If you want to apply for Scottish Government funding for running a PB initiative in 2019/20, you will have to apply to the new Investing in Communities Fund.

The Scottish Government has provided us with the following information which explains how PB fits with the broader funding programme…

For the past three financial years the Scottish Government’s Community Choices Fund has been available to support participatory budgeting (PB). For 2019/20, support for PB is continuing as the Community Choices Fund forms part of a new Investing in Communities Fund delivered as part of the broader Empowering Communities Programme.

The new £11.5 million Investing in Communities Fund includes the: People and Communities Fund; Strengthening Communities Programme; Making Places Initiative; Fair Food Transformation Fund; as well as the Community Choices Fund.

This is a new streamlined communities fund to help tackle disadvantage through community-led development, design and delivery of sustainable local solutions. Grants of up to £250,000 are available over three years. The Fund is now open for applications and the deadline is Friday 14th June 2019.

Taking a PB approach will enable communities to develop funding proposals from the first stages of capacity building to design stage by identifying local priorities that address what is most important to the community. As we progress from small projects towards mainstreaming PB, which proactively involves people in a deliberative dialogue about the allocation of resources, applicants for this new fund are encouraged to use PB to meaningfully involve the local community in the decision making process. Support costs of up to £3,000 for practical support to take forward a robust PB process and build capacity in the local community is also available as part of the application process.

You can find more information by visiting the Empowering Communities Programme webpage here: https://www.gov.scot/policies/community-empowerment/empowering-communities-fund/

The Guidance, Help Notes and the Application Form: https://www.gov.scot/publications/investing-in-communities-fund-application-form-and-guidance/

News Release: https://www.gov.scot/news/investing-in-communities/