Oxford University Gazette

The National Lottery: a Guide for the University

Supplement (1) to Gazette No. 4490 : Wednesday, 11 November 1998

To Gazette No. 4491 (12 November 1998)

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Contents of the supplement:

The National Lottery has been in operation since late in 1994. It has achieved such a status in popular consciousness that it is normally the first thing that comes to mind when the question of fund-raising is mooted. The income raised by the Lottery was originally divided between the following five `good causes':

—The Millennium Commission

—The National Heritage Lottery Fund

—The Arts Council (Arts Lottery Fund)

—\The Sports Council (Sports Lottery Fund)

—The National Lottery Charities Board

There is now a sixth distributor, NESTA—the National Endowment for Science, Technology, and the Arts. This is not yet in operation.

This guide has been written to help members of the University who may be considering making an application for Lottery funding.

Eligibility Criteria

In general only capital projects will be funded by the five Lottery distributors. There are very few circumstances, under current regulations, where consideration will be given to providing revenue costs such as salaries or the endowment funds. All applications must include a business plan which looks at the long-term future for that particular project.

The rules also state that `Projects are ineligible if they have started prior to the submission of an application and a decision of an award being notified. A project start is either the placing of a contract or a start on site. A retrospective application for funding will not succeed.' This has quite important implications for some projects. An urgent restoration cannot be put off to suit the timetable of the NHLF, but must be carried out while there is still something left worth restoring. The Lottery cannot, therefore, be relied upon to provide funding for the most urgent projects.

Individuals cannot apply for Lottery funds except in the case of Millennium Commission bursaries and NESTA projects. Details of these will be obtained by the University Development Office as soon as they are announced.

Applications must demonstrate that they fit within some wider strategy in order to secure funding. Projects must show that they have support both from the University and from outside partners. Any initiative will stand little chance of success if it appears that it was created solely to obtain Lottery money just because it is there.

Each of the Lottery distributors excludes applications which seem eligible for funding from another source so care must be taken to select the most appropriate one when applying.

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The Millennium Commission

The Millennium Commission has now completed its funding of major capital projects. It has also established a series of Millennium Bursaries which are administered by partner organisations. These are designed to allow individuals to take time away from their normal work to carry out an activity relevant to the aims of the Millennium Partner.

The Millennium Festival is the final element of Millennium Funding, and applications closed at the end of September 1998. This scheme, administered on behalf of the Commission by the New Millennium Experience Company (of Greenwich Dome fame) distributed money from the budgets of the four other original Lottery Distributors for revenue projects in each of the relevant areas.

The National Heritage Lottery Fund

The National Heritage Lottery Fund seeks to support the preservation and conservation of items of national significance, especially where projects promote access to things now normally inaccessible to the public. The fund has supported several museum projects within Oxford.

University schemes should demonstrate that they will benefit a far wider audience than simply the academic users of the institutions.

Applications for capital projects now go through a two-stage process, with an initial eligibility check for larger projects, and a simplified procedure for small grants.

In July 1998 the NHLF established its first revenue project, the Museums and Galleries Access Fund, designed to support those institutions which are trying to improve access (defined in the broadest sense) to their collections.

Before contemplating making any application you should telephone the Fund's Information and Publications team and ask for the relevant brochures. The numbers are: 0171-591 6041/2/3/4.

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Arts Council Lottery Fund

The Arts Lottery Fund is administered by the Arts Council of England. Funds are available to support capital projects accessible to the general public in any of the Arts. Applications which are likely to be successful will have been able to show that there is local demand, that they do not duplicate existing local provision, that they include recognition of the needs of disabled people, and that the project fits within a wider arts strategy either within the University, or the local area.

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Sports Council Lottery Fund

Again, grants are available almost exclusively for capital projects which will benefit the community in some way. The Fund will not support projects which are led by the Sports Council itself. There should be a clear indication of the local or national need which will be met by the project. It should fit within local or national strategies for sports development. The widest possible access to the general public should be available, and the long-term viability of the project demonstrated. The stringent community access criteria mean that any project funded by the Fund is unlikely to meet the needs of university sports players.

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National Lottery Charities Board

The National Lottery Charities Board provides funding for non-statutory organisations only. This means that Universities, despite their charitable status, are specifically excluded from eligibility for funding. University research teams have to apply in partnership with a sponsoring Charity if they have a capital or research project which seems to meet the criteria for that funding theme. New funding themes are announced periodically, with variable durations, and these are likely to move slowly over the whole range of charitable endeavour. The NLCB should be contacted for details of the current grant programme. They are available on 0345 919191.

This is the only distributor that does not impose a matching funds requirement.

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NESTA

NESTA's purpose is to support and promote talent, innovation, and creativity in the fields of science, technology, and the arts. Unlike other grant-giving bodies, NESTA's primary activity will be the support of individuals, rather than organisations, existing businesses, or projects.

They intend to launch support schemes in spring of 1999, and it will be some while before NESTA is in a position to make financial commitments as it has yet to build income from its £200m endowment. In addition to this, it is still establishing its financial and administrative systems. It does not yet have a permanent office or full staffing and its Trustees, chaired by Lord Puttnam, still have to consider how support should best be provided.

Details of this programme will be circulated when they become available.

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Partnership or Matching Funding

Before grants are paid out by the Lottery distributors they must be satisfied that matching funds have not only been identified, but are in place. It will be usual practice for Lottery distributors to fund only a percentage of a project. This portion could be as much as 90 per cent in some special cases, but may often be only 50 per cent or less. The distributor will want to see evidence that all funding avenues have been explored, and that the Lottery is being invited to fund the remaining gap. It is essential that a project has done more to identify potential sources of matching funding than simply having noted their names from a directory.

Some input (this can be `in kind') by the University must normally be in evidence. Such matching funding or support should not include existing provision, but should relate to the increased activity which would result from Lottery support. In other words, it is unlikely that a Lottery distributor will be impressed by an application which includes an existing salary as the University's matching contribution. If, however, the new activity will result in a change to that member of staff's work, or some kind of increase in activity, a proportion of this salary may be eligible as matching support.

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Making an Application

When preparing a proposal for Lottery funding it is advisable to talk to staff in the University Development Office. The Director, or a specialist member of staff, will be pleased to discuss projects at an early stage. The Director may also be able to discuss outline proposals with the relevant Lottery authorities on your behalf. University Development Office expertise is also available to any college which is considering making an application.

Any request for Lottery funding must be submitted for consideration by the University in the same way as any other request for additional resources. Applications will be reviewed in the first instance by the University's Development Programme Management Group. The Group is required to seek the approval of the General Board and Hebdomadal Council through the Resources Committee, which is responsible for considering the effects on the University's financial, staff, and physical resources. This may also include the issue of sites for major applications. It is important to ensure that issues such as duplication of approach and relevance of the project to wider strategic goals of the University are addressed as early as possible.

Potential applicants should consult the secretary of the Resources Committee, Mr P.W. Jones, Deputy Registrar (Administration), on procedures and the expected timetable for consideration of the application by the Committee. Time should be allowed for this in the project's own application timetable.

Any project submitted to the Resources Committee should include a copy of the application form and a covering paper which provides a schedule of capital and recurrent costs. Proposed sources of partnership funding, space requirements, and any site implications should also identified.

It is important to note that where there are several applications likely to be made in the name of the University there could be competition for resources. Therefore applicants must let the Secretary of the Resources Committee know about their proposals as early as possible so that bids can be considered as a group, rather than on a first-come, first-served basis. The Lottery Distributors have also indicated that simultaneous multiple approaches from different parts of the University are more likely to fail. It is not for these bodies to select the University's development priorities.

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Further Information

Further information may be obtained from:

Dr Jill Pellew, Director, the University Development Office, University Offices, Wellington Square (telephone: (2)70222, fax: (2)70225, e-mail: jill.pellew@admin.ox.ac.uk)

Paul Dryden, Development Executive, University Development Office, Oxenford House (telephone: (2)78463, fax: (2)78466, e-mail: paul.dryden@devoff.ox.ac.uk).

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