Bristol SU has a limited pot of money to support student activities. Due to the large number of student groups we support, our grants have strict criteria. Please be aware that you may not receive all the funding you apply for.

Grant funding should never be relied upon to support your group's regular activities. You should always plan to be financially sustainable through other sources of funding such as membership, ticketed events, sponsorship and fundraising.

Most grants awarded are in the £100 - £500 range and we will award groups a maximum of £3,000 per year. Any group applying for over £1,000 must meet with the Development Team before applying.

The number of applications a group can make is not limited. If you are applying for two or more distinct projects, please submit multiple applications.

The decision-making committee consists of elected students (including a member of the Sports Network, a member of the Societies Network and a Full Time Officer) and is supported by Bristol SU staff.

Criteria

Groups must:

• Be an affiliated Sports Club or Society (Networks and Volunteer Projects are not eligible for Bristol SU Group Grants)
• Have at least 30 members (registered through the SU website)
• Have a good financial standing with Bristol SU
• Meet with the Development Team if applying for over £1,000 (book a meeting here)

Applications must:

• Be submitted by a committee member
• Fit with the constitutional aims of your group
• Fit with Bristol SU's values

Applications must not be for:

• Activities that would be more appropriately funded elsewhere
• Activities that have been funded by Bristol SU in the last 3 years
• Activities that would be paid for more than 3 months after the grant is awarded (see below about spending grants)
• Personalised items
• Food and drink
• Social events (including intramural fees)
• Unsustainable marketing materials such as posters, flyers and stickers (we will fund banners, flags etc.)
• Travel to events (however, if this is part of a larger event bid, we will consider it)
• Fundraising for other charities (as Bristol SU is a charity, it cannot use its funds to support events or fundraising for other charities)
• Supporting political parties directly including transport or marketing materials for party promotional activities (as Bristol SU is a charity, it cannot use its funds to support political parties)

Strong applications will be for activities that:

• Represent value for money
• Are well researched and evidenced
• Are accessible to a broad range of people (or have a well evidenced case for targeting a particular group)
• Will have a significant impact on students
• Are scalable and/or will have an ongoing benefit to students
• Fit within a wider strategic plan for the group
• Have other fundraising/support from other sources or is being match-funded by the group
• Cannot be financed by the group themselves, unless there is a good reason why they are not doing so
• Cannot be financed by the group charging a realistic membership fee (e.g. could the group self-fund this activity in the future if they increased their fees, without having a knock-on effect on membership numbers)
• Are being proposed by a group that has a history of excellence (e.g. Balloon Accreditation Scheme, award-winning) or evidence of recent momentum (e.g. a new committee trying to restart a failing group)
• Are being proposed by a group that has completed our Group Grant Feedback Form if they have previously made a successful application

Dates

Round 1

Grant form opens: Monday 19th September

Grant form closes: Monday 3rd October 5pm

Round 2

Grant form opens: Monday 7th November

Grant form closes: Monday 21st November 5pm

Round 3

Grant form opens: Monday 16th January

Grant form closes: Monday 30th January 5pm

Round 4

Grant form opens: Monday 6th March

Grant form closes: Monday 20th March 5pm

Decisions are sent to groups a maximum of 2 weeks after the deadline. If your application is unsuccessful, we will let you know why.

Apply here (for Group Grants, Start-Up Grants and Sustainability Grants)

How do we spend it?

Money given as grant funding from Bristol SU goes into your union account. It may be added after you have claimed the amount, so don't worry if it doesn't appear in your account right away.

The grant money can be spent in the same way that you make all your union account claims and payments, in that you can spend the money yourself and then claim it back, raise a cheque directly to a company, use it to pay an invoice or raise a purchase order.

However, all grant money MUST be spent on the activity proposed in the grant application, and you MUST ensure you notify the Finance Team/Student Services Team that it is a grant payment so that they can code it correctly. If it is not coded correctly, we may assume it's not spent and reclaim it!

All grant money allocated to a society must be spent within 3 months of the money being granted, and this will be noted on your allocation email. We will only extend deadlines in very exceptional circumstances. If you haven't spent the grant money by the set deadline, it will be reclaimed and redistributed.

Start-Up Grants

Newly affiliated groups (that have affiliated in the last 6 months) may apply for a start-up grant of up to £100.

The start-up grant exists to enable groups to fundraise and build membership. As a result, groups do not need 30 members to be accepted for a start-up grant.

You may apply for an SU Group Grant at any point after receiving a start-up grant, but you are expected to indicate how you have used the funds to improve the sustainability of your group.

The £100 start-up grant is not bound by the no food/drink requirement (although we still will not fund alcohol). Think about how best to turn your £100 into more money for your group - maybe you'll purchase equipment you can hire out or hold a fundraising event!

Sustainability Grants

Sustainability Grants are designed to encourage student groups to run events, campaigns or projects focused on sustainability and/or the Climate Emergency which aim to do one or more of the following: 

• Engage students in action around the Climate Emergency 
• Lobby the university to maintain/improve its commitments to fighting the Climate Emergency 
• Educate students on issues relating to the Climate Emergency directly or improve the educational offering the University and SU provide for students at Bristol on this topic 
• Lobby organisations other than the University to fight the Climate Emergency 
• Increase the accessibility of climate activism by breaking down barriers for students of colour and other underrepresented groups in the UK’s climate movement to engage with action around the Climate Emergency 
• Directly address a specific environmental problem (e.g. beekeeping to combat loss of honeybee populations in the UK, rewilding efforts) 
• Improve student mental health by addressing climate anxiety in the student population or providing students with wellbeing benefits by getting close to the natural world 
• Supply students with the skills they need to work in jobs relating to sustainability

Groups can apply for up to £500. The funding available is very limited and so applications may not be open in later rounds if the grant pot has already been allocated. 

Restrictions are the same as Bristol SU Group Grants except that affiliated Volunteering Projects are also eligible. 

Strong applications will be for activities that:

• Have potential to drive positive change in how the University or other organisations operate and impact the fight against the Climate Emergency 
• Have potential to have a direct, positive environmental impact 
• Have intended outcomes which reach a large part of the student body 
• Are inclusive of different groups of students, especially students of colour 
• Provide skills to students taking part and increase students’ employability in the sustainability sector 
• Have wider positive impacts on participants (improving mental health, educating students on certain issues etc.) 
• Are likely to successfully meet their intended outcomes 
• The student group would struggle to finance without a grant