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Kincardine and Mearns area funding

Find out about grants and funding available in the Kincardine and Mearns area:

Kincardine and Mearns Area Committee funding

The Kincardine and Mearns Area Committee has budget available for projects within the area that respond to local needs. The budget can be used to 'top up' other funding sources in cases where otherwise there would be inadequate funding to allow something to happen. You will need to prove that a funding package is being assembled and can't be met from normal budgets.

The fund will close on 28th February 2025. 

The maximum payment for any one project or initiative is £6,000.

Where the funding level is over of £5,000 you may be asked to address the area committee (guidance will be given).

Grants should be claimed within 6 months of award and before the end of the financial year (31st March 2025).

Criteria

Projects will be favourably considered if they have clear evidence of fit to the council's strategic priorities, including community economic development, and emerged from, or take cognisance of:

  • Community Action Plans
  • Settlement Plans
  • Town Centre First approach
  • The Local Community Plan: Strong Communities, Wellbeing and Connecting People
  • Local Place Plans
  • Community Empowerment Act, in support of the assembly of for example business plans or feasibility studies

The budget should be used as part of the wider funding package with a maximum contribution normally being 50%. 

The applicants must demonstrate that the money will be spent before the end of the financial year (31st March 2025). This would not preclude an agreement in principle, earlier in the process, if that is of assistance to the applicant in attracting other funding.

Voluntary or in-kind contributions will be considered as part of the contribution of a project, for example contribution of a piece of equipment or volunteer time. Below are standard rates to calculate volunteer time.

Type of voluntary or in-kind contribution Rate per hour Rate per day
General, unskilled labour, for example: supervised scrub clearance, ditch-digging, planting, basic administrative support  
 £12.00
(The real Living Wage in Scotland as of 1st April 2024)		 £96.00
Specialist, skilled, trained labour, for example, operations for which certificated training is a requirement, such as operating dangerous equipment, driving off-road vehicles, using chemicals 
 £18.75 £150.00
Specialist services
For example, supervising, training labour teams, surveys, counts, trapping, ringing, diving, printing, designing, photography		 £31.25 £250.00
Professional services
For example, consultants, lawyers, planners, engineers, accountants, auditors		 £50.00 £350.00

A reporting and monitoring system is to be put in place and made available to the area committee.

The budget can't be used to fund a service or a grant which has been stopped or reduced due to council's budget savings. It can however, be used to facilitate the transfer of such service delivery or facility to the community or other third sector partner.

Recurring annual costs of a group or event will not be supported. The following costs will be considered on a case by case basis:

  • Developmental costs of a new group that is being established with aims consistent with council objectives
  • Setting up costs of a new event
  • Costs of a one off event which is consistent with council objectives
  • Event costs due to circumstances which could reasonably be considered as unforeseen and an application would have to provide evidence of longer term financial sustainability and that all other avenues have been exhausted (excludes cancellation, weather, poor planning and retrospective applications)

How to apply

View the Kincardine and Mearns area funding privacy notice (PDF 140KB) to find out what we do with your data. 

To apply for the funding, complete the application form (available in two formats):

Local Place Plan and Community Action Plan grants

Grants of up to £500 are available, from the Kincardine and Mearns Area Committee budget, to support community groups in the Kincardine and Mearns area to develop Local Place Plans (LPP) or Community Action Plans (CAP).

View the Kincardine and Mearns area funding privacy notice (PDF 140KB) to find out what we do with your data. 

Apply for a LPP or CAT grant

Kincardineshire Educational Trust

The Kincardineshire Educational Trust was set up for residents, schools and organisations in the former County of Kincardine, under the Kincardineshire Educational Trust Scheme 1962.

The Trust awards grants to individuals, schools and organisations to help with the cost of school trips, further education and funding for sports clubs and facilities.

The Trust has limited resources and in the interest of fairness, all applications received are means tested.

Please note the fund opens for application on 1st May. The closing date for applications is 30th November.

Who can apply for the grant

To be eligible, you must be a resident in a property which is within the former Kincardine County Council area. You can check the former Kincardineshire boundaries on the National Library of Scotland website.

Further education students and clubs who need financial assistance can apply for an educational grant.

Parents and guardians can apply if they receive any of the following benefits:

  • Free School Meals or School Clothing Grant
  • Housing Benefit or Council Tax Reduction
  • Income Support
  • Income-based Job Seeker’s Allowance
  • Any income related element of Employment and Support Allowance
  • Child Tax Credit or Working Tax Credit
  • Universal Credit
  • Pension Credit Guaranteed Credit
  • Support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999

Parents and guardians can also apply if they are on a low income with capital under £10,000.

How to apply

Please see below for the appropriate application form. Please send completed forms by email to kincardineandmearns@aberdeenshire.gov.uk. Alternatively, please post them to the Kincardine and Mearns Area Office.

School travel

To apply for a grant to help fund the cost of a pupil going on a school trip please complete the application form, available in two formats:

Further adult education

Further education grants can cover:

  • entrance fees
  • examination fees
  • cost of books, equipment, special clothing and other items specifically required for course
  • accommodation costs for living away from home during term time only
  • travel to college or university

Please note this grant is not available for living expenses at home.

To apply for funding, please complete the application form available in two formats:

Sports clubs and facilities

To apply for funding relating to a sports club, please complete the application form available in two formats:

What happens next

All applications submitted prior to the deadline of 30th November which meet the criteria will be considered by the board of Trustees in June of the following year. Once the members of the board have made their decision, applicants will be advised as soon as possible of the outcome of their application.

For pupil travel grants, we will advise both the applicant and the school of the award. Further educational and sports grant applicants will be notified of the outcome of their application.

Please note the Trust has limited funds available and may not be able to approve all applications or may approve a percentage.

Payments

Grants for school trips will be paid directly to the school that the pupil attends, after the trip has taken place.

Further education grants will be paid directly to the applicant once we have received confirmation that they have started their course.

Sports facilities and equipment grants will be paid directly to the sport facilities bank account.

Contact

For more information on Kincardineshire Educational Grants or help on completing the forms please contact us at kincardineandmearns@aberdeenshire.gov.uk, or write to the Kincardine and Mearns Area Office.

Aberdeenshire Charities Trust funding

Aberdeenshire Charities Trust (ACT2) administers charitable funds in Aberdeenshire and is a registered charity (SC045539). There are designated funds available to the council wards in the Kincardine and Mearns area that can be used for purposes set out by the trust.

View information about charitable trust funds in Kincardine and Mearns:

Eligibility

Individuals that live in any of the areas specified in the trust or who can demonstrate that they have a reasonable connection to these areas can apply for funding. The maximum grant available to individuals is £500. 

In addition, companies, associations and other organisations who provide services, projects or facilities in the areas may apply for grants of up to £1,000. 

Applications can only be considered if they meet the purposes detailed in the trust.

Available funds

View funds available as at 31st December 2022.

Our Kincardine and Mearns Area Committee accepts applications for the local council wards:

There are no Aberdeenshire Charities Trust funds available for Ward 17 - North Kincardine (Newtonhill and Portlethen).

Ward 18 - Stonehaven and Lower Deeside (Drumoak and Stonehaven)

Fund purposes Total Fund Revenue Capital
The prevention or relief of poverty £0.15 £0.15 £0.00
The relief of those in need by reason of age, ill-health, disability, financial hardship or other disadvantage

Ward 19 - Mearns (Fettercairn Gourdon, Inverbervie, Johnshaven, Laurencekirk and St Cyrus)

Fund purposes Total Fund              Revenue     Capital
The prevention or relief of poverty £86,901.67 £84,334.48 £2,567.19
The relief of those in need by reason of age, ill-health, disability, financial hardship or other disadvantage

How to apply

You can apply for funding by completing the appropriate application form, available in two formats:

Send completed applications to the Kincardine and Mearns Area Office.

What happens next

The Kincardine and Mearns Area Committee will review your Aberdeenshire Charities Trust funding application. Find out about how we deal with your application.

Common Good Fund applications

Common Good Funds are generally made up of property (including land, buildings, investments and movable items) that belonged to the previous burghs of Scotland.

The responsibility for administering these funds now rests with the local authorities throughout Scotland. The council is responsible for administering 17 Common Good Funds. The following funds (estimated annual income from the fund) are available in the Kincardine and Mearns area: 

  • Inverbervie - £290 (Ward 19 - Mearns)
  • Laurencekirk - £190 (Ward 19 - Mearns)
  • Stonehaven - £530 (Ward 18 – Stonehaven and Lower Deeside)

These figures are based on the annual income for 2016/2017. Amounts available in each fund may vary from year to year.

These Common Good Funds, although, held by the council are legally distinct from the council’s other fund. Any money held within these funds, including the income from any assets which make up these funds, are to be used solely for the overall benefit of the people who reside in the area covered by the applicable fund.

Applications are processed in terms of the council’s Common Good Policy (PDF 60KB).

How to apply

You can apply by completing the appropriate application form. Please make sure you read the guidance in the application pack before completing the form. The pack also includes a model application for information:

Send completed application forms to the Kincardine and Mearns Area Office.

What happens next

Your application will be checked and processed and you will be advised if your application is successful or not.

Contact

If you have any questions please contact the Kincardine and Mearns Area Office.