Aspire Community Grant Programme

Who Aspire grants are for

Aspire grants are for local volunteers and community groups in Gentoo neighbourhoods. They are for projects or activities that will help Gentoo customers.

Aspire grants have been awarded to:

• art, music and drama clubs
• children and young people’s clubs
• clubs for older people
• local football clubs
• parent and toddler playgroups
• volunteer groups

Aspire grants are used to fund:

• community projects
• environmental projects
• projects that tackle unemployment
• activities designed for or delivered by young people
• health and wellbeing projects

So far this year, we have received 56 applications and 45 of them have been successful. Read about some of our previous Aspire grants here. 

How to apply for an Aspire grant

You can apply for a grant any time. Organisations can only receive one grant each year. Fill in the application form to apply for a grant.

Aspire grants cannot be used to pay for:

• projects that promote political or religious activities
• projects or activities that are the responsibility of a statutory organisation
• travel
• sponsorship or fundraising activities
• building maintenance
• staff salary costs
• profit-making organisations

When you apply for an Aspire grant

You will need to provide:

• details of the project or activity and the cost breakdown
• proof of public liability insurance (PLI) if you have any
• your Safeguarding Policy if your group works with children or vulnerable adults
• how many Gentoo customers the grant will help
• details of any past Aspire grant applications, including receipts and evaluation

What happens after you apply

Your local Customer Community Voice Group will discuss your application and decide if it is successful. It can take 2 months to assess an application.

We will contact you to let you know if your application has been successful.

How grants are awarded and monitored

If your application is successful, a representative from your organisation or group must sign the Aspire terms and conditions. You must agree that the grant will be used for the purpose set out in your application. If this agreement is broken, we will ask you to pay the grant back.

We issue grant award payments by Bacs to your organisation or group’s bank account. We check how the grant award is being spent to make sure it is used for the purpose set out in your application form. This may include a visit to your organisation or group.

When you have spent the grant, you must give us the receipts. The value of the receipts must match the amount of grant you received. If you cannot give us receipts, we may ask you to pay the grant back, and exclude your group or organisation from applying again.

Further information

Aspire Community Grant Programme: application form (PDF, 425KB)

Aspire Community Grant Programme: guidance for applicants (PDF, 6.4MB)