Voluntary Action Fund

FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions

Does my organisation need to have charitable status to apply?
An oganisation does not need to be a charity to apply to the Community Chest. However, groups that are not charities must have a consitution and activities that could be considered charitable and must not allow any assets or funds to be distributed amongst its members. Please note that you do need to have charitable status to apply to the VSGS Scheme.

What's the definition of 'volunteering'?
Volunteers are not simply members of a club, or service users or participants in a community event. Volunteers are people who help things happen for other people. They are not themselves the main beneficiaries.

If we have received a grant from VAF in the past can we can we apply again?
Community Chest - If you have had a Community Chest grant you cannot re-apply for another Community Chest grant until the grant period has expired which will be 12 months from receipt of the grant.
VSGS - If you have had a VSGS grant you can re-apply but your application would be a low priority.

Who can act as a referee on applications to VAF?
The referee should be someone who is independent of your organisation but who knows about your group and its activities, and is aware of the subject of your grant application.

What form of annual accounts are acceptable to VAF?
The annual accounts submitted with your application should meet all the requirements of your organisations' regulators. For example if your organisation is a charity the accounts must be acceptable to the Office of the Scottish charity Regulator (OSCR).
If your group has no regulator, for example it is not a charity or a company, the accounts should, as a minimum, show the
• Name of the group
• Period coved by the accounts
• Opening and closing bank and cash balances, and
• Income and expenditure for the year and any surplus or deficit

The VAF application form asks for our organisations annual income. What do you mean by annual income?
Your organisations' annual income is the total amount of money your organisation received from whatever source over the last financial year. This will be the total income reported in your latest annual accounts.
To be eligible for a Community Chest grant organisations must have an annual income under £25,000, excluding income for capital items such as equipment or building repairs.