There are a variety of ways to apply for funding for yourself or your organisation in St Andrews. The two associated with the St Andrews Community Council are The Common Good Fund and The Community Trust.
Common Good Fund
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The Common Good Act (1491) stated that revenue from burgh properties and income from various levies were to be used for the common good of the town. Over the following centuries fixed or moveable assets were donated ‘on behoof of the community’ – most commonly to what were formerly known as burgh councils. The common good funds today comprise rents from land and buildings as well as moveable items such as paintings, books and artefacts. Local authorities – successors to the town councils that were abolished in 1975 – are responsible for administering common good assets, but do not own the funds.
Did all the land held by Town Councils pass into Common Good Funds?
In 1975, some Town Councils took the opportunity to pass the town’s common property into new Trusts to avoid having them taken over by the new authorities. St Andrews, for example, arranged for all the golf links in St Andrews that were part of their common lands to be transferred by Act of Parliament into the St Andrews Links Trust.
How many Common Good sites are there in St Andrews?
We have four Common Good sites in St Andrews that pay rent into the Common Good Fund:
- Town Hall
- Victory Memorial Hall
- Bruce Embankment (including car park)
- the Fishermens’ stores at the harbour
Are there only fixed assets in the Common Good Fund?
No, there is also Moveable Common Good Property. These consist of such things as the Provost Chain and badge which was presented to St Andrews Town Council by the Marquess of Bute and is now used by the Provost of Fife. There are also lots of robes, hats and other official garments from the old Town Council. Finally, there are various sets of official weights and measures. Most of these are stored by Fife Council in Cupar. The Fife Council Register of Common Good Assets can be found here: Page 49 for St Andrews.
How much money does the Common Good Fund get each year?
The St Andrews Common Good Fund receives approximately £95,000 in revenue each year.
Who can apply for funds?
Any organisation or individual can apply for funds to support projects that will benefit the people of St Andrews.
Who decides what funds are allocated?
A council official under delegated powers can award funds up to £2,000. Fife Councillors award funds above £2,000.
What role does the Community Council have in the decision-making process?
The Community Council is a consultee. After they have assessed an application, they pass their opinion to the Fife Council official overseeing the application. As with planning applications, Fife Councillors can ignore the Community Council’s comments.
APPLICATION FORM
Kinburn (St Andrews) Charitable Trust
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The Kinburn Charitable Trust was formed in 2010, largely due to the efforts of St Andrews solicitor, Alan Caithness, who brought together two locally-based charitable trusts, the Double Dykes Road Charitable Trust Limited and The Hamada Charitable Trust, to form a single well-funded charitable organisation aimed at supporting needy local development projects, mainly in St Andrews and North East Fife.
Among the many organisations that have benefitted from grants from the Kinburn Charitable Trust are St Andrews Harbour, Men’s Shed, Anstruther Harbour Festival, ZEST (ADHD Group St Andrews), Kinburn bowlers, North East Fife Community Hub and many more.
The Trustees meets twice yearly in March and September to consider applications which must be lodged with Natalie Holden, the Kinburn Charitable Trust Manager at Thorntons Law LLP, by email at nholden@thorntons-law.co.uk. Natalie can supply an application form on request.
The Trustees prefer to fund actual projects, rather than donations for general funding. Grants usually range from £1000 – £10,000, depending on the scale of the project, but larger sums have been allocated specifically where matched funding with Scottish government-assisted local projects has been required.
The Trustees encourages all local organisations with projects that might require extra funding to contact Natalie Holden for further information.
APPLICATION BY EMAIL
St Andrews Community Trust
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The St Andrews Community Trust was established through an agreement between the Royal Burgh of St Andrews Community Council and St Andrews Links Trust. The purpose of the Community Trust is to distribute funds generated through the protection and trademark of the Town Crest of the Royal Burgh of St Andrews.
Funds are allocated to clubs, charitable organisations and good causes in and around the town. The board of Trustees comprises two members from the Royal Burgh of St Andrews Community Council, one member of Fife Council and a representative from St Andrews Links Trust. Three local resident trustee positions complete the board.
The Trust considers donations to projects in the ‘Operating Area’ – that is, the area covered by the Royal Burgh of St Andrews Community Council and the Community Council areas that share a border with St Andrews.
The Community Trust website can be found here:
https://standrewscommunitytrust.org/
Apply for funding from the Community Trust
The Community trust have temporarily paused the acceptance of new grant applications. This pause is part of a comprehensive review of their grant-making policies to update them in line with best practice standards and to better serve the evolving needs of the communities we support.
APPLICATION FORM