Applications are invited from either East Staffordshire Borough Councillors directly on behalf of local communities and groups or from the groups directly.

If an application is submitted by a Councillor, they are only able to submit applications that relate to the area they represent. Support from other Councillors from the same, or adjacent, wards will be viewed positively, and Councillors can put forward joint bids that cross Ward boundaries.

Applications from groups must cover the area in which they intend to operate.

The total amount of funding available through the WEP is £1,500,000, which must be spent by 31^st March 2025. If a project cannot demonstrate that it can be delivered before this deadline, it will not be considered for funding.

Grant applications must be for an amount between £10,000 and £50,000 and the funding is entirely capital based and so cannot be used for revenue schemes, such as ongoing financial support for projects.

Match funding in the form of cash contributions is not a requirement of the WEP, though the Council would expect to see an element of match in the form of volunteer time or similar non-financial contribution. Any financial match funding is always viewed positively.

The types of projects that can be funded through the WEP include:

• Funding towards enhancing local green spaces and play areas, including the installation of new equipment, planting schemes, furniture and lighting (but not maintenance and running costs);

• Funding towards tourism initiatives, such as the creation of local maps/information sheets, installation of way marking signage, and events including art and theatre performances, encouraging people to visit and explore the local area;

• Funding towards upgrading existing community assets or introducing initiatives to promote and celebrate local culture and heritage;

• Funding towards capital projects for local sports facilities, tournaments and leagues to bring people together;

• Capital funding towards digital infrastructure for local community facilities, for example new computer servers.

Applicants are strongly encouraged to engage with local residents, community groups and Parish Councils when developing their application.

As part of the application process, applicants will be asked to set out and evidence any local support for their proposed project and will ultimately be responsible for publicising and promoting the project locally. This can and should be supported by local Councillors for the area in question.

Applications that achieve a score of 8 or more will then be reviewed by the Ward Enhancement Programme Panel, who will invite applicants to present and discuss their projects. If an application scores less than 8, advice will be provided on how the project can be further developed. In that circumstance, progression to consideration by the WEP Panel will be at the discretion of the Panel Chair.

The ‘priority area’ category above is a ranking system for each Ward in East Staffordshire based on an analysis of factors such as population; education and employment opportunities; community facilities; deprivation; and health, in order to inform consideration of how impactful projects in those areas may be from a prosperity perspective.

The creation of the priority area list is based on available 2021 Census data and using this alongside the 2019 Indices of Deprivation data for Wards, cross-referenced with Parish level data in order to account for the boundary changes that took place post-Census collection. The proposed priority area list is as follows:

As set out in the scorecard, Categories A, B and C would be given a score of 3, 2 and 1 respectively. In practice, this means that applications from areas in Category C need to demonstrate a more direct impact on local prosperity than an area in Category A on the basis of pre-assessed local need.

The following table includes some worked examples of how projects in each category of wards could achieve the required minimum score of 8:

The Panel will then assess the application following the presentation and discussion with the applicant and make a determination based on the strategic fit of the project; proposed outputs/outcomes; local community benefit; deliverability; and local support.

It is expected that a local group or body, such as a community organisation or Parish Council, will be responsible for the delivery of the project. East Staffordshire Borough Council will only assume responsibility for project delivery in exceptional circumstances and subject to separate approvals.

The grant will be awarded through a grant agreement with that local body, which will confirm factors such as timescales, project outputs, and funding clawback.