My local folk arts group has lost funding from the Arts Council England because their funding has been reduced by a third as the government is putting the money towards the 2012 Olympics. Have other groups been similarly affected, and what measures are you taking to overcome this major setback?

Hi
Funding for the voluntary sector in England is likely to go through major shifts due to various factors (move from grants to commissioning, the olympics (Tessa Jowell has 'borrowed' arts, heritage and sports lottery money to fill the funding gap, increase in number of groups, changing wider economic environment etc) as you point out, which means that groups are going to have be very savvy about the direction they take, to stand out and prove that they are delivering a service that will add value to the government's strategies.

In a way we have come full cycle over the last 10 years, as people who have been longer in the sector than myself remind me, as the tightening of everyone's belt is similar to what happened just before Margaret Thatcher came to power. It is not going to be easy but I would say conserve your energy for working out the best way forward for your group (if it is worth funding).

A couple of places to get further help developing your future:
www.nacva.org.uk - the national association of councils for voluntary service - these are orgns that support and develop local groups
www.volresource.org.uk - very good general website for voluntary sector which also has a useful email to keep up with trends and polices, plus lots of links to funding
www.ncvo-vol.org.uk/askncvo/ - they are keen on sustainable funding i.e. trading and generating income so look at their subsites
and www.financehub.org.uk/default.aspa - site funded by government which collates lots of useful resources on funding and finance for groups.
(all this is personal opinion based on 10 years' of working with groups in London)

Hi all, I am a college student. I received a federal Pell grant for college and now I am thinking about dropping out or I might even fail some of the courses. I am little confused. I need your suggestions. If one of the above happens will I have to repay the federal Pell grant? All help and suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you very much in advance for your help.

Am I right in thinking that's a US grant? If so, asking on a UK moneysaving site may not get you anyone who knows anything about it.

Whatever the situation, I suspect that only Pell will be able to confirm whether or not the grant needs to be repaid. The answer may depend on whether you complete the year or drop out part way through.

i just want to say i started a recycling business last year, and i had no funding or grants etc, as they said there wasnt any available...i stop tons of waste going into landfils, with no help, which to be honest i am really proud of... as there has been no finacial help from anyone... all my own money to start it up....which makes me really proud....

so from my point of view.... i think some so called enterprises...( please dont jump down my throat as i did say some not all) are business people who are afraid to do it alone, and use the safety net of the grants to trade....i have seen it on a few occasions, and when the grant money has dried up for one initiative, they start a diff one up.. and start the ball rolling all over again...

Grantsnet is the only search site that is free. All the others mentioned charge a fee.

Hi, new to this site.

Me and my boyfriend are looking at buying a house, what we originally thought was we would buy a repo so our mortgage payments are low, reducing risk of us getting repo'd in fthe uture as obviously people have really huge mortgages and are living beyond their means.... anyways... i have seen grants etc but i was wondering if there were any grants to help first time buyers decorate and buy furniture etc, we have savings but only enough for a deposit, and if you have looked at repo's you will understand when i say they are in horendous condition and need a lot of work, you think you are getting a bargain, but are you really?! So any ideas? (we dont want shared owndership by the way) THANKS!!

If so, and if free flights could help make your dream a reality, why not apply for the next round of BA's Great Britons programme, mentioned in this article? We’re giving away 180 flights this year to emerging British talent, and the competition is open to everyone (16 and above and UK residents) who needs support to develop their talent in any field – whether they are the next Mark Ronson on the road to the Miami Music Conference, the future Sam Mendes planning a trip to the Cannes Film Festival, or even a local cricket team looking to train abroad.

Search for "Great Britons" to apply!

Hi,
Our Village Hall was built in Victorian times and extended in 1953. I have recently been into the roof space and noticed that there is very little insulation. We are a small village and struggle to find funds for major expenditure. Is it possible to get a grant to cover the cost of insulation, thus bring down the, very high, cost of heating?

Our local Community Charity is looking for funding, Green Ventures Furniture Reuse... collects and sells furniture on too people on low incomes benefits and migrant workers... all money taken goes back into the project.

We aim to reduce landfill and help local people..

Any help in regards to funding welcome

MrG

Hi, I've just graduated and trying to start up a jewellery business in Wales, making and selling my jewellery. Its not the kind of handmade jewellery you think - its not all this threading beads! I've been told by many other jewellery designer makers, galleries, my local business centre, that my business should be really successful. The only problem is I need money to buy the equipment to make more pieces. I've tried Arts Council Wales, Princes Trust, my local business centre/council, Welsh Assembly and have tried searching through grant search sites.
Anyone have any other ideas? I'm not after a massive grant just £1000-£3000

Thanks guys!

Katy Nicola Moloney

If you only want £1000 I would stick this on a credit card and then claim it back as a business expense as tools required for you to do the job. I have had to fund my own business using my credit card - I haven't been able to get any money from anywhere.

For the questions asking where you might be able to get money do have a thorough check of all the database sites in the 'finding funding' section of our guide. http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/protect/grant-grabbing#org

There are literally hundreds of grants available but most depend on individual circustmances, like location or what activity you're involved in. It'll take time to check through it all but could be well worth it.

Hi there, not sure if you are still looking for funding, but see Gransnet as below, who have several grants specifically for Wales. You can register for free with Gransnet and let them know your priorities, they will then send you emails when anything relevant comes up. Hope this helps.

hi
I have been trying to start up a dog training buisness for the last year. I have all equipment now appart from a vehical to move the equipment around. I have been a full time carer for my disabled son, so on benifits for years and unable to save anything. I am in the prosses of taking hsbc to court at the moment so a bank loan is out because they have black listed me. I have had alot of help looking for grants but they all come back with the same thing, I'm over 21 and under 50, not of ethnic minority or a new person to england and i'm not disabled (evan though i am dyslexic, this is not classed as a dysability but i have to pay for a scribe or rely on friends and family to read and write letters for me. (This dos'nt seem very fair). If there is anyone out there who knows of any grants for someone like me please let me know as i am desperate to get of benifits. Thank you

Could you lease a vehicle? It might even be cheaper just to hire it for the times you need it when starting up. Could you get a business partner to provide some capital? Could you use public transport at first?

Your chances of getting a grant for a vehicle to set up as a dog trainer are likely to be slim at best - sorry. There are however loan schemes set up for those that can't access bank funding.

BTW there are very few grants around now and even less that are worth anything like the value of a vehicle so please don't dwell on the fairness too much as 99% of people that are worthy of a grant can't get one either.

Just make you all aware. Business Grants across the UK have been cut until further notice. The grant for my website (Blackburn based 'salvaged car parts' business) was cut mid project and I was 'understandably' asked by my agency to pay for the remaining work. Unfortunatly this was'nt something I had budgeted for, and only went ahead with a website revamp on the basis that I got a web design grant. I did some further research and have found that a web design Agency in Manchester, Sizzle Media Ltd have been tasked to distribute a new business grant for websites. I have been intouch and they are now concluding my project through grant funding. My understanding of the grant is that providing your project meets the criteria of an ecommerce busines, there is funding available 'upto' 50% of your project to a maximum of £5k. The grant is not limited to any region only that the requirements are specific to retail and ecommerce.

You can find them easily on Google and so far so good, they have picked up the project and seem to be rolling steadily towards completion. I will post the finished project once the site is live.

Although I'm sure this would be done in good faith it could be construed as advertising by the mods. The best bet is to put your website link in your profile then refer to your profile.

I'm not a mod and don't know the exact rules but I've seen plenty of posts pulled when someone has posted their business website even when there is a genuine reason for posting it. Because of the size of the site I think there is a zero tolerance approach to posting websites that the poster has a commercial interest in.

Well........,

I am sat on my sofa typeing this post wondering what the hell this country is going to end up. From going to school to university its been an absolute performance.

Ever since leaveing University with a B.S.c Creatinve Music & Sound Technology with all smiles thinking yes I done it and everything going to be alright. Um year sort of.

After Job Hunting for 3 years YES 3 YEARS and applied for every single Job that there is out there I either been told there is no Jobs here or too many applicants. Then when I finally get a Job its like the best thing in the world to me. You would belive at this point I do anything that the employer asked me to do. Yep I do anything and yes thats worst thing you can do if the employer you are employed by thinks its British to take you on as a trial for 2 weeks and if your not what he wants he can just say "O by the way there is no contract so as far as I can see I dont have bother paying you"!!. Yes they get away with it and the goverment lets them do it over and over again.

As you might expect I had enough after 3 years and started my own business. Well what a fun time thats been ha ha ha. Grants, planning, marketing, funding. 7 days a week of complete dedication and boy is it better than working for some employer that thinks get can get away with what want.

I have never seen such a bunch of un-hearted, un-realistic funding organisations that have got so many guidelines that just about cover every aspect of how you are not get a single penny of funding.

Examples:

Leeds Met - We will not give you the grant because you are already trandeing ( when I was told before I should apply again when the next tax year comes)

Leeds City countil- We cannot give you the grant because of your post code area (funny I never thought I be because of were I live)

Job Centre- New deal (We Not running the new deal for new business as we are aiming it towards people with criminal records (O great someone with a criminal record is worth spending more money on considering we spend quite a lot of money chaseing them around the country)

Luckly I have one part of humans beings that care (My family) they help me anyway I can as I help them with all their technical problems as if I dont have enough of them of myself. Though the point is why should I have to keep asking for their help we because nobody else will and since nobody else will I have had to start my business myself. I have had customers from headingly golf club and I should be having a customer who is an actor on Emmadale soap- O great progress.

But why o why Martin Lewis do I have to go through all this, when all somebody has to do is just look with their own two eyes and ears and say- Hummmmmm....... I think we can do something about that Chris I think you worked hard enough and its so obvious that you need a grant.

I dare anybody to top that story :-)