLCF plans to dedicate at least 5% of its £500 million funding for England each year to You Decide.

Before launching the broader programme, TNLCF wants to work with partners from spring 2025 to spring 2026 in a development stage. This could lead to communities being involved in decisions about what and who is funded. But it could also lead to other great ways of involving communities that have not yet been considered. TNLCF wants to find out what works best for people.

A total of £2 million is to be distributed between up to five partners. Grants of up to £80,000 are to be used to cover the partner's costs in delivery. At least £1.6 million is for onward granting to communities.

Partners’ roles will include:

• Collaborating with TNLCF and other partners
• Bringing together a mix of people and community organisations. TNLCF will listen to how they want to get involved with decision making, particularly those from communities who experience poverty, disadvantage and discrimination
• Building community empowerment through the process and involving communities in a way that builds their skills, resources and ability to work together
• Sharing their experience of community decision making and using it to develop and test different processes to involve communities in decision making.
• Testing ways to involve communities in decision making.
• Giving out funding to communities.

TNLCF is looking for a mix of partners from the voluntary, community and social enterprise sector with different experience and welcomes expressions of interest from different sizes or organisations and organisations that have worked at different scales.

This includes those who are used to working:

• Locally, in-depth, with smaller numbers of people.
• Regionally or nationally, with large groups of people.
• With communities based on people’s shared identity, interests or experience rather than where they live

TNLCF is holding a webinar on 27 November 2024 (10.30am to 11.15am.)  Registration is required and can be done via the TNLCF website. The webinar will be recorded and shared.

Book tickets

Expressions of Interest are expected to open 8 January 2025.