The Innovation Fund is provided by the London Violence Reduction Unit (VRU) and administered by Rocket Science, with capacity-building support from Action for Race Equity (ARE).
This fund aims to support community-led organisations and groups to build capacity and test new approaches and ideas to support vulnerable Londoners who are either at risk or have been involved in violence.
The objectives of this fund are to:
- Encourage innovation in the violence reduction space and encourage creativity, experimentation, and piloting new programmes that deal with emerging issues relating to violence.
- Empower communities by funding smaller, grassroots community groups to find new solutions that are appropriate to their locality.
- Further progress against the VRU’s core mission to reduce violence, support London to feel safer and build a partnership approach to sustainable solutions.
The average grant size is expected to be around £30,000. It is expected that eight grants will be awarded each quarter.
Groups can apply for up to 50% of their total annual income up to a maximum of £50,000.
Funding is for projects that advance one or more of the following aims:
- Children and Young People: Reducing Harm
- Improving identification of and support to prevent violence against children and young people at greatest risk of harm and exploitation.
- Children and Young People: Positive Opportunities.
- Expanding access to positive opportunities and providing development and support through training, apprenticeships, and employment and enrichment.
- Families.
- Developing stronger and more resilient families to better support young people.
- Educational settings.
- Promoting healthy relationships and reducing exclusions and disengagement in education.
- Communities and Place.
- Providing communities with the support and resources to deliver sustainable reductions in violence.
- Systems and Sector.
- Collaborating and working in partnership to deliver better services and improved outcomes for those affected by violence.
Eligible costs include staff salaries, project activities, overheads, capacity building costs, expert support, equipment costs (such as small capital costs like IT equipment), and costs of living recognition to reduce barriers to engagement, including support for programme participants such as travel to sessions on a needs basis and healthy foods during sessions.
Applicants must:
- Be based in and supporting people in London.
- Not be in receipt of funding from the Mayor of London’s Office in the current year (2024/25).
- Pay at least the London Living Wage for any positions paid through any funding awarded.
- Utilise one day of dedicated capacity-building support and access workshops and other support.
- Engage with the VRU reporting, monitoring, evaluation and learning teams and delivery partners.
- Be able to demonstrate working with people at risk of violence.
- Be able to demonstrate that they are rooted in and understand the needs of the local community.
- Have engaged the local community in their model.
If this fund is oversubscribed, the following priorities will be considered:
- Test and learn approaches.
- Provision for underserved groups (eg young women, girls, and carers).
- Community-focused, partnership approaches to long-term sustainable violence solutions.
- Safe spaces for people.
- Grassroots organisations.
How to apply:
The next deadline for applications is 30 June 2024 (16:00) for a decision by 19 July 2024.
There is a two-stage application process:
- Groups must first submit an online eligibility check.
- Successful applicants will then be taken to an online application form.
More information, including Guidance notes and an online eligibility form are available from the Rocket Science website.
Contact Rocket Science at [email protected] or on 0207 117 2534.