Section 75 of the Northern Ireland Equality Act states that Public Authorities should promote good relations between people of different religious belief, political opinion and racial group. As part of this work the Council supports a Good Relations Grant Aid Programme with awards of up to £2,500 per application.

All projects MUST contain a substantial good relations element in keeping with the government’s 'Together: Building a United Community' (T:BUC) Strategy, which reflects the Executive’s commitment to improving community relations and continuing the journey towards a more united and shared society.

Applications must meet ALL of the following five measurable criteria; applicants who fail to demonstrate how their proposal meets any one of these will have their application rejected; the responsibility to provide sufficient detail in any application for Council's consideration rests with the applicant:

Demonstration of need –You must demonstrate that there is a need for your proposed project, and if so how has this been demonstrated? You should back up your answer using community surveys, public meetings, focus groups and/or external statistics such as PSNI Hate Crime or Neighbourhood statistics, community plans, local knowledge or history of poor community and race relations in your area.
Strategic Fit, Outputs and Outcomes - You must demonstrate clear realistic and measurable outputs and project level outcomes which complement one of the Together Building a United Community key priorities.
Benefits and Opportunities – You must demonstrate that this project will provide benefits and opportunities for people to improve their knowledge and understanding of Good Relations issues.
Financial viability –You must submit a secure financial proposal with a clear confirmation of “total” project costs. Your proposal must represent value for money. Please note that groups are not required to show evidence of match funding however where this has been demonstrated groups will be able to access additional points for showing efforts towards financial sustainability.
Inclusion –You must demonstrate that this project will promote inclusion and encourage people to play an active role in Good Relations.

The maximum award is £2500 and all expenditure must be incurred within the relevant financial year e.g. 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023.

For more information and to apply please visit Grant Manager (eformz.info)