The Promise Partnership

The Promise Partnership Open Call Route is now closed.

Who can apply? Applications can be received from public/private/third sector organisations throughout the ‘care system‘ from across Scotland.

You will also need to ensure that your:

• Organisation or local authority has made a public commitment to #KeepThePromise
• Organisation is looking at how it embeds #KeepThePromise and wider family support in its strategies and plans.

We can only accept one application per organisation. We are unable to accept applications that are from:

• Individuals.
• Propositions delivering outside Scotland.
• One organisation applying on behalf of another.

Are there any restrictions to the private sector applying? The private sector is eligible to apply for investment, they will need to meet the ‘Are You Ready?’ Checklist and similar to all organisations must demonstrate that they are unable to implement or invest in changes themselves.

We are a local authority are we able to apply? Yes the criteria and process is the same for any organisation through the open call route.

As a federated charity, can the central team apply as well as the individual charities? There’s nothing to stop federated charities from applying if they have their own Board of Trustees, their own set of audited accounts and a charity number. You will need to specify if you’re trying to shift things within an organisational or federational culture and how you would co-ordinate plans.

What do we mean by commitment to The Promise? Organisations or Local Authorities have signed up to #KeepThePromise, which you can find on The Promise website. Organisations have referred to The Promise through their own communications, on their websites or social media. Most importantly, we are looking at how organisations are already looking to include #KeepThePromise this within their strategy.

What can be funded? This investment is about infrastructure change, which can include rethinking your services, but it is not a fund for ongoing or new service delivery. This is about organisations being able to take stock and look at their internal practices and what they need to do prior to developing service delivery.

The Promise Partnership investment is flexible, but we expect the recipient to use funds that will enable them to drive forward or implement system change plans in-line with The Promise. This could include:

• back filling posts.
• salary costs.
• capacity building costs.
• additional expenses for individuals e.g., travel/individual training budget.

Does an organisation have to employ an Implementation Manager or can this fall within an existing employee’s remit? As part of the application, we ask organisations to show that they have considered who the implementation leader will be – the key person who will connect with The Promise and Promise Partnership teams and co-ordinate the shifts and changes internally. It can be an existing or a new staff member depending on what organisations need to take forward these changes. If it’s an existing staff member, we would be looking at how their role is going to change and how it’s focused on taking forward organisational shifts.

Our organisation has already committed monies to implementing The Promise – are we still eligible? It is fantastic to hear that many organisations are already committing resources to this work and you may still be eligible to apply to the fund. However, the Open Call is specifically targeted at organisations who have identified what they need next, but do not have the available financial resources to help move things forward.

All organisation committed to #KeepThePromise will still be able to learn and connect with The Promise on implementing the plan.

As part of our checks we will ask and review organisations financial positions.  For example, if an organisation has large reserves, we would like to know why reserves cannot be used to fund this change.

Is your organisation ready to apply? The ‘Are You Ready?’ Checklist is used to determine if your organisation is eligible  to apply to The Promise Partnership.

The application includes a self-assessment to help us understand where you are on a journey of change within your organisation in relation to #KeepThePromise. We ask you to answer honestly and provide evidence to support your answers. We are specifically looking to find out:

• What you are delivering/have delivered in relation to #KeepThePromise
• Your organisation’s commitment/plan to #KeepThePromise
• What you are looking to do to make the necessary shifts

Is there a time limit as to when the funds have to be spent by and to when the outcomes have to be achieved? We’re looking for people to start the work when the grant offer is made and carry out this work over the next 12 months. In terms of sustainability, it is about embedding changes within your organisation, thinking what kind of activities or changes you need to implement now that will enable sustained shifts or practices.

How will applications be assessed and how will final decisions be made? All applications will be presented to the Decision Makers Panel who will be guided by a set of funding principles. The Decision Makers Panel, a group with lived experience of Scotland’s ‘care system’, will assist in the final funding decisions. All decision makers will be supported by Corra staff, who will provide guidance and support to help them make transparent and robust investment decisions.

Unsuccessful applicants will be informed, and feedback provided.

What do we mean by Family Support? Whole family support services will be a priority for The Promise, with a focus on what support works to keep families together and support wider families to continue to care.  Families facing a variety of challenges must have support that is holistic, coherent and relational.

Families will have a key role in the design of family support services. The family principles are about how children and young people themselves define their families/family structure – which may be different from what we have previously perceived family to be and, therefore, what family support has looked like up to this point.

This work must also look at how children and young people living in the ‘care system‘ return to living with their families if that is what they want and it is safe to do so. Local service providers know and understand the importance of doing everything to keep families together safely.

Though this is a priority, if you work with care experienced young people outwith a family context, you may still be eligible to apply.