Suffolk Police & Crime Commissioner’s Fund

Grants of between £2,500 and £20,000 are available for services that help support victims of crime and reduce crime and disorder. Grants will not normally exceed 10% of an organisation’s total income – exceptions may apply.

All applications need to support the aims and objectives of the Police and Crime Plan. When submitting an application a written endorsement from your local Community Policing Team will help support your application.

Multi-year funding 

There are limited opportunities for multi-year funding for organisations who have previously received a PCC grant and provided satisfactory monitoring reporting. These may be available to organisations that are well-established in the county, have a good track record of successfully delivering PCC funded activities and comprehensive and timely reporting to Suffolk Community Foundation. If you wish to apply for multi-year funding it is essential that you contact the Foundation and speak to a Grants Officer before applying. 

It is recognised that VCFSE organisations play a significant role in reducing crime and disorder and in supporting victims. Therefore, the fund is looking for strong applications that provide support in partnership/collaboration and demonstrate delivery on these key areas of the Police and Crime Plan:

Objective 2: Provide services which support victims of crime and reduce crime and disorder.

• Reduce reoffending and / or prevent crime.
• Support fraud prevention and victims of fraud, (both online and in person (e.g. financial abuse, exploitation etc.))
• Support those with substance misuse (drug and alcohol) issues. (Specifically needs to show the link between crime and disorder).
• Support young people – this could be initiatives which enhance the skills of young people who have been/or are at risk of being caught in criminality.
• To help prevent and reduce anti-social behaviour and/or support victims of ASB.
• Support problem solving in local communities by investing in initiatives which prevent crime and reduce reoffending or directly improve community safety.
• Support the Safer Stronger Communities Board priorities by dealing with serious violence, criminal exploitation, prevent modern day slavery, tackle ASB and address hate crime (for these we might consider match-funded initiatives with other statutory partners).

Objective 4: Work in partnership to improve criminal justice outcomes and enhance community safety. 

• Support for offenders aged up to 25 years, where there are gaps in provision, to reduce reoffending.
• Offer countywide systems of support for victims of crime.
• To learn from the pandemic and introduce systems and measures of support which can decrease the implications of the pandemic.
• Supporting reintegration into Society for ex-offenders and those who have been away from community/society for a period of time (ensuring there is no duplication of service but supportive reintegration that encourages and enables independency).

Points to note: 

• Match funding will enhance the chance of success (especially where partnership working is shown) 
• All outcomes need to be measurable (i.e. if looking to reduce anti-social behaviour, baseline data must be recorded and presented to evidence a reduction). 
• Wherever possible data must be used to show outcomes, whether these are wellbeing scales, reductions in Police contact or reduction in Police time, but it is vital that measurement tools are used and data recorded.
• Always identify the gap in provision and how your project/support will meet this need (i.e. if working with probation services with ex-offenders, ensuring that the service you offer is complimentary and not duplication of existing services).
• Written evidence of agreed referral pathways must be provided with your application (e.g. Probation, YJS/YOT, Police, NHS etc.)

Exclusions 

• Operational overheads can only be included where they form an integral part of the project delivery costs. Reclaiming general, management and staffing overheads will not be accepted. 
• Grants will not cover security systems/fences/cameras/CCTV etc. 
• Only small amounts of capital may be requested (10% of total request). 
• Anyone in direct receipt of funding from the OPCC cannot apply to this fund for core costs. If there is a specific project that requires funding, please speak to a Grants Officer prior to applying. 
• Those tackling domestic abuse/violence, sexual abuse/violence cannot apply to this fund. 
•  Please see our general exclusions here. 

Groups to work with – Overall you should be working with a minimum of one of these key target groups: 

• Vulnerable people – who are or may be a target of crime including online crime, modern slavery, hate crime or abuse, and including those with protected characteristics. 
• Victims of crime – helping people cope with the immediate impact of the crime and recover from the harm caused – especially where partnerships are formed to support victims. 
• Serious Violence – initiatives to support those at risk of offending and becoming victims of knife crime, gang activity and county lines. 
• Young people – positive engagement schemes to reduce crime and disorder with a focus on those who are disadvantaged or at risk of offending and provide opportunities for young people. 
• Drugs and Substance Abuse – supporting those who have drug and alcohol issues to positively impact on crime and disorder reduction. 
• Preventing reoffending – working with those who offend to reduce re- offending.  This could include schemes to support offenders and ex-offenders to improve their skills and support their rehabilitation into the community. 
• Reducing crime – we will consider applications where an evidential link can be made with reducing crime and disorder. 

Interventions that are free at point of delivery for victims of crime, are more likely to be successful and all applications should look to demonstrate: 

• Working in partnership/collaboration including endorsement and clear commitment (e.g. to referrals) from those you are seeking to work directly with. (i.e., Police, Probation, Prisons, local authorities, Integrated Neighbourhood Teams, Design out Crime, Community Safety teams and other local support teams).
• Working with under-represented groups (and those with protected characteristics).
• Evidence of need for the project / service.
• Filling gaps in services.
• Use of volunteering.

Post award 

• All successful applicants will be required to publicise the successful grants; using the relevant logos in all literature that is produced as part of the project.
• Press releases and editorial should incorporate a quote from the PCC.
• Wherever possible, visits are arranged via SCF for the PCC to attend. 

Outcomes and monitoring 

All funding supported must show three clear measurable outcomes which will have to be reported on at the end of the grant funding. All applicants must be aware that they need to capture baseline data and show a journey of change at the end of delivery. Measurement tools such as WEMWBS, SWEMWBS, outcome stars can be used and data incorporated in all reporting.

If you are unsure how to describe what the outcomes of your project or intervention will be, as a general rule, think of the phrase ‘as a result of …’ and describe what will be qualitatively or quantitively be different as a direct result of your inputs. 

Please note: the outcomes need to be aligned to the Police and Crime Plan. 

A full end-of-grant monitoring report will be expected and interim reporting may be requested on your terms and conditions. This will need to include benchmarking of the beneficiaries at the beginning and end of the service, i.e. how were they referred to the service, what crimes had been committed etc. 

What next? 

If you feel that your proposal addresses the criteria of the Suffolk Police and Crime Commissioner’s Fund and plan, please complete a grant application form. If you need support, please call a member of the Grants Team on 01473 602602.