Travel grant guidelines - PDF

Out­door learn­ing travel grant scheme guideline

What will it fund?

The out­door learn­ing travel grant scheme aim is to assist in travel costs for Schools, vol­un­tary and com­munity groups in Scot­land, this includes groups and inter­me­di­ar­ies who sup­port and work with people exper­i­en­cing some form of dis­ad­vant­age e.g. on account of their age, gender, race, health, dis­ab­il­ity, social or eco­nom­ic reas­ons etc.

To under­take at least one of the fol­low­ing activities:

• Take place in the Cairngorms Nation­al Park includ­ing the nine Nation­al Nature Reserves.
• Raise aware­ness and under­stand­ing of the Cairngorms Nation­al Park.
• Involve Ranger Ser­vices and NNR staff in the Nation­al Park where possible.
• Help deliv­er Cur­riculum for Excel­lence through Out­door Learn­ing exper­i­ences. See Resources sec­tion below for more inform­a­tion and contacts

Pri­or­ity will be giv­en to:

• Schools and groups from areas of mul­tiple depriva­tion includ­ing urb­an areas near to the Nation­al Park such as Inverness, Perth, Dun­dee and Aberdeen.
• Those who have not vis­ited the Nation­al Park or worked with a Nation­al Park ranger ser­vice previously.
• Groups that sup­port people with dis­ab­il­it­ies, young people, eth­nic minor­it­ies and those who exper­i­ence eco­nom­ic dis­ad­vant­age or health inequality

How much is the fund worth?

Please note that due to lim­ited funds and a high demand for this grant scheme, the budget has been capped for each quarter, so that applic­a­tions can be con­sidered through­out the whole year

This travel grant scheme may fund up to 75% of the total trans­port costs for vis­its based on the num­ber of cri­ter­ia met. Up to a max­im­um of £300.

• Eli­gible costs apply to trans­port to and from school or group meet­ing place to Cairngorms Nation­al Park e.g. bus or minibus hire. Only one trip per school is eli­gible per year.
• Grants can­not be awar­ded ret­ro­spect­ively. You must apply for your grant and it must be agreed before your visit.

When will fund be received if our applic­a­tion is successful

Pay­ments will only be made to the School/​Group apply­ing for fund­ing sup­port and not to any indi­vidu­al or third party (e.g. Coach hire companies)

• Pay­ments will nor­mally be made by BACS trans­fer dir­ectly to the account. Or by cheque if necessary.
• Proof of costs must be provided either as a pro-forma invoice from the com­pany or sub­mis­sion of receipts for travel fares (e.g. rail/​bus tick­ets). Eval­u­ation Applic­ants should com­plete an eval­u­ation form with their claim: sum­mar­ising activ­it­ies under­taken (includ­ing pre and post vis­it), what they have learned about the Nation­al Park, what dif­fer­ence the travel grant made, and include pho­to­graphs (with per­mis­sions for CNPA use).

Applic­a­tion process

1. Decide where you will vis­it and who will sup­port your group e.g. ranger ser­vice (see below) and date.
2. Con­tact trans­port pro­vider for estim­ated costs.
3. Com­plete applic­a­tion form and send to CNPA learning@​cairngorms.​co.​uk
4. You will be sent con­firm­a­tion of your grant of up to £300 (amount will depend on how you meet the fund­ing priorities).
5. To claim your grant fol­low­ing your vis­it, sub­mit the fol­low­ing to CNPA:
   • A copy of the trans­port com­pany invoice / receipts
   • Your com­pleted eval­u­ation form (down­load from website)
   • Digit­al pho­to­graphs of your vis­it (with per­mis­sion for CNPA to use in pro­mo­tion­al materials)
   • Cov­er­ing let­ter /​email request­ing pay­ment of your grant (quot­ing CNPA’s grant offer)
6. You will then receive pay­ment of the grant.

How to con­tact the fund

If you would like any help with this pro­cess, please con­tact: learning@​cairngorms.​co.​uk Alan Smith Out­door Learn­ing & Engage­ment Man­ager, Cairngorms Nation­al Park Author­ity, 14 The Square, Grant­own-on-Spey, PH26 3HG Tel: 01479 870518

Resources to help plan your visit

You are encour­aged to make use of one of the 12 ranger ser­vices in the Park, to get the most out of your vis­it. A list of ranger ser­vices can be found at: Cairngorms | Ranger services

Nation­al Nature Reserves

There are nine NNRs in the Park which pro­tect an amaz­ing range of wild­life and land­scapes, where you can base your vis­it and learn­ing exper­i­ence. Find these NNRs at: Home | Scotland’s Nation­al Nature Reserves

Forests and woodlands

Dis­cov­er the sights, sounds and exper­i­ences of the forest at Forestry Com­mis­sion Scot­land sites in the Park, includ­ing Glen­more, Inshriach, Lag­gan, Glen Doll, Cam­bus O’May, See: Home — Forestry and Land Scot­land | Forestry and Land Scotland

John Muir Award

Your vis­it to the Park may well fit in with gain­ing a John Muir Award, an envir­on­ment­al award scheme that focuses on wild places such as the Nation­al Park. Find out more at: Engage­ment Ini­ti­at­ive | John Muir Award

Web­sites

Cairngorms Learn­ing Zone is a web-based learn­ing resource for teach­ers and stu­dents but will appeal to any­one who wants to find out more about the Cairngorms. Use it for your pre and post vis­its to the Park! Cairngorms Learn­ing Zone — Out­door Learn­ing Ser­vices and Information

The Out­door Learn­ing Dir­ect­ory is a portal to vari­ous types of sup­port for out­door learn­ing provided by Scot­tish pub­lic bod­ies includ­ing the Nation­al Park Author­it­ies, SNH and FCS. www​.out​door​learn​ing​dir​ect​ory​.com

For more inform­a­tion and ideas about vis­it­ing the Nation­al Park, go to: www​.cairngorms​.co​.uk or www​.vis​it​cairngorms​.com