Policy paper

Educational Resources Grant Scheme

This prospectus for the Educational Resources Grant Scheme, contains general information on the grant scheme and the application process.

From:

Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government and Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities

Published

29 July 2021

Last updated

3 December 2021 — See all updates

Applies to England

Documents

Educational Resources Grant Scheme: prospectus

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Educational Resources Grant Scheme: application form

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This file is in an OpenDocument format

Details

This prospectus for the Educational Resources Grant Scheme, part of the Hong Kong British National (Overseas) Welcome Programme contains general information on the grant scheme and the application process.

Hong Kong British National (Overseas) Welcome Programme

A new immigration route opened on 31 January 2021, providing British National (Overseas) (BN(O)) status holders and their eligible family members with the opportunity to come to the UK to live, study and work, on a pathway to citizenship.

This new route reflects the UK’s historic and moral commitment to those people of Hong Kong who chose to retain their ties to the UK by taking up BN(O) status at the point of Hong Kong’s handover to China in 1997.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) is leading delivery of a £43.1 million government funded national ‘Welcome Programme’ to support BN(O) status holders and their eligible family members to help them to successfully settle in their new communities.

Educational Resources Grant Scheme

The Educational Resources Grant Scheme is available to develop educational resources for schools and Further Education (FE) settings which:

1. Factually inform about the historic connection and commitment of the UK to Hong Kong and its people.
2. Celebrate the contribution of Hong Kong-British diaspora to the UK.
3. Support the integration of the BN(O) community – enabling schools to ensure new classmates are welcomed.

We would like the successful organisation to provide tools to support the delivery of the resources into schools and FE colleges that can easily be accessed and used by teachers and pupils across the phases of education (primary, secondary and FE college) such as guidance/videos for teachers on how to use the resources and other materials for use with pupils and students that will fit within assembly and lesson plans.

Q&A

General

When will the results be announced?

Thank you very much to every organisation that has applied for the Hong Kong BN(O) UK Welcome Programme VCSE grant schemes.

We received a high number of applications, as a result it has taken longer to conduct the assessments and due diligence process. We now expect to announce the results of the grant schemes early next year. Prior to this announcement, we hope to inform organisations if they have been successful or not and plan to work with each successful organisation to put in place a grant funding agreement (GFA) and will seek to ensure the delay does not impact on the overall objectives of the grant schemes.

Thank you for your continued support for the Hong Kong BN(O) UK Welcome Programme.

What is the application process for the schemes?

Each grant scheme has a separate application process and application form. Applicants should follow the process outlined in each individual schemes’ prospectus found on GOV.UK.

When is the deadline for the schemes?

The deadline for all of the grant schemes is 11:59pm on 1 September 2021.

What happens if I miss the deadline?

Unfortunately, we will not be able to extend the deadline. This is to ensure we are as fair as possible to those applicants who have met the deadline.

Can we send in supplementary information or documents with our applications?

No, unfortunately, we will not be able to take into account any supplementary information. This is to ensure we run a fair and transparent process for all organisations. We will score applications based on information provided in the application form.

Can newly formed organisations apply for the funding or do organisations have to be established for 2 years to apply for the grants?

All prospective bidders are strongly encouraged to read the published prospectuses to satisfy themselves they are eligible to apply.

Newly formed organisations can apply for funding

For the regional, national and educational resources grant schemes, the list of all eligible groups that can apply for the schemes includes community interest companies, charities and any other organisations that are not for profit.

The only group that must provide 2 years of financial accounts is a community group. This is due to community groups not having to register the formation of the group and will enable the government to carry out the financial and due diligence checks we are required to perform.

The BN(O) status holders and East and Southeast Asian (ESA) Third Party Hate Crime Reporting Service Fund does require an organisation to have been registered for 2 years, but is open to applications from for-profit organisations, providing they do not draw any form of a profit margin from the project.

How are you going to ensure that the grants are given to organisations that are safe spaces for BN(O) status holders?

MHCLG is fully aware of the potential sensitivities with regards to Hong Kong, and will undertake robust due diligence procedures before awarding funding to any organisation through the Hong Kong UK Welcome Programme. This includes assessing the appropriateness and suitability of potential grant recipients, and their ability to deliver the support required.

Do organisations have to comply with UK GDPR and/or data protection legislation?

All organisations must comply with all data protection requirements. Organisations will be asked to confirm their compliance as part of the application process. Compliance with UK GDPR and/or data protection legislation are also a core part of all grant funding agreements offered by MHCLG.

When will organisations be notified if they are successful?

We are aiming to award the educational resources grant first - at the end of September – to support schools and colleges to get access to some resources by October half term.

We are aiming to award grants from the other schemes from mid-October onwards.

How many organisations will be successful through the grant schemes?

For the regional fund, this will be subject to the levels of interest and the outcome of the assessment process, but we anticipate there will be in the region of 50 - 100 grants across the 9 English regions (based on an average bid size of £20,000).

We anticipate that two to three grants will be awarded for the national scheme.

We are expecting to award one grant for the development of the educational resources and one grant for the development of the hate crime reporting service.

How are you intending to monitor and evaluate reach of the schemes?

Successful organisations will be expected to return a bi-monthly data using a template provided by MHCLG.

The type of information they will be expected to submit includes:

• Number of people accessing support and their demographics
• The type of support being requested by individuals

Organisations will also be asked to complete a project evaluation at the end of the project. They will also be asked to produce a statement of grant usage in the year following the grant award.

Will funding be available beyond March 2022?

The funding for all of the grant schemes is available to 31 March 2022. Any future funding for the programme will be subject to the government’s Spending Review process.

How flexible is the grant funding support?

The funding is targeted at supporting BN(O) status holders. We expect bids to focus on how they will support these people, and how they will ensure that they know how many BN(O)s they have supported.

Can we apply for funding to cover the core running costs of our organisation?

The funding available as part of the BN(O) welcome programme grants schemes is only to be used to fund project activities.

Organisations are expected to have additional resources available to cover their core running costs. If an organisation does not have any additional sources of funding it is not eligible for these grant schemes as outlined in the eligibility sections of each prospectus.

The grant can be used to cover additional operating costs that are directly related to the project activities, this includes staff costs, room rentals etc. This grant is not for capital purchases.

Will organisations need to factor outreach activity into projects or can projects rely solely on referrals?

As this is a new programme, routes for BN(O) status holders to access support are likely to include both referrals and requests generated through outreach and organisations are expected to outline their approach in the application.

Organisations will be expected to actively engage with the community and raise awareness of their projects, including through working with SMPs in their regions.

Can this funding be used to support individuals with ESOL needs (English for Speakers of Other Languages)?

We recognise that some people arriving may need additional help with English language, an important factor in successfully integrating into new communities. We have allocated dedicated funding to local authorities in England including to provide this support to adult learners.

Organisations seeking to provide local support should contact their local authority, details of which can be found on: Find your local council.

Does this scheme also aim to support Hong Kong asylum seekers who may or may not have BN(O) status?

It is important to note the BN(O) route and asylum system are separate.

The UK has a proud record of providing protection to those who need it in accordance with our obligations under the Refugee Convention and the European Convention on Human Rights. All asylum claims made in the UK are decided on a case-by-case basis, with reference to their particular facts.

If a person is, or is at risk of destitution, and has sought asylum, they may be entitled to ‘asylum support’, administered by the Home Office and includes housing and basic living expenses. For ESOL support asylum seekers are eligible for Adult Education Budget funding after 6 months residence in the UK.

Further information on claiming asylum is available at: Claim asylum in the UK

What is the difference between the regional and national VCSE grant scheme?

The regional scheme is open to VCSE organisations in England only. The aim is to provide community support to BN(O)s in regions across England in areas such as ‘buddying’ and befriending schemes, help to access services, such as registering for GPs or opening bank accounts, and employment support. This is being delivered in partnership with the Strategic Migration Partnerships and applications should align with regional priorities.

The National Scheme is open to VCSE organisations or consortiums with UK wide reach. The aim is to provide national support to BN(O)s in areas such as employment, mental health and wellbeing, to complement what is being delivered locally. 

Can an organisation apply for the regional and national schemes?

Those organisations applying for the National VCSE Grant Scheme are eligible to apply for the Regional VCSE Grant Scheme but must present a distinct offer as part of this scheme. 

Whilst organisations can apply for both schemes, we want to encourage organisations with local knowledge to apply for the regional scheme, and will be assessing on this basis. It is more likely that a larger organisation with UK-wide reach will be better placed to apply for the national scheme.

How will you ensure that the regional and national support is complementary?

MHCLG is working closely with SMPs and other delivery partners to ensure that schemes align. MHCLG will also review the bids for the schemes to ensure alignment.

Educational resources

What will be the focus of the educational resources?

The resources should outline the UK government’s historic links with Hong Kong and be made available for schools and FE colleges UK-wide to access. 

When will the educational resources need to be delivered?

MHCLG is aiming to get a first set of resources ready for schools and FE Colleges to access by October half term, with further resources available later in the year.

What will the educational resources include?

The resources will include information that will:

• factually inform about the historic connection and commitment of the UK to Hong Kong and its people;
  celebrate the contribution of Hong Kong-British to the UK;
• support the integration of the BN(O) community – enabling schools to ensure new classmates are welcomed.

Published 29 July 2021
Last updated 3 December 2021 + show all updates