Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Vivienne Littlechild and Deputy and Sheriff Wendy Mead.

There were none.

To agree the public minutes and summary of the meeting held on 28 June 2012 (copy attached).

The public minutes and summary of the meeting held on 28 June 2012 were approved.

          MATTERS ARISING

(1) Social Investment Fund (p6) – The Chief Grants Officer advised Members that a paper outlining the governance proposals for the new Social Investment Fund had now been considered at the Resource Allocation Sub-Committee Away Day. It had been agreed that a Board mirroring the Financial and Property Investment Boards, reporting to the Investment Committee, would be proposed which would meet at least three times a year. Assurances were given that the Chairman of The City Bridge Trust Committee would sit on this new Board so as to ensure connectivity.

In response to a Member’s query concerning the administration costs of the Fund, the Chief Grants Officer advised that management costs would be worked out in conjunction with the Chamberlain.

Report of the Town Clerk (copy attached).

The Committee received a report of the Town Clerk identifying those items raised at meetings of the Committee that required further action by officers.

          RESOLVED: That the report be noted.

To receive a progress report of the Chief Grants Officer (copy attached).

The Committee received the regular progress report of the Chief Grants Officer which highlighted the various activities that were on-going or had recently concluded.

The Chairman informed the Committee that an invitation had been received from the Sir John Soane Museum to attend a drinks reception and tour on the evening of 26 September, adding that a note would be circulated in due course with further information.

A Member made reference to the recent “Celebrate the City” festival, highlighting some tensions which he felt might have existed between the organisers of this event and the organisers of the City of London Festival, and expressed his hope that closer collaboration could be had in future to ensure the two events better complemented each other.

          RESOLVED: That the contents of the report be noted.

To consider the Chief Grants Officer’s reports on grant recommendations, as follows (copies attached):-

The Committee considered a report of the Chief Grants Officer, introducing the grants programmes and stating that a total of thirty applications would be dealt with at the meeting, of which one was a strategic initiative, ten were recommended for grants and thirteen recommended for rejection, with two having been withdrawn.

A Member noted that the number of applications recommended for rejection looked to have decreased recently and asked if there was anything in particular behind this. Officers advised that they were not aware of any specific cause, with it appearing to be merely coincidental, however it was of course pleasing to see fewer failed applications.

          RESOLVED: That the contents of the report be noted.

The Committee considered a report of the Chief Grants Officer recommending grants to organisations.

          During consideration of the applications before the Committee, the following comments were made by Members of the Committee and relevant officers:

·         In respect of Annex 1 (Richmond and Kingston Accessible Transport), the Grants Officer confirmed that the organisation was yet to raise funds from other sources and had come to the Trust first before applying elsewhere; the Chairman echoed this point noting the condition attached to the grant, adding that it was hoped the Trust’s funding would encourage others to contribute.

·         With regard to Annex 8 (Ambitious about Autism), a Member noted the applicant had 164 full-time staff; the Grants Officer confirmed that this because of the high staff to pupil ratio often required owing to the particular needs associated with autistic children.

          RESOLVED: That the following grants be approved:-

The Committee considered a report of the Chief Grants Officer recommending thirteen grant applications in the Working with Londoners programme be rejected for the reasons identified in the schedule attached to the report.

          RESOLVED: That the grant applications detailed in the schedule attached to the report be rejected.

The Committee received a report of the Chief Grants Officer detailing two applications that had withdrawn.

It was noted that one of the organisations which had withdrawn an application had subsequently re-submitted a revised form, which had been approved at this meeting (Advocacy Plus Ltd – Annex 10).

          RESOLVED: That the report be noted.

The Committee received a report of the Chief Grants Officer advising Members of four grants, totalling £66,135, which had been approved under delegated authority since the last meeting of the Committee as follows:

·      Ivorian Advice and Support Group -        £23,500 over two years (£11,500; £12,000) for entry level English language courses for BME (black and minority ethnic) students, conditional upon sight of satisfactory draft accounts for the year ending 31st March 2012.

·      OCD Action - £18,800 for a third and final year's contribution to the part-time Project Co-ordinator's salary plus operational costs of the London schools' work, subject to a satisfactory final report for the previous grant.

·      St Paul's Community Centre - £23,400 over three years (£7900; £7800; £7700) for a part-time Gardener and Caterpillar Club Co-ordinator.

·      CB Hounslow Football Club - £435 for an access audit.

          RESOLVED: That the report be noted.

The Committee received a report of the Chief Grants Officer relative to two visits that had been undertaken.

The Chairman remarked upon the number of visits which Members had already signed up for, commenting that it was very pleasing to see such involvement.

            RESOLVED: That the report be noted.

Report of the Chief Grants Officer (copy attached).

The Committee considered a report of the Chief Grants Officer proposing a strategic initiative to help make the annual Lord Mayor’s Appeal more efficient, effective and productive.

Members expressed support for the proposal, commenting that an element of continuity was clearly desirable and would help increase the efficiency of the Appeal, leading to higher levels of fundraising as a consequence. However, Members were not fully convinced that the total level of funds requested for the initiative should come from the Trust; following discussion, it was felt that it would be more appropriate for the Trust to provide only the first year’s funding to cover the initial start-up costs, with Members expressing the view that the Appeal office should then be self-financing year on year.

The nature of the Lord Mayor’s Appeal was also discussed, with Members stressing the need to ensure that the charities and areas chosen each year did not cut across or clash with work the Trust was undertaking. A Member also expressed concerns that the Development Director would also be expected to manage the database, opining that they would be better used if dedicated solely to fundraising activities. So as to eliminate concerns about potential overlaps and management of the Appeal, the Chief Grants Officer advised Members that the Appeal office would be overseen by an Advisory Steering Group and, whilst she would not normally serve on such bodies, she would in this instance be happy to do so given the anxieties expressed by Members. The Committee agreed that this would be an appropriate mechanism by which greater connectivity and oversight could be ensured, and supported the proposal.

In view of the comments made, it was agreed that it would be appropriate for the Chief Grants Officer to liaise with the relevant Aldermen and officers involved and

There were no questions.

Strategy for City Philanthropy

The Chief Grants Officer circulated a paper which had been considered at the Resource Allocation Sub-Committee Away Day concerning the promotion of the City as the global centre for philanthropy.

MOTION – That under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part I of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act as follows:-

Item No                                                                                  Exempt Paragraphs

     12                                                                                                               3

RESOLVED: - That under Section 100 A (4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part I of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act as follows:-

Item No                                                                       Exempt Paragraphs

            12                                                                                              3                   

There were no questions.

There was one urgent item.