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Health and Wellbeing fund: Starting Well webinar questions

Updated 30 September 2020

If you missed the webinars, this page contains answers to all queries that came from webinar content.

COVID-19

Second spike and the effects on the application deadline

The application deadline is midday on Friday 30 October. This is a hard deadline and we will not be accepting any extensions, even due to circumstances beyond the applicants’ control.

We reserve the right to alter timelines and pause the fund in the event that the government’s COVID-19 guidance changes, including if there is an impact on processes due to a second spike. This will be updated on the application page as appropriate.

Grant specifics

Maximum and minimum grant amounts

The maximum grant amount per applicant is £510,000 and the minimum grant amount is £200,000 over 3 financial years. A consortium project counts as a single applicant and the maximum and minimum grant amounts are the same. We will not be offering grant funding in excess of £510,000 or below £200,000 over 3 financial years for any project.

Overview of the 25% threshold

Voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations should not receive over 25% of their income from central government departments. The grants team at the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) will undergo due diligence checks on lead organisations bidding for funding, to ensure that the grant you are applying for, alongside any other grants you receive from central government, does not exceed over 25% of your annual turnover. The grants team will do this by looking through the last published annual accounts, and will compare them to the largest amount of yearly grant funding requested, to check that they do not exceed 25% of your income. For example, if you are applying for £300,000 of grant funding over 3 years and have budgeted that at £120,000 in year 1, £100,000 in year 2 and £80,000 in year 3, they will compare your annual income against the largest figure – in this case £120,000. This figure should not exceed 25% of your organisation’s total annual income as published in the most recent accounts. In this example, the minimum level of annual income we would require is £480,000.

Definition of grant funding

When we say ‘grant funding’, we are only referring to funding received from UK government departments, including both grants and contracts. All other funding, whether from statutory partners or the National Lottery, will not be included in these checks.

Minimum total annual income: 25% threshold

The minimum total grant over three years is £200,000. If this were budgeted equally, across the 3 individual years, it would come to £66,667 per year. This means that the minimum total annual income that will be eligible for funding through this grant will be £266,667.

Overview of 25% threshold for consortia

In a collaborative bid, the due diligence and eligibility checks will only be taken on for the lead organisation. The lead organisation will need to meet the 25% threshold on their own and the threshold cannot be spread across all the organisations and their cumulative income. For other partner organisations in the consortium, the lead is expected to undertake their own due diligence checks but there is no requirement for them to meet the 25% threshold individually.

Eligibility of organisations that are not charities

We welcome applications from outside the charitable sector as long as they are from organisations that are voluntary, not for profit and incorporated (this would be a company limited by guarantee and registered with Companies House OR a community interest company OR a co-operative or industrial and provident society OR a social enterprise). Organisations will be evaluated on a case by case basis by the grants team at DHSC to ensure they meet the criteria of Section 70 of the 2006 Charities Act, which is that they are totally not for profit.To determine this the DHSC grants team will need to see organisation’s Articles of Association and assess whether they have an asset lock in place.

Overview of departmental business planning

Business planning is a yearly process undertaken by the finance team at DHSC to set and confirm overall departmental budgets. Once annual business planning is completed, grant funding for the respective financial year can be confirmed, and applicable quarterly payments can be released.

Notice given if funding is unavailable in the second or third years

In the event that funding is not able to be secured for future years of the grant, DHSC will provide 3 months’ notice of the intention to bring the grant to an end. Reasonable costs incurred by the grant recipient in delivering the project up to the termination date will be honoured.

Overview of project budgeting

We are not prescriptive about how you budget your projects over the 3 years. We expect funding to be front loaded to pay for initial set-up costs, although we do not require that this be the case. It should be noted here that year 1 of your project will be the financial year 2020 to 2021 and, as we are already part-way through this financial year, you will have a shortened amount of time within which to spend your full grant funding in year 1. As we require all grant funding to be spent within the financial year it is given, it is important that you take this into account when budgeting your project over the 3 years.

When we reference financial years, this is the period from 1 April to 31 March.

Evidence that applicants have suitable funding for their organisation for 3 years

As part DHSC’s due diligence checks, we will review the financial health of the organisation based on previous published annual accounts. In the event that the present financial position raises doubt over the capacity to fulfil a 3-year grant, additional assurance may be sought.

Aims of the fund

Definition of high deprivation

We are not measuring high deprivation in any specific way, and welcome you to evidence this in the way you deem appropriate in your application form. A helpful reference source has been published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government called the English Indices of Deprivation 2019, which should be considered when addressing areas of deprivation. You can read the full report or the summary report.

Evidencing need of expansion to a project

We require that you provide us with a signed letter or agreement from a statutory provider as part of your application. This should also include confirmation that there is support for the proposed expansion or development of your scheme, and it does not duplicate any existing service in that area.

Introducing new elements to existing projects as part of the expansion

We are looking for projects that deliver improved health outcomes for children from preconception to 2 and a half years old in one of more of the following communities:

• children in areas of high deprivation (including urban, rural and coastal areas)
• black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) groups

The proposed expansion or development of an existing scheme should clearly demonstrate the need for expanding an existing scheme through highlighting a gap in the evidence base. This should enable an existing scheme to achieve additional outcomes or to reach a different audience, for example age range, type of support and/or demographic.

Achieving all of the listed health outcomes

We do not require you to achieve all of the health outcomes we have listed in our information pack.

Sustainability of projects beyond year 3

There is no requirement that projects continue beyond year three of grant funding. As applications are coming from existing schemes that are expanding or developing to cover a gap in the evidence base, there is an expectation that they will be continued at a local level subject to demand.

Covering the complete age range: pregnancy and birth and from birth to 2 and a half years

We are interested in all interventions that fall into the outlined age range. Interventions only need to cover a point in time within the age range, and not the entirety.

Key criteria

Demonstrating funding for the previous 3 years working with the target group

We want to ensure that all projects who are successful in getting a Health and Wellbeing (HW) fund grant have demonstrated at least 3 years of experience of working with the target age cohort, although it is not a requirement that they have been funded to do this work. While we are not prescriptive about the evidence required to demonstrate this experience, it would support your application if your reference could refer to previous experience that you have had in this area.

One way you can demonstrate this experience is through your signed letter or agreement from a statutory provider. This should also include confirmation that:

• the current scheme and proposed expansion or development is connected to other local provision and service planning
• the proposed project or programme is not currently being delivered anywhere in the locality
• there is support for the proposed project or programme

A national organisation applying in a single application for multiple areas

If you have an existing programme that is currently being delivered in more than one locality (and not expanding from one locality into another), you can apply in more than one locality in a single application, as long as it is evidenced by all statutory partners that are providing support. If you have separate projects in different localities you will need to apply separately for both, and may only get funding for one or none. In the event of being successful with more than one application, you will be assessed on the 25% threshold rule for the totality of grant funding received.

Applications from multiple organisations from the same city/area

There is no restriction on organisations applying in the same locality. As we are looking to cover the geographical breadth of the country with these projects, it is less likely that 2 projects from the same locality would be successful.

Working in new local communities if we are achieving additional outcomes

While we are not supporting a geographical extension of existing projects specifically, if the geographical extension is to reach areas that are deprived or have a higher proportion of BAME communities, this will be acceptable. In these circumstances, this should be an expansion or development of an existing scheme, and would mean that the geographical expansion should be sufficiently local.

Maternity context

Definition of perinatal health

Perinatal health problems are those which occur during pregnancy or in the first year following the birth of a child.

Maternity clinical networks

The key responsibility of the maternity clinical networks is to play their part in supporting local maternity systems to deliver the maternity transformation programme, alongside their role in building a culture of learning and continuous improvement. They have been made aware of the Starting Well fund, and share some of the key priorities.

Evaluation

Measuring the outcomes of parents and infants

Successful applicants will have developed key performance indicators (KPIs) at the beginning of their project or programme, appropriately measuring their success in achieving improved outcomes. Some of the health outcomes we aim to achieve are in support of the child, and some are in support of the parent, depending on which health outcomes your project is focusing on. You will need to provide us with quarterly monitoring detailing achievement of KPI’s that you will set out.

This is separate from the overall evaluation of the programme, for which applicants will be required to commission an external evaluator for their individual projects or programmes. This evaluation strand will measure outcomes to share learning. The details of what outcomes you will evaluate and share learning on will be based on the particular health outcomes your project or programme is aiming to achieve.

Documentation

Detail required for the organisation’s business plan

The organisation’s business plan needs to be as detailed as possible, and should include financial forecasts for the financial years from 2021 to 2024. While we are not prescriptive on the level of detail needed, your application will be evaluated on the basis of being properly costed and planned.

In addition to a business plan, you will need to submit a programme budget, including a breakdown of costs, which also needs to be as detailed as is possible.

Planning the budget: start date for the project and likely first payment date

The first year will be this financial year (April 2020 to March 2021). As the project can only begin work in December 2020 at the earliest, you should budget your first year on the understanding that you only have from December 2020 to March 2021 to spend your funding for year 1. Any unspent grant funding in year 1 will need to be recovered by the department, either directly or by being deducted from the amount due in the following financial year. You should budget your 3-year project on the basis that you have enough time to spend all grant funding received.

Information required in the supporting letter from the local statutory commissioner

We expect that you will provide us with a signed letter or agreement from a statutory provider that demonstrates at least 3 years of experience of working with the target age cohort. This should also include confirmation that:

• the current scheme and proposed expansion or development is connected to other local provision and service planning
• the proposed project or programme is not currently being delivered anywhere in the locality
• there is support for the proposed project or programme

Consortia

We welcome partnership-working between local community organisations and will be accepting consortia applications for this grant.

NHS services as partners

NHS services can be partners in a consortium but they cannot be the lead partner. The lead partner will need to be a VCSE organisation that fits the criteria outlined in the information pack.

Lead partners: delivery of a project

The specific legal power used to run this grants scheme (section 70 of the Charities Act 2006) requires the grant to be delivered by an eligible body. Although this body may then procure the skills and services required to complement their own, it is necessary that they be accountable for the delivery of the project, and undertake the majority of work themselves to fulfil the obligations of the legal power.

A national partner leading a group application

A national partner can lead a group application, but the application must demonstrate local working. At least one partner should have a 3-year track record of delivering work with the target age cohort, and the lead partner should complete a significant proportion of the programme activity.

Partners in a joint bid and the 3-year track record of delivering work with preconception to 2 and a half years

Only one of the partners is required to demonstrate this track record. If this is not the lead organisation this will need to be included in the application form and highlighted.

Non VCSE partners

Non VCSE partners can be partner members of a consortium but not the lead. Only the lead member will be assessed against Section 70 of the 2006 Charities Act eligibility criteria, and they will have to be a VCSE organisation.

General

Statutory partners offering support to more than one proposal in their area

Statutory partners can offer support to as many proposals as they deem fit. As the fund aims to cover the geographical breadth of the country, it is unlikely that 2 proposals from the same locality will be accepted.

Smaller organisations that work with BAME communities and in areas of deprivation but do not meet the financial criteria

Smaller organisations who cannot individually meet the criteria can still apply in a consortium led by a VCSE organisation that does meet the rules of the 25% threshold.

We welcome joint applications between VCSE organisations, and encourage you to join up with local partners to expand existing services. Our hope is that smaller organisations doing vitally important work with BAME and deprived communities will apply for this grant funding, and work with local partners and organisations to help build the evidence base.

Leading on more than one application and leading one application and being part of a consortium in another one

An organisation can apply in more than one application, and be the lead in one application and a member in another.