Levens Charity
Registered charity no. 1030561
Statement of objectives and policy
The Charity Commissioners appointed Levens Parish Council to be the Sole Trustee of the Levens Charity and to be responsible for administering and managing the Charity.
Proceeds of the sale of Lowgate Allotments in 1994 are invested in trust for the Charity. The Trustee is required to apply the clear investment income of the Levens Charity as it thinks fit for any charitable purpose for the general benefit of the inhabitants of the Parish of Levens.
The Sole Trustee shall determine the purpose for which the investment income is to be applied and, in addition, it will consider written applications for grants from organisations or groups of individuals in the Parish of Levens.
The Sole Trustee of the Levens Charity (Levens Parish Council) nominates three ‘Appointed Trustees’ annually. The Appointed Trustees receive and consider grant applications submitted to the Charity and make recommendations to the Sole Trustee.
Applications for grants shall be evaluated by the Trustee in accordance with the criteria and general conditions published by the Trustee below.
Grant applications
When considering grant applications, the Appointed Trustees shall apply the following criteria (which may be modified as and when deemed appropriate by and at the discretion of the Sole Trustee). Where circumstances or exceptional circumstances are to be taken into account, the Sole Trustee shall be the only judge of the relevance of those circumstances.
Grants are available to non-profit making organisations to support local community initiatives.
Grants will not be considered:
From national organisations unless direct local benefit can be shown.
From schools or religious bodies except in circumstances where wider community benefit is demonstrated or is absolutely clear. Acceptance of wider community benefit shall be at the discretion of the Sole Trustee.
From party political organisations.
For projects which have already been completed.
For recurring expenditure, e.g., hall hire.
Unless, in the view of the Sole Trustee, exceptional circumstances apply, applicants should have a bank account, a constitution and be run by a committee.
The Charity will not normally fund the total cost of the project and own fund raising must be evidenced.
Grants are only given for non-recurring expenditure, though this may be modified in the case of pump priming grants.
Applications for over £1000 must be supported by evidence of competitive tendering and supported by three quotes for the proposed scheme. A justification for why a particular quote has been chosen must be provided.
Applications are to be submitted by the 31 March each year for consideration by the Sole Trustee in May or by 30 September each year for consideration by the Sole Trustee in November.
Applicants are required to advise the Charity that the Project for which the grant has been awarded has been completed.
Applicants may be requested to provide evidence of the completion of the Project, including details of how the grant funds were applied.
The Charity reserves the right to award the grant in whole or in instalments at such time(s) as it determines.
Martin Curry MRICS, Secretary, The Levens Charity
October 2023
