The news item below has been written and supplied by the Almshouse Consortium Limited (ACL). 
Further information is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/community-housing-fund 

The Community Housing Fund (CHF) is designed to provide seed corn funding for the initial investigations and works relating to the provision of affordable housing, where other resources are limited.

To be eligible:

The scheme must:

  • increase housing supply in England by increasing the number of additional homes delivered by the community-led housing sector;
  • provide housing that is affordable at local income levels and remains so in perpetuity; and
  • deliver a lasting legacy for the community-led housing sector in the form of an effective financially self-sustaining body of expertise within the house building industry in England.

The organisation applying must be:

  • a registered charity;
  • a Company Limited By Guarantee;
  • a Community Benefit Society
  • a Co-operative Society;
  • a Community Interest Company;
  • an organisation of another type operating as a social enterprise and principally reinvesting their surpluses for social benefit;
  • a Registered Provider; or
  • a local authority.

Eligible costs include:

  • the costs of forming a corporate body
  • feasibility studies
  • surveys
  • architects fees
  • legal fees
  • training and capacity-building

The fund is not available to cover the costs of construction or the purchase of land which is grant fundable from other funding routes.

Schemes may include a number of community facilities, but it is only the housing element which will attract the funding.

Applications are made online, but not through Homes Englandā€™s Information Management System, but using an online form.  Almshouse Consortium Limited already has access to this system and can advise on the suitability of schemes and assist with submission.

Applicants are expected to make meaningful consultations with the local community and be able to fund 10% of the costs themselves.  100% funding is not available, but the Almshouse Association may, in certain circumstances, make a grant towards the 10% required.

Other information required includes a copy of the latest accounts, location of the site and the proposed number of dwellings and the action taken towards obtaining planning permission.

The bid for grant funding will be assessed on 5 criteria:

  1. Value for money.  This is to ensure that as many schemes are helped as possible.  If an almshouse can afford some, but not all of the initial costs, then applications at below the 90% level will have a higher chance of success.
  2. Deliverability.  Projects which have progressed furthest towards the development phase are likely to be able to make the strongest case for funding on deliverability grounds.  Almshouses should be abed to achieve a layout pan, indicative costs and pre-application comments from the planning authority before they start to incur costs.   The stopping point often comes when the Architect is asked to prepare plans at sufficient detail to submit a planning application, the application fee itself and the various reports which are required to support an application.
  3. Strategic fitness.  The purpose of the CHF is to support genuinely led community projects.  It will therefore assist the application if the scheme is addressed to a wider audience than simply the existing Trustees.  Homes England expects the close collaboration of the community to lead to community-led housing delivering important additional benefits in respect of the quality of design, innovative construction technologies, tenures and approaches to financing. Proposals that are innovative in these regards may be more likely to receive a favourable assessment than those that are not.
  4. Knowing your Customer requirements.  There will be checks on the viability of the organisation and certain personal checks will be made to ensure the grant is not being used for money laundering or fraud.
  5. Equalities, diversity and health inequalities.  It is expected that housing funded under this fund will meet the diverse housing needs of all sections of our communities, whether defined by geography, need or interest.   Applicants will be asked to confirm as part of their application that their proposals will meet key equalities priorities that are identified and agreed by local authorities.

Other State Aid towards the same costs is not permitted and this grant will have to be declared if a subsequent application for capital funding is made. 

Enquiries can be sent to ACL's Administrator:
Sue Holden email: acltabitha@gmail.com
For more detailed advice, ACL's Programme Managers can be contacted via email:
Kathy Green: kathy.green.projects@gmail.com 
Sean Stafford:  sean@saffercooper.com