Dunoon Common Good Fund

This fund is currently under review, so no grants will be made until further notice. Please see the minutes of the last meeting for more information

Make an Application

Download an Application Form

View an example Application Form and End of Project Monitoring Form here

Meetings of the Fund are held quarterly (February, May, August and November). Please note that the deadlines for receipt of applications are 15th January, April, July and October respectively.

Completed forms should be returned to: Adele Price-Williams, Legal & Regulatory Support, Argyll and Bute Council, Kilmory, Lochgilphead, PA31 8RT or electronically to commongoodfunds@argyll-bute.gov.uk

The information you supply on these forms will be used for the purpose for which you have provided it, and appropriate measures are in place to protect your personal data.  A full privacy notice, which provides information about your rights under current data protection legislation and details about what will happen to your personal data can be found here:

• Privacy Notice - Common Good Funds

Dunoon Common Good Fund Today

The Trustees of the Fund meet to conduct Fund business on four occasions per year (February, May, August and November) and the deadline for receipt of applications is 15th January, April, July and October respectively. 

Each Application is scrutinised on its own merits and a decision reached and recorded.

Argyll and Bute Council now publishes the minutes and decisions of the Fund on its website, and you can access these via the following link Dunoon Common Good Fund. Minutes of Common Good Fund meetings are also routinely tabled at Area Committee meetings for noting.

Governance Arrangements

The monies contained in the Dunoon Common Good Fund are not Council resources, they are assets held in trust for the good of the people of Dunoon. Like all Trust Funds this brings with it a number of constraints, terms and conditions which must be strictly adhered to in order for applications to be valid.

Argyll and Bute Council appoint Trustees to the Fund from the elected Members representing Council ward 7.  When acting in this capacity Trustees are constrained by the terms and criteria of the Trust, which are outlined below; similarly, applications to the Fund must meet the criteria.  As is normal with Trust Funds, the Trustees are free to disburse the interest from the Fund, but are not permitted to spend the Capital itself.

All decisions on applications for assistance are published as part of the minute of the meeting at which the application is considered.

Meetings and Funds

Meetings of the Common Good Fund follow a standard format, with an early item of business being that the trustees are provided with a short financial report from Strategic Finance.  This advises them of the current state of the Funds’ investments and the amount of money which is therefore available for disbursement at the meeting.  

This information allows the Trustees to make decisions regarding the applications which are before them, and to ensure that the available funds are equitably distributed between those applicants who meet the criteria of the Fund.

Criteria

The following criteria apply to all applications for financial assistance from the Dunoon Common Good Fund:- 

1. The Common Good Fund requires to be administered having regard to the interests of the inhabitants of the town of Dunoon. Accordingly, applications must clearly demonstrate that the purpose of the grant is to provide a service or facility that will meet a local need or directly benefit the residents of Dunoon. The Members of the Fund must be satisfied that any and all disbursements from the Fund meet this requirement, and their decisions in this regard are full and final.
2. The Common Good Fund is not an alternative to mainstream Council Grants Schemes and applications to the Fund will only be considered once other sources of funding (where applicable) have been applied for and determined.
3. Subject to 1 and 2 above, applications will be considered from individuals and properly constituted voluntary or charitable organisations for funding towards ‘one-off’ projects. Applications for routine operational costs / core funding will not normally be considered. Regular applications from organisations will only be considered where such applications form part of a defined development plan or growing project.
4. Applications will only be considered if they include a copy of the most recent audited or approved accounts of the organisation. Accounts can only be approved by someone independent of the applicant organisation. This person’s name and address must be supplied.
5. Applications will not normally be accepted in respect of projects on which work has already started, or in aid of expenditure towards which applicants have already made a commitment or paid.
6. Applications relating to a wider area than that covered by the Fund will not normally be considered unless the applicant can specify, to the satisfaction of the Fund Members, how any grant will meet a local need or directly benefit residents of Dunoon.
7. Applicants must enclose, along with the completed application form, the following information (where applicable):

• A copy of the most recent audited or approved accounts
• Contractor’s estimates
• A copy of the organisation’s constitution
• Any planning or other consents (which must have been already obtained)

All successful applicants will be required to complete an End Of Project Monitoring Form to ensure that any monies awarded are used appropriately, in accordance with the Fund criteria and giving a level of information which enables trustees to be satisfied that this has happened. The submitted information must outline the amount of funding, any match funding, project details and outcomes, including the number and breakdown of people who benefitted from the award.

Meetings, agendas and minutes from the Dunoon Common Good Fund can be viewed here.