Form

Criteria for categories of funding

Updated 21 May 2020

This form was withdrawn on 29 August 2024

Funding round completed.

Criteria for categories of funding

Overall, the Tampon Tax Fund aims to support projects that improve the lives of vulnerable and disadvantaged women and girls across the United Kingdom.

Applicants are invited to focus project activities on one of three broad categories:

• violence against Women and Girls
• young Women’s Mental Health and Well Being
• general Programme (for which we have identified a number of sub-themes)

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update

We welcome organisations applying to this round of funding to include activities that seek to address the consequences of COVID-19 for disadvantaged women and girls. Please refer to the following guidance and choose what you feel to be the most relevant of the existing categories (below).

To note, in light of COVID-19 we have extended the Tampon Tax Fund application period from the six weeks given in previous rounds to ten weeks (with a deadline of Sunday May 31st 2020).

All applications, regardless of the category applied for, will be assessed against the following criteria:

• Need: Applications must provide evidence of a clear need for the project activities, and demonstration of how the specific project activities are a suitable mechanism for overcoming the issues identified
• Ability to Deliver: Applications must demonstrate the organisation’s capability and capacity to deliver the project, including through evidence of sufficient specialist expertise as well as through outlining a clear project plan
• Evaluation: Applications must provide plans for robust evaluation of the project, including the level and number of outputs and outcomes to be measured
• Partnership: We are particularly interested in proposals that involve partnership working. Please note: where applications are made by a consortia evidence of partnership arrangements must be provided
• Sustainability: Bids must outline the long-term sustainability of project activities, demonstrating that the impact of the project will last beyond Tampon Tax Funding

This year, we are inviting applicants to explain how they would use up to 10% of their grant funding to improve the sustainability of their organisations (at least 90% of grant funding must be used to deliver frontline services).

Applicants for projects which include making onward grants to small and medium sized charities are also encouraged to include a ‘sustainability’ element in the criteria for these onward grants. Onward grantees who are applying for up to £100,000 should be able to bid for up to 25% of their funding on sustainability and those applying for more than £100,000 should be able to bid for 10% of their funding on sustainability.

This funding could be used, for example, to:

• upskill existing staff, improve functions such as IT, Marketing or fundraising, or to employ a business development expert to develop an improved operating and strategic model
• access support to build strategic thinking within their organisation
• improve impact assessment
• improve internal systems, processes and policies, most commonly in marketing, finance and IT; and
• access support to improve the financial position of their organisation, particularly to develop new funding streams and/or diversify income

Any activities included in the bid for funding must be additional to current business development activity your organisation is undertaking and may not be used for core funding. This part of the application form will also be assessed.

If you are an organisation applying for direct funding (and will therefore not be making any onward grant funding) then your application should explain clearly:

• what activities are required to improve sustainability and how much these activities will cost
• what evidence you have of the need for your organisation to undertake these activities (you may find it useful to use the National Lottery Community Fund VCSE diagnostic Strength Checker - details below)
• what evidence you have that undertaking these activities will improve the sustainability of your organisation; and
• what the planned outcome of these activities would be

If you are an organisation applying for funding that will be used to make onward grants then your application should explain clearly:

• how you will use the funding to support the sustainability of the organisations you will make onward grants to, including information about the process for them to access the funding and how you will assess need

Applicants may find it useful to use the National Lottery Community Fund VCSE Strength Checker which is a diagnostic tool to analyse organisational strengths and position, and to identify areas that could be developed to improve organisational strength. It is not linked to any National Lottery Community Fund funding programmes and it is completely free to use.

In addition to the standard criteria outlined above, applications should set out (at question 3.8 of the application form) how proposed activities fit the category specific criteria outlined below.

1) Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG)

Under this category we will consider applications from organisations that support women and girls affected by or at risk of violence or abuse. This includes domestic abuse, sexual violence, so-called ‘honour-based’ abuse, stalking and prostitution and sex work, and we encourage applications from consortia that cover multiple crime types. Projects should include early intervention and prevention of VAWG crimes, as well as victims’ services. Victims services should be focussed on women and girls as these are the beneficiaries of the Tampon Tax Fund. However, support may be provided for their children if this is required to enable women and girls to receive the services they need.

Applicants should note the following points:

Compulsory criteria - all proposals to this category will be assessed against the following criteria:

1. Proposals must provide additional activity not currently within mainstream provision. This can be through:

• providing new services not currently commissioned locally or nationally
• new approaches to existing services already provided
• improving our understanding and response to violence and abuse of women and girls, such as through research or capability-building projects
• responding to new challenges, such as those posed through new technology

1. Bids must demonstrate how they align with and support the delivery of the VAWG Strategy, in particular one of the following:

• Preventing Violence and Abuse, supporting professionals to identify the earliest signs of abuse, and prevent abusive behaviour from becoming entrenched, as well as through encouraging victims to come forward and seek help
• Provision of Services, through keeping victims safe and providing the right support at the right time, including through effective responses to perpetrators
• Partnership Working, to ensure that services are flexible and responsive to the victim’s experience, through close working between specialist support organisations and making the links to wider vulnerability, including child sexual abuse and exploitation, substance misuse, or gang exploitation

To note, within this category, we will particularly favour proposals that:

• address the needs of women with multiple disadvantages and complex needs where mainstream provision is not always appropriate
• consider the needs of, and encourage engagement with, a diverse range of victims, including hard to reach groups such as BME, LGBTQI, disabled women, or women with no recourse to public funds
• develop tools that have the potential to be rolled out nationally, where a gap has been identified
• provide specialist services that are not commissioned locally due to low density of users, but where the service would benefit women across a wider cross-Local Authority area

2) Young Women’s Mental Health and Wellbeing

Under this category we will consider applications from organisations that promote mental wellbeing and prevention of mental illness for vulnerable and disadvantaged young women and girls aged between 9 and 25. This includes applications that promote mental wellbeing, public health prevention, early intervention, digital innovations, community-based provision and working across sectors.

Compulsory criteria - all proposals to this category will be assessed against the following criteria:

1. Proposals must provide additional activity not currently within mainstream provision. This can be through:

• providing new services not currently commissioned locally or nationally
• new approaches to existing services already provided
• improving our understanding and response to mental health issues such as through action research to build the evidence base and capability-building projects; and
• responding to new challenges, such as those posed through technology, digital innovation or the internet

To note, within this category, we will particularly favour proposals that:

• promote mental health awareness, mental wellbeing and positive body image amongst young women and girls and challenge stigma
• reduce mortality for those with mental health problems including suicide and self-harm prevention, eating disorders, comorbid mental illness and substance and/or alcohol misuse
• promote new models of provision and/or the integration of services across hospital, community, primary and social care
• include new innovations in digital provision; offer community-based provision and provide interventions in alternative settings outside hospital, including crisis care
• offer new approaches to improve the mental health of key populations such as young BAME women and girls, young LGBTQ+ individuals and young individuals who have experienced violence or abuse; and
• harness the internet and social media to improve mental wellbeing

Bids must demonstrate how they align with Government priorities on mental health, including the Five Year Forward View for Mental Health, Future in Mind, NHS Long Term Plan, Mental Health Implementation Plan, Prevention in the 2020s Green Paper and the Children and Young People’s Mental Health Green Paper.

3) General Programme

Under this category we will consider applications for projects that will improve the lives of vulnerable, disadvantaged or underrepresented women and girls. As an indication, projects may be focused in one or more of the following areas:

• alcohol and drug abuse
• BAME services
• education and employment
• engaging excluded and vulnerable women through sport
• female offenders
• gender equality
• LGBTQI specific services
• multiple complex needs
• older women
• period poverty
• women with disabilities
• women with learning disabilities
• loneliness

Please note: this is not an exhaustive list and proposals that evidence a clear need for, and offer activities to address other issues affecting vulnerable, underprivileged or underrepresented women and girls in the United Kingdom will be considered.

Given the nature of the general programme it is not possible to further define the criteria. The emphasis is on applicants to:

• evidence a clear need for project activities
• explain how project activities are a suitable mechanism for overcoming the issues identified;
• offer a good level and number of outputs and outcomes
• outline the long-term sustainability of project activities, demonstrating that the impact of the project will last beyond Tampon Tax Funding