Agenda and minutes

The Chair welcomed all those in attendance and Members of the public observing the meeting via YouTube.

There were no apologies.

There were no declarations.

To agree the public minutes and non-public summary of the meeting held on 30 September 2021.

RESOLVED – That the public minutes and non-public summary of the meeting held on 30 September 2021 be agreed as a correct record.

Matters Arising

The Committee noted that following a request for expressions of interest, William Hoyle had agreed to serve as the Committee’s LocalMotion Funder Collaboration representative and had been appointed accordingly. William Hoyle then advised that he had attended a full-day stakeholder meeting as the Committee’s representative on 25 November.

To note a summary of the Bridging Divides programme.

The Committee noted a summary of the Bridging Divides programme. The Managing Director of BHE advised that the summary document would be updated to reflect new workstreams once these had been established.

Report of the Managing Director of Bridge House Estates (BHE)

The Committee considered a report of the Managing Director of BHE providing an update on key areas of activity and outlining upcoming activities. The Managing Director of BHE introduced the report and the Committee discussed the updates provided.

London Councils Grants Committee

The Managing Director of BHE advised that the Chair of the BHE Grants Committee had agreed to serve as the City of London Corporation’s representative on the London Councils Grants Committee. The Managing Director of BHE added that this was an important partnership for the organisation and for CBT, and thanked the Deputy Chair for his contributions to the Committee during his time as representative.

London Funders

The Managing Director of BHE advised that work was ongoing with collaborative partners with a view to building on the success of the London Community Response/Fund (LCR/F), with a key element being the retention and development of the single application form. Officers were working in conjunction with other funders to develop a proposal to improve collaboration going forward and a recommendation for significant support would be submitted to the Grants Committee before the end of the financial year.

Learning Visits

The Managing Director of BHE thanked Members for their interest in attending a learning visit when possible, and advised that the Impact & Learning team would be in touch to arrange suitable dates with Members that had expressed interest. The Managing Director of BHE added that the visits would be beneficial for informing the Committee’s future work.

Beacon Collaborative

In response to a question from a Member, the Chair advised that he and the Deputy Chair had attended the annual strategic conference in October, which had been a positive and interesting event. The Managing Director of BHE advised that CBT was currently represented on the organisational side, but closer ties would be

Report of the Managing Director of BHE

The Committee considered a report of the Managing Director of BHE providing the Committee with details of funds approved under delegated authority since the last meeting of the Grants Committee in September 2021 through to 25th November 2021; any grant variations that have been approved under delegated authority and seeking approval for 2 grant applications above the delegated authority threshold and 7 grant application rejections.

The Chair introduced the item and drew Members’ attention to the heat maps of London provided following the request at the last meeting. The Managing Director of BHE thanked Members for this feedback and advised that suggestions for any further tools that would be useful were welcome. The Managing Director of BHE added that grants information was publicly available through 360Giving, but that infographics and visual aids were part of the plans for the new website as a way to increase engagement.

In response to a question from a Member, the Managing Director of BHE then outlined CBT’s work with regards to ‘cold spot’ funding areas, noting that sometimes CBT cold spots were so as the sector was strong in that area. However, CBT tried to reach out across all areas of London, and through collaboration with and support of other funders may be involved with initiatives in cold spots indirectly.

The Committee then considered the grant applications appended to the report. The Managing Director of BHE introduced and presented the grant application in respect of Hammersmith and Fulham Association for Mental Health, noting the revised request and recommendation. In response to questions, the Managing Director of BHE advised that follow-on funding would be an option at the conclusion of the grant, and that the grant would complement rather than replace existing statutory funding. The Committee then agreed the application.

The Managing Director of BHE

Report of the Managing Director of BHE

The Committee considered a report of the Managing Director of BHE requesting funding from CBT of £1.219m; comprised of £499,999 to Rosa towards administration costs and onward grant-making to BME women-led charities benefitting Londoners, and £720,000 towards the Greater London Authority (GLA) for administration and onward grant-making to grass-roots charities led by and for their communities benefiting Londoners. The report also recommended that the committee earmarks up to £15m of further funding towards other similar collaborations with established funders before the end of March 2023, piloting an “Alliance Fund”.

The Managing Director of BHE introduced and presented the application, and in response to questions from Members gave the Committee some further context on the recommendation to allocate, in principle, further funding for other such ‘Alliance Fund’ initiatives. The Committee noted that there would not be a specific commitment to spend at this time, with the allocation to be made up of smaller spending decisions at a later point.

The Deputy Chair commented that the collaboration and partnership elements of the initiative should be promoted further, and the Managing Director of BHE confirmed that both funders were keen to work collaboratively. A Member added that it would be important to consider what was meant by collaboration in this context, in comparison to projects such as LocalMotion, and the desired outcomes as CBT moved into this space.

RESOLVED – That the Grants Committee of the BHE Board agree:

a)    A grant of £499,999 be made to ROSA, registered charity no: 1124856, for the RISE fund, providing grants to strengthen Black and minoritised-led organisations in the women and girls sector. The funding can only be used to support organisations benefitting Londoners and includes £90,000 towards administration costs. A payment schedule will be drawn up, allowing the funds to be paid to

Report of the Managing Director of BHE

The Committee considered a report of the Managing Director of BHE requesting funding for phase two (incubation phase) of the development of the Baobab Foundation (Baobab), the first funder dedicated explicitly to growing, supporting, and strengthening groups and organisations led by and serving Black people and communities affected by racism and racial disparities in the UK.

The Managing Director of BHE introduced and presented the application, also setting out the process for onward approval to the BHE Board, should the Committee endorse the recommendations. The Chair commented that this was a complex piece of work, but an exciting opportunity and drew Members’ attention to the recommendations.

RESOLVED – That the Grants Committee of the BHE Board agree:

1. A grant of £200,000 be made to Hackney Council for Voluntary Service (HCVS), registered charity no:1069736 to be held for the benefit of the Baobab Foundation, towards phase two (incubation) running costs over two years (year one £120k, year two £80k) upon terms that provide that - upon the satisfactory constitution and registration of the Baobab Foundation (further to recommendation 2 below) and subject to entering into a grant agreement with the Baobab Foundation (i) the balance of grant funding held by HCVS shall be transferred to the Baobab Foundation and (ii) the balance of funding yet to be paid over at the relevant time shall be paid directly to the Baobab Foundation;

2. In principle, subject to the approval of the Bridge House Estates Board, a further grant of £2,000,000 (payment schedule to be agreed at the point of funds being committed) shall be made to the Baobab Foundation towards onward grant-making for the benefit of Londoners provided that the following conditions are met:

(i)    The Baobab Foundation becomes a constituted organisation registered in a manner which meets City Bridge Trust’s

Report of the Managing Director of BHE

The Committee considered a report of the Managing Director of BHE presenting options for consideration in respect of officer delegations for CBT. The Managing Director of BHE introduced the report, also reflecting on the Committee’s discussion at the previous meeting, and drew Members’ attention to the key points. The Managing Director of BHE also advised of a technical point in respect of the wording to be clear that the level of delegation would be determined by the amount of funding recommended by officers rather than the amount requested by the applicant. The Committee noted that a review point after six months or two committee cycles could be built in, in the spirit of CBT being a learning organisation.

The Chair then drew the Committee’s attention to the options available, with Members supporting Option 3 which was felt to be representative off the Committee’s discussion at the previous meeting.

RESOLVED – That the Grants Committee of the BHE Board:

i)              Agree to implement the officer delegations and financial thresholds presented at the September meeting on a permanent basis and to widen those delegations to include authority to take decisions to reject applications where appropriate, as set out below:

a. Application Recommendations of up to £50,000 in total may be approved or rejected by the Managing Director of BHE or in their absence, the Associate Director of CBT or a CBT Funding Director;

b. Application Recommendations of between £50,001 and £100,000 in total to be approved or rejected by the Managing Director of BHE or in their absence the Associate Director of CBT, in consultation with the Chamberlain (acting by the Charities Finance Team) for recommendations;

c. Application Recommendations of between £100,001 and £250,000 in total to be approved or rejected by the Managing Director of BHE or in their absence the

Report of the Managing Director of BHE

The Committee considered a report of the Managing Director of BHE providing the operational risks for CBT, which forms part of the wider BHE risk register for review. The Managing Director of BHE introduced the report and drew Members’ attention to the key points.

A Member queried why Brexit had been taken off the Risk Register, as the report acknowledged that it may have to be reinstated at a later point, and fuel and food supply issues were still prevalent and relevant to the work of the Committee. The Managing Director of BHE responded that he was sympathetic to this view and advised that this could be reviewed. In response to a question from a Member regarding crisis management, the Managing Director of BHE gave the Committee further detail in respect of mitigations against funding decisions going wrong, both for the grantee and for CBT.

RESOLVED – That the Grants Committee:

a)    Review the five risks currently on the register for this Committee and confirm that appropriate control measures are in place; and

b)    Confirm that there are no other risks relating to the services overseen by the Grants Committee which should be added to the Operational Risk Register, or which should be escalated as ‘principal risks’ to the BHE Principal Risk Register.

Report of the Managing Director of BHE and the Chamberlain

The Committee considered a report of the Managing Director of BHE and the Chamberlain presenting for approval the CBT budget for 2022/23 and providing an update on the year-to-date financial position of CBT. The Managing Director of BHE introduced the report and outlined the wider financial position of CBT for the Committee. In response to a question from a Member, the Chamberlain advised that where there was a discrepancy between figures this was due to the inclusion of staff costs. The Managing Director of BHE also advised the Committee on the strategy for managing the CBT budget going forward, which would be planned in conjunction with the Chamberlain and regular decisions by Members.

The Chair then thanked officers for the detailed budget and work undertaken in this area.

RESOLVED – That the Grants Committee of the BHE Board:

i)              Review and recommend CBT’s proposed revenue budget for 2022/23 for inclusion in the charity’s overall Budget to be presented to the BHE Board;

ii)             Agree that minor amendments for 2022/23 budgets arising during budget setting be delegated to the Head of Charity and Social Investment Finance; and

iii)           Note the aspects of the report providing information on the updated financial position for 2021/22.

There were no questions.

There was no other business.

MOTION – With the Court of Common Council for the City Corporation as Trustee of Bridge House Estates (Charity No. 1035628) having decided to treat these meetings as though Part VA and Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 applied to them, it now be moved that the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that their consideration will in each case disclose exempt information of the description in paragraph 3 of Schedule 12A, being information relating to the financial and business affairs of any person (including the City Corporation as Trustee of the charity) which it would not be in the charity’s best interests to disclose.

RESOLVED – That with the Court of Common Council for the City Corporation as Trustee of Bridge House Estates (Charity No. 1035628) having decided to treat these meetings as though Part VA and Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 applied to them, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that their consideration will in each case disclose exempt information of the description in paragraph 3 of Schedule 12A, being information relating to the financial and business affairs of any person (including the City Corporation as Trustee of the charity) which it would not be in the charity’s best interests to disclose.

To agree the non-public minutes of the meeting held on 30 September 2021.

RESOLVED – That the non-public minutes of the meeting held on 30 September 2021 be agreed as a correct record.

Report of the Managing Director of BHE

The Committee received a report of the Managing Director of BHE.

There were no questions.

There was no other business.