Decision details

Approval of grants from the Financial Inclusion Steering Group Fund 2025/26

his report seeks approval of the recommended awards of grants under the above scheme for 2025/26 following a round of competitive bids and a rigorous selection panel process.

The proposal is to approve the award of a total of £99,974 of grants to fund 7 projects for 2025/26, as set out in the table below, to deliver a range of financial inclusion activities by partners across the city. There is an approved council budget of £100,000 for 2025/26. All projects are for a twelve-month period.

Based on consideration of the bid applications against the criteria the following grants are recommended for award in 2025/26.

Organisation Project Title Award £
North Yorkshire Citizens Housing Matters York
Advice & Law Centre £24,909

Community Furniture Stores Bridging the Digital Divide:
Expanding IT ReUse to
Support More People £15,500

Citizens Advice York Financial Inclusion for the
Traveller Community £10,837

Community First Community CFCB Public food access
Bank points £5,000

Refugee Action York Mitigating Financial Hardship
for Refugees, Asylum Seekers
and Migrants £7,788

York Community Energy Energy advice & support for
CBS Limited “hard to reach” groups £18,488

Welfare Benefits Unit AdviceExtra: Enhanced
Support, UC Migration
Focus and Frontline Upskilling £17,452

Total £99,974

Background

The Director of Housing and Communities approved the launch of the Financial Inclusion Steering Group (FISG) Grants scheme 2025/26 to support the delivery of Financial Inclusion projects in York on 23rd January 2025.

The Council’s Financial Inclusion Steering Group (FISG) is responsible for overseeing the delivery of a range of financial inclusion activities including this annual grant scheme. Significant investment has been made in a range of projects over recent years and several projects are currently funded through to 31 March 2024.

The bidding process to fund projects for 2025/26 opened on 27 January 2025 and by the closing date of 1pm on Monday 24 February 2025, 14 applications from had been received seeking total funding of £226,137.15, far exceeding the £100k available. This reflects the very exceptional pressure on both residents and those organisations that provide critical support.

All the bids were given thorough consideration by a panel and were assessed against a range of criteria drawn from the outcomes noted in paragraph 3 above, FISG aims and building on good practice. The three-person panel convened on 6 March 24 and was made up of two senior CYC officers and a representative from Aviva/York Cares.

Seven bids were unsuccessful and seven were successful. Five of those were awarded the full amount sought and two were partially met. The projects awarded contributions towards costs towards continuing areas of work and other funding is being sought alongside the bids to this fund. Conversations have taken place with the organisations to agree the revised funding offer and outcomes.

The total value awarded matched the £100,000 budget available. Approved projects are subject to the council’s Financial Regulations and a Service Level Agreement is put in place for each before funds are released. Grants are paid by instalment with regular reporting on progress built in to ensure delivery.

The option to accept or reject the recommendation can be considered

The financial inclusion grants help support community organisations to bring forward innovative ideas to help prevent poverty and promote inclusion in our communities. On this basis the option of not awarding was rejected.