How to apply and guidance

Guidance notes 

Eligibility 

You must demonstrate that your project meets all the eligibility criteria. Any projects that do not meet eligibility requirements will not progress to assessment stage. 

If you have any questions you can speak to your Enterprise Coordinator or email enterpriseadvisers@the-lep.com 

Your school or college must: 

• Have received an invite to apply from by the West Yorkshire Combined Authority. 
• Be school or college located in the Leeds City Region. Privately funded secondary schools and colleges are not eligible to apply. 
• Be signed up and part of the West Yorkshire Careers Hub.  
• Have a named ‘Careers Leader’ in post, who is employed by the school or college and is either part of the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) or has direct links into SLT as defined in the Government’s Careers Strategy.

Funding 

The pilot aims to fund several projects of a value between £5,000 -£20,000. 

We require in-kind contributions of 20% of the grant total for your project.

Applicants will be able to use funding to support:  

• Non-staff administration costs e.g. resources, photocopying, etc. This must be capped at 20% of amount requested.  
• Staff cover costs (up to a maximum value of £3000)  
• Training costs, relevant and required for the project, for example, providing up-skill training to pupils or staff to support future delivery.  
• Volunteer expenses  
• Small-scale equipment. This should total no more than 20% of the total amount requested.  
• Physical materials required for project delivery, for example consumables for small scale refurbishment.  
• Transport; individual pupil or group

Funding cannot be used for:  

• Staff and employer time *  
• Building works and capital costs including structural developments, utility and running costs *  
• Software licenses *  
• Existing ‘off the shelf’ one-off careers and enterprise activities or events including providers offering delivery/brokerage of careers activities
• Kitemarks, e.g. the Quality in Careers Standard . 
• Existing projects currently funded  
• Projects that are already complete, or costs incurred before the award of the Grant.  
• Costs incurred when making the recipient’s grant application
• Endowments or investments (to provide a source of income)  
• Loans or interest payments  
• Fundraising activities for your organisation or others  
• Political or religious activities  
• Purchase of alcohol or tobacco products  
• Routine repairs or maintenance  

* Please note: Cash match provided by applicants can be put towards marked items.  

Assessment and scoring 

Applications which fulfil the eligibility criteria will be assessed against the following measures. Percentages indicate the weighting that assessors will afford to each criteria if the number of applications received exceeds the number of grants available. Please note that decisions by The Combined Authority are final. 

Assessment weighting

Quality – 25% 

There is clear leadership and governance to ensure the success of the project.

• The project will be led and/or supported by a trained careers leader who is or reports into the senior management team. 
• The project aims to identify new approaches to careers education that can be evaluated and shared.
• The project will draw on a variety of skills or partnerships, both internally and externally. Employer partnerships should be central to achieving the project aims.
• There are clear systems in place to monitor the project and review outcomes.

Innovation – 20% 

The project shows new and innovative ways to tailor the activity to identified students' needs.

• The application demonstrates that the project is tailored to the needs of disadvantaged pupils.
• The project may seek to trial new approaches which have the potential to create impact for the identified cohort of students. Applications should outline why this approach is being taken and how it will be tested.
• Projects may evidence the creation of new partnerships and support, particularly involving employers.

Behaviour change – 25% 

The application must outline how the project will impact on learners as well as careers within the schools/college.

• The project should focus around raising awareness of Green Skills and demonstrate some impact towards achieving Gatsby Benchmark 5 (encounters with employees) and Benchmark 6 (experiences of the workplace)
• The application should outline the intended outcomes for all beneficiaries and careers education more broadly.
• Any stated impact should be attainable, measurable and recordable.

Value for money – 20% 

The project demonstrates value for money per student.

• Applications demonstrate evidence of support from employers.

Sustainability – 10% 

There should be evidence of sustainable outcomes from the project for both learners and the school/college.

• Impact from the project is expected to extend beyond the immediate academic year or stated beneficiaries. Applicants are asked to outline the indirect reach of the project in their application form.
• Applicants plan to work with their Enterprise Coordinator, West Yorkshire Careers Hub and other channels to disseminate good practice to the wider school community and stakeholders.
• Processes are in place to ensure projects can be embedded in future delivery.

Enterprise Coordinators