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Bristol SU Grants

Bristol SU is committed to enhancing the student experience for those studying at the University of Bristol. In 23/24 the following grants are available to help do just this.

  • Volunteering Grant
  • Sustainability Grant
  • New Groups Start-Up Grant 
  • Bristol SU Group Grant 
  • Alumni Association Student Grant

Please note that grant funding should never be relied upon to support regular activities. You should always plan to be financially sustainable through other sources of funding such as membership, ticketed events, sponsorship, and fundraising.

Before applying for any of the below grants you should also be aware that

  • Grants are non-transferable
  • Applications to enhance a student groups activities must be made by a registered committee member of an affiliated group and groups must have more than 30 members
  • If your application is for more than £999 or you are a staff member you must meet with the Development Team prior to submitting your application. A meeting can be booked here
  • 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 and University staff.
  • Decisions are sent two weeks after the deadline. If your application is unsuccessful, we will give you feedback and you are free to apply in the next round.

If you have any questions, please contact us at bristolsu-development@bristol.ac.uk
 

Grants available for 2023/24

Sustainability Grant

Apply for up to £500 for events, campaigns or projects focused on sustainability and/or the climate crisis. 

Who is eligible?

Any affiliated Bristol SU Student Group and Bristol SU Networks Please note, individuals can apply for Be the Change Project Grant funding from the University here.

Criteria
  • Fit with the constitutional aims of your group
  • Fit with Bristol SU's values
  • 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
  • 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
Exclusions
  • 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 
  • 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)
When are the rounds open?

This grant is open for 3 rounds. Please note that the funding available is very limited, so applications may not be open in later rounds if the grant pot has already been allocated.

Round 1

Opens 21st August 2023

Closes 4th September 2023 4pm

Round 2

Opens 9th October 2023

Closes 23rd October 2023 4pm

Round 3

Opens 5th February 2024

Closes 19th February 2024 4pm

 

Volunteering Grant

Apply for the amount needed for your project this academic year.

Who is eligible?

Only Bristol SU affiliated Volunteering Projects are eligible for this grant.

Criteria Apply for any funding needed for your project for 2023/24. The Volunteering Grant panel will then allocate their funding to applicants.
When are the rounds open?

This grant is only open for Round 1:

Round 1

Opens 21st August 2023

Closes 4th September 2023

 

New Group Start-Up Grant

Apply for up to £100 to help with initial start-up costs associated with creating a brand-new student group affiliated to Bristol SU.

Who is eligible?

Bristol SU Student Groups who joined the SU after February 2023 and did not already have over £100 in their bank account are eligible for this grant. You don't need to have 30 members to be eligible for this grant.

Criteria

The start-up grant exists to enable groups to fundraise and build membership. 

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!

When are the rounds open?

This grant is open for 3 rounds. Please note that these rounds are not directly aligned with the affiliation rounds for 23/24, if you affiliate post-February, you'll be eligible still next year.

Round 1

Opens 21st August 2023

Closes 4th September 2023 4pm

Round 2

Opens 9th October 2023

Closes 27th October 2023 5pm

Round 3

Opens 5th February 2024

Closes 19th February 2024 4pm

 

Bristol SU Group Grant

Apply for up to £3000 for enhancing student life through extracurricular activities, projects and opportunities that would not otherwise be possible.

Who is eligible?

Bristol SU affiliated Sports Clubs and Societies with over 30 members (this doesn’t apply for new groups for 22/23 and 23/24, and for Round 1 your 22/23 membership will be considered) and Bristol SU Networks are eligible for this grant. 

Criteria

Applications must:

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

Strong applications will:

  • Be good value for money
  • Be well researched and evidenced
  • Be accessible to a broad range of people (or have a well evidenced case for targeting a particular group)
  • Have a significant impact on students
  • Be 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
  • Show how this cannot be financed by the group themselves, unless there is a good reason why they are not doing so
  • Show how this 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)
  • Be 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)
  • Be proposed by a group that has completed our Group Grant Feedback Form if they have previously made a successful application
Exclusions
  • 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)
When are the rounds open?

This grant is open for 3 rounds. Please note, you can make multiple applications to this grant, but the total should not exceed £3000.

Round 1

Opens 21st August 2023

Closes 4th September 2023 4pm

Round 2

Opens 9th October 2023

Closes 26th October 2023 9am (this is an admin error, but will honor it and keep open until Thurs)

Round 3

Opens 5th February 2024

Closes 19th February 2024 4pm

 

Alumni Association Student Grant

Apply for up to £5000 for enhancing student life through extracurricular activities, projects and opportunities that would not otherwise be possible.

Who is eligible?
  • Bristol SU affiliated Sports Clubs and Societies with over 30 members (this doesn’t apply for new groups for 22/23 and 23/24, and for Round 1 your 22/23 membership will be considered) 
  • Bristol SU Networks
  • Bristol SU Volunteering Groups
  • Staff at the University of Bristol or Bristol SU 
  • Non Bristol SU affiliated student groups
Criteria

Applications must:

  • Applications must:
  • Be submitted by a current student or staff member. Where the application is from a student group this must be submitted by a committee member
  • Fit with the constitutional aims of your group if being submitted by a group affiliated to Bristol SU
  • Fit with Bristol SU's values
  • Enhance the experience of many Bristol students and certainly of more than one person.

Strong applications will:

  • Be good value for money
  • Be well researched and evidenced
  • Be accessible to a broad range of people (or have a well evidenced case for targeting a particular group)
  • Have a significant impact on students
  • Be scalable and/or will have an ongoing benefit to students
  • Have other fundraising/support from other sources or is being match-funded by the group
  • Show how this cannot be financed by the applicants themselves, unless there is a good reason why they are not doing so
  • Be 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)
  • Be proposed by a group that has completed our Group Grant Feedback Form if they have previously made a successful application
Exclusions
  • Activities that would be more appropriately funded elsewhere
  • Activities that have been funded by the Alumni Association or 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 and the University are both charities, they 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)
When are the rounds open?

Round 1

Opens 9th October 2023

Closes 26th October 2023 9am 

Round 2

Opens 5th February 2024

Closes 19th February 2024 4pm

 

 

We've been successful - how can we spend the money?

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.

 

Showing you've been funded by Bristol SU grants

This year, we are asking that groups with successful Group Grant applications add Bristol SU branding to what is being funded. This could look like a vinyl for equipment, a patch for some kit or our logo on your advertising. We ask that any extra costs associated with this are outlined on your application form and that you use our 'Supporting Student Groups' logo. You can find this in our Logo Pack!