Cultural Celebrations Fund 2024 to 2025

Application Guide

Thank you for your interest in the Cultural Celebrations Fund (CCF) 2024-25. The aim of the fund is to support the delivery of a range of free to attend, public, outdoor events across the borough.

• Key information for funding
  • The fund opens for applications on Monday 11 December 2023
  • The deadline for submitting applications is 9am on Wednesday 24 January 2024
  • Applicants must be able to evidence a connection to Southwark
  • There is up to £95,000 funding available
  • Applicants can apply for up to £10,000*
  • We can only accept one application per event
  • Shortlisted applicants will be invited to interview on Monday 12 February 2024, between 9am and 5pm. The interviews will take place online via Microsoft Teams. Invitations to interviews will be sent out on Thursday 8 February, so applicants are advised to block out time in their diaries when submitting their applications, due to the short notice period.
  • The amount of funding awarded to an applicant may differ from the amount of funding requested by the applicant.
• Key information for event delivery
  • Events must take place between 1 May 2024 and 31 March 2025*
  • Events must be inclusive and open to all
  • Events must take place outdoors in a public park or a publicly accessible space that is managed by Southwark Council. A list of available locations can be found on the Parks web pages and our  Hiring a park or public open space page.
  • The planning and delivery of an event must comply with the Council’s Outdoor Events Policy
  • Successful grant recipients must submit event applications via the Council’s online booking system Eventapp in line with required submission lead in times
  • Applicants will need to pay an application fee at the point of submitting their event application. Find information about the application fee on our fees and policy page
  • Events must be non-profit and free to attend
  • Events must promote and support community cohesion and engagement
  • Events must support the council’s Climate Emergency efforts and specifically adhere to the Events Environmental Sustainability Guide
  • Successful applicants must obtain all necessary licenses and consents required for their event to take place. This could include:
    • Premises Licence or a Temporary Events Notice (TEN)
    • Performing Rights Society (PRS) music licence
    • Temporary structures licence (section 30)
    • Temporary Traffic Order for road closure - section 16(a)

  *Subject to the event organiser having obtained all necessary licenses and permissions to hold the event by the time the event is due to take place.

• What you will need to provide in order to complete your application
  • Your contact information, details about you/your organisation
  • Proof of identity or status
  • A detailed description about the event you wish to deliver
  • Details of where funding would need to be paid – bank account details and a redacted copy of a bank statement confirming account details
  • An event budget – you must show itemised income and expenditure budgets for the event. The expenditure budget should include all costs and specifically what the Cultural Celebrations funding would be spent on and the income budget should include all streams of anticipated income
  • Evidence of how your event supports the Council Delivery Plan
  • Evidence of how your event supports the Council’s commitments to the Climate Emergency
  • Evidence of how your event supports the Council’s Southwark Stands Together programme
  • Evidence to support your application. This could be some examples of previous work that you or those involved in your event have done, or information connected to the event if the event has run before
• Eligibility
  • Before you start your application, please check that you or your organisation meet the eligibility criteria for the fund: 
    • Can you evidence a connection to Southwark?
    • Will your event take place between 1 May 2024 and 31 March 2025?
    • Will your event take place outdoors in a park or a publicly accessible space, which is managed by Southwark Council?
    • Is your event non-profit making and free to attend?
    • Can you provide details of your identity or status with a current bank statement to support this?
• What we are looking to fund
  • Events, which:
    • Promote diversity and community cohesion
    • Support the Council’s Southwark Stands Together programme
    • Support the Council’s commitments to the Climate Emergency
    • Support the themes of the Council Delivery Plan
    • Provide participatory activities for those attending
    • Provide trading or professional opportunities for Southwark-based businesses and artists/performers/creatives
    • Provide opportunities for local volunteers
    • Are inclusive and accessible
  • Events, which take place in a council managed park or publicly accessible space in Southwark. We will look to allocate funding as equally as possible with regards to events taking place at different locations across the borough
  • Events, which are non-profit making and free to attend
  • Events, which pay London Living Wage and appropriate industry rates to those involved in delivering event activity in a paid capacity
  • Events, which take place between 1 May 2024 and 31 March 2025
• How to apply
  • All funding applications must be completed and submitted via the Council’s online Grant Manager platform.  The platform will allow you to navigate between sections, save your application as you go along and return to it later if you need to.  If you have previously applied for funding using Grant Manager, you can access previously saved information
  • You can download and preview a copy of the application form in advance of starting your application so that you can prepare your responses in advance (print to PDF option)
  • The application form is structured in the following format:

  Section A	Section B	Section C
  Getting Started Eligibility Your details Contact Bank Details	Project Outcomes Budget	Supporting information Equalities monitoring Declaration Submit

  • You can add supporting information in a variety of formats in Section C.  For example, you could share a film or photos of the event if it has happened before or it could be a bit more about yourself and the event you want to deliver
  • There is also an Equalities Monitoring form at the end of the application. This is optional and anonymous and is not taken into consideration as part of the application process.  But, the information you provide helps us to understand who is applying for and accessing funding, so we would encourage you to complete this section
  • Your application must be submitted by 9am on Wednesday 24 January 2024
  • Once you have submitted your application, you will receive an automatic notification confirming that your application has been received.  If we have queries about your application and the information you have provided, we may ask to speak to you before your application is formally assessed
  • Applicants who are shortlisted for funding will be invited to interview on Monday 12 February 2024 between 9am-5pm.The interviews will be conducted online via Microsoft Teams. Please make sure you, or a representative, are available to attend a meeting if you are called
• Budget
  • You will be asked to provide details of event income and expenditure as part of your application. This should balance with the amount of funding you are applying for. There is no requirement for match funding, but if you are applying for other funding streams to finance the event, please let us know
  • Please note it is a condition of funding to pay London Living Wage or industry standard rates as a minimum to anyone involved with the event in a paid working capacity
  • Funding will be paid by BACS to your nominated bank account.  Funding instalments will be paid in two parts:
    • 80% on acceptance of the funding offer and signing of agreement
    • 20% on completion of the event and submission of your event evaluation report. The report is due within one month of your event taking place
  • Please note that whilst Council funded events are not subject to venue hire fees, event organisers do still need to pay an event application fee when they submit their event applications, so please include this in your expenditure budget. Find more information on our fees and policy page
• Monitoring
  • You will be connected to an Event Operations Officer (EOO) from the Events team who will be your key point of contact within the council for any matters relating to your funding agreement and your event delivery
  • If your funding application is successful, you will need to submit an event application, which is subject to the council’s standard event application process. Please note that a successful funding application does not guarantee that your event can take place. You will need to comply with all dates and milestones regarding the submission of your event management plans. Your assigned EEO will advise and support you with this
• Evaluation
  • When your event has been delivered you will be asked to provide an event evaluation report. The report will need to include:
    • An overview of how the event went
    • A final budget
    • Who benefitted from the event
    • Who attended the event
    • How many attended the event
    • What outcomes you achieved
    • What lessons did you learn
    • Details of your carbon footprint 
• How your application will be assessed
  • Panel members will score applications against the following criteria. Scores will be awarded 0 – 5 with 0 being the lowest and 5 being the highest

  The criteria is:

  • How well does this event support the council delivery plan theme of ‘thriving neighbourhoods’?
  • How well does this event unite and connect communities?
  • How well does this event offer Southwark residents a chance to engage and participate in creative activity?
  • How well does this event support local businesses and contribute to the growth of the local economy?
  • How well does this event embody the Southwark Stands Together pledges? i.e. how well is a commitment to equality and diversity embedded in the event? How well does the event amplify diverse voices and / or address racial injustices?
  • How well does this event implement an environmentally sustainable approach that contributes to the Council's target of becoming carbon neutral by 2030? – does the event go above and beyond what the Events Environmental Sustainability Guide requires?
  • How well does this event provide employment and volunteering opportunities for Southwark residents?
  • How feasible is it that this event can be successfully delivered? (including within the proposed budget and time frame)
  • How relevant and successful is the event organiser's experience of delivering similar events?
  • How well does this event succeed in reaching as many people as possible? How accessible is this event?
  • Individuals on the panel will include a mix of people to ensure diversity of thought throughout the decision-making process
  • The panel will score applications individually before meeting as a group to agree a collective shortlist
  • Shortlisted applicants will be invited for interviews on Monday 12 February 2024 between 9am to 5pm
  • Funding recommendations will be made by the panel, based on the outcome of collective scores and with the intention of ensuring the delivery of events in different areas around the borough. The recommendations will be reviewed by the Cabinet Member via a formal decision making process
  • Please note that successful applicants will be notified of the provisional outcome of their funding applications on or around the 14 February 2024
• If your application is successful
  • Successful applicants will be required to abide by the Cultural Celebrations Terms and Conditions of funding 
  • We will need to set you up on the Council’s finance system so that you can receive your funding. Your funding will be paid in two instalments
  • We will introduce you to the Event officers who will be your main points of contact for your funding agreement and your event planning and delivery
• If your application is unsuccessful
  • If your application is not successful, we will offer you feedback on your application where possible
  • We will retain your contact details in order to notify you about future event funding opportunities unless you tell us not to. We will only use your details for this purpose and we will never share your details with anyone else

Page last updated: 05 August 2024