Agenda item

To consider the Chief Grants Officer’s reports on grant recommendations as follows:-

The Committee considered a report of the Chief Grants Officer which recommended grants to various organisations.

Members considered each application and the following observations were noted:

Item 7a (Wandsworth Community Empowerment Network) – A Member raised her concern over the low level of free unrestricted reserves. Officers had discussed this with the organisation who offered assurances that opportunities for income generation and reductions in expenditure had been identified.  It was highlighted that the organisation had secured 98% of this year’s income and 78% of next year’s income and that this provided some reassurance as to the charity’s financial position. Members requested that details like this were recorded in the minutes to support their decision.

Item 7b (Community Development Finance Association) – In response to a Member’s query, the Chief Grants Officer advised that work was underway to bridge the Social Investment Board and the City Bridge Trust so organisations were aware of all funding opportunities.

Item 7c (Council of Somali Organisations) – In response to a Member’s question, the Deputy Chief Grants Officer reported that this organisation sought to strengthen the Somali population’s capacity to become more involved with the wider community and with statutory services and prevent isolation.

Item 7i (Zacchaeus 2000 Trust) – It was noted that Zacchaeus 2000 Trust (Z2K) was no longer religiously affiliated, and the Deputy Chairman reported that he knew the Chairman of the Trust in passing.

Members raised concern over the organisation’s aim of “campaigning against laws and practices which operate unfairly or oppressively on [their] clients”, but were advised by the Grants Officer that this aspect was not related to the purpose of the grant and was clearly stated in the Trust’s standard grant conditions. Members agreed that care needed to be taken to ensure the Committee was funding organisations but not political campaigns.

Item 7j (Changing Paths Charitable Trust Limited) – A Member queried the organisation’s expenditure figures (page 179), and it was clarified that the charitable activities had been incorrectly included in the total net deficit/ surplus figure and Members were satisfied the expenditure figures.

Item 7l (City Philanthropy) – A Member queried whether more focus should be given to funding the delivery of projects on the ground rather than giving to infrastructure organisations, and the Chief Grants Officer responded that a balance was needed between the two.

Item 7o (New Economics Foundation) – Members raised their concerns of the political aspect of this organisation and agreed that it was important to represent and support a range of views as the City Bridge Trust did not want to present a political bias, and as such the Chief Grants Officer undertook to draw up a compendium of research organisations considered and monitor grant funding closely.