The outcomes we are looking for are varied - projects which improve our natural environment, resilience and wellbeing across all ages and abilities, and create economic growth, opportunities for volunteering, apprenticeships and employment. We want the community to  be creative and therefore we are open to support a wide variety of projects.

For example we are looking to fund environmental projects such as multigenerational rewilding projects and community gardens, projects which focus on opportunities for young people to develop new skills, experience new opportunities and help them thrive both in their local community and beyond and innovative ideas which improve the health and wellbeing of all residents through sports, play, culture and creativity.

Your project may be an event to bring people together, an opportunity bring creativity to your neighbourhood, or part of a much bigger project which requires development and building works.

Your project must align to the council priorities which are:

a. Environment and Climate Change

b. Community Resilience and Wellbeing

c. Economy, Resilience and Regeneration

It must benefit the people within the Stroud district.

Current deadline:
Projects have until the 30th October 2024 to get their projects ready (i.e. ensure costs and permissions in place) before they start crowdfunding in early November. 

See the steps below on how to get involved.

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1. Create a project page

Head to Spacehive to get started.

Spacehive will help you develop your project so you are set up for success and ready to crowdfund. If you need some feedback on your idea, tell us about it here and we’ll guide you on how to begin.

2. Submit your project for verification 

The deadline to submit to verification is Wednesday the 30th October 2024.  

Your project costs and necessary permissions will be verified by the Spacehive team. This involves checking quotes that you provide and whether you need to secure specific permissions to deliver your project. Gather this information in advance for speedy verification.

3. Share and collect pledges

Once your project is live, share news of your project via as many platforms as possible. Start raising funds and boost local support before your pitch for funding is assessed by Stroud District Council. Spacehive offers helpful tips, resources and direct user support on how to achieve your crowdfunding goals and the Spacehive team is on hand to share lots of advice as you need it.

It's really important to us that you are able to demonstrate community support for projects. This both demonstrates that there is a widespread demand for what you are proposing, and helps to ensure the long term sustainability of projects. 
 

4. Access the Stroud District Council funding

Work with Spacehive to develop your pitch on the platform and you could attract additional funding via a Stroud District Council pledge. 

This programme offers Project Creators the opportunity to receive a donation from Stroud District Council provided the project meets the criteria of the fund, as well as having received a sufficient amount of support from the community. There is £100,000 initially available to support projects across the district. You could receive a pledge from the council of up to £10,000 (capped at 50% of your crowdfunding target).

Read more about the fund eligibility and desired outcomes in the 'fund overview' section.     

5. Hit your target and deliver your project

If you receive a pledge from Stroud District Council, then you must hit your funding target in order to receive it. Our funding is tied to the specific outcomes of the project so if you don’t hit your target, our pledge will be removed and you will receive the remaining amount. Once you hit your target, funds will take up to two weeks to arrive in your bank account.

Once you have delivered your project, you can update your backers on your successes by completing an impact report on Spacehive. 

To learn more about crowdfunding on Spacehive, visit the Help Centre.