SWAP Fund

The SWAP Fund is the Police and Crime Commissioner’s community grant programme. It reinvests money recovered through the Proceeds of Crime Act back into Cheshire’s communities, supporting projects that make a positive difference locally.

SWAP stands for Safety, Working together, Action and Prevention. All projects must contribute to one or more of these themes and demonstrate a clear link to at least one of the following:

• Reducing crime and anti-social behaviour
• Improving community safety
• Supporting the delivery of policing and crime prevention outcomes
• Preventing individuals from becoming involved in criminal behaviour
• Increasing community resilience and confidence

The Commissioner is particularly keen to support projects that focus on prevention and early intervention, helping to address issues before they escalate into crime or wider community safety concerns.

Grants of up to £2,500 are available through the SWAP Fund.

Applicants are encouraged to apply only for the amount of funding required to deliver their project rather than automatically applying for the maximum award.

There is one application window: 9am Wednesday 21st October 2026 until 9am on Monday 30th November 2026.

Applications must be submitted online via the SWAP Fund application form.

Unfortunately, we are unable to accept late applications under any circumstances. Applicants are therefore strongly encouraged to submit their application well in advance of the deadline to avoid disappointment. Technical difficulties or last-minute issues will not be accepted as grounds for extending the submission deadline.

Outcomes

All applicants will be notified of the outcome of their application by email, regardless of whether they have been successful or unsuccessful.

We aim to notify all applicants of the panel’s decision no later than Thursday 17th December 2026. While every effort will be made to meet this timescale, applicants should note that notification dates may be subject to change if there is an exceptionally high volume of applications. We will notify you in this instance.

The PCC is keen to support projects that contribute to one or more priorities within the Police and Crime Plan. The plan can be found here.

All applications must clearly demonstrate how the proposed activity will contribute to crime reduction, community safety, prevention, or other policing-related outcomes.

Projects may fall within one or more of the following categories:

• Support for Children and Young People
  This may include holiday activities, youth provision, mentoring programmes, diversionary activities, or youth engagement projects that help reduce vulnerability, prevent involvement in crime and anti-social behaviour, or improve community safety.
• Promotion of Wellbeing
  Sports, leisure, arts or wellbeing activities may be funded where applicants can demonstrate a clear connection to reducing crime, improving safety, building resilience, or preventing social issues that can contribute to criminal activity.
• Reducing Isolation and Promoting Inclusion
  Projects supporting marginalised communities, vulnerable individuals, or under-represented groups where there is a clear benefit to community cohesion, safety, confidence, or crime prevention.
• Early Intervention and Prevention
  Specialist mentoring, skills development, diversionary activities, educational programmes, crime prevention initiatives, and targeted support aimed at preventing offending, reducing reoffending, or addressing identified community safety concerns.

The fund may support reasonable project delivery costs such as:

• Sessional workers and specialist facilitators.
• Venue hire.
• Project-specific equipment and materials.
• Volunteer expenses.
• Training directly related to project delivery.
• Marketing and promotion necessary to engage beneficiaries.
• Insurance or safeguarding costs directly attributable to the project.

Standalone capital projects will not be funded.

However, capital items may be funded where they form part of a wider project that delivers clear community safety, crime reduction or prevention outcomes. For example, sports equipment may be purchased where it directly supports a youth diversionary programme designed to reduce anti-social behaviour or involvement in crime.

The fund will not support:

• Activities that are the statutory responsibility of another organisation, such as schools or local authorities.
• Retrospective funding for activities that have already taken place.
• Projects where the applicant organisation is not responsible for delivery.
• Political activity or promotion.
• Religious worship or promotion.
• Travel outside the UK.
• Contributions to organisational reserves.
• Applications from or on behalf of individuals.
• General organisational overheads unless directly related to project delivery, such as venue hire.
• The purchase of policing equipment.
• Projects solely involving CCTV purchase and/or installation.
• Projects that only fund capital items or projects which seek funding for planning permission and/or legal fees
• Activities that cannot demonstrate a clear link to crime reduction, community safety, prevention, or policing outcomes.

Alternatively, if you require advice or guidance with the application itself you could make contact with your local Council for Voluntary Service, Voluntary Action organisation or Community Development Agency.

Applications are welcomed from not-for-profit organisations, including:

• Registered charities
• Community groups
• Friends’ groups
• Neighbourhood groups
• Social enterprises
• Community interest companies
• Parish councils (where there is demonstrated local need and partnership working)
• State Schools

Applicants must have a bank account with at least two unrelated signatories.

All organisations must demonstrate community benefit within their constitution or governing documents.

For consortium or partnership bids, local organisations would normally be expected to act as the lead applicant, particularly where regional or national organisations are involved. The lead organisation must meet all eligibility requirements.

Other public bodies, including the police and local authorities, cannot apply directly but are encouraged to work in partnership with eligible community organisations.

Schools are eligible to apply, but funding can only be used for activities that sit outside statutory curriculum delivery and are clearly additional to normal school provision.

Eligible applicants include:

• State-funded primary schools
• State-funded secondary schools
• Academy trusts
• Specialist schools

Private and independent schools are not eligible.

Projects must demonstrate a clear benefit to both the school community and the wider community, with a strong link to community safety, crime prevention, or policing outcomes.

Funding cannot be used for:

• Salaries or staffing costs
• Capital building projects (classrooms, playgrounds etc.)
• Core school equipment
• School trips
• Activities that form part of statutory curriculum delivery

Local authorities cannot apply directly but can support local providers to submit applications.

Match funding is not required.

However, applicants are encouraged to secure match funding wherever possible to maximise the impact of the SWAP Fund and enable more communities to benefit.

Match funding may include:

• Financial contributions
• Volunteer time
• Donated resources
• Discounted venue hire
• Other forms of in-kind support

Please include details of any financial or in-kind contributions within your application.

The Commissioner works closely with a range of partners and funders and may, where appropriate, explore opportunities for joint funding where a project aligns with multiple funding priorities. Applicants will be contacted directly if this is being considered.

All applications will be assessed by a panel using a fair and transparent process.

Applications will first be reviewed against three gateway criteria to determine whether they are eligible for funding:

1. Does the project clearly demonstrate a link to crime reduction, prevention, community safety or policing outcomes?
2. Is the applicant eligible to apply?
3. Are the proposed costs eligible under the fund criteria?

Applications that do not meet all three gateway criteria will not progress to the full assessment stage.

Applications that pass the gateway assessment will then be scored by panel members against a range of criteria, including strategic fit, evidence of need, anticipated impact, deliverability, value for money and sustainability. Each criterion is weighted to reflect its importance to the aims of the fund.

Individual panel scores will be combined to produce an overall score for each application. Funding will then be awarded to the highest-scoring applications, subject to the availability of funds and the panel’s consideration of achieving a balanced distribution of funding across Cheshire’s communities and priorities.

The panel’s decision is final, and basic feedback can be requested to support future applications.

If you need support to understand the criteria or to see if you are eligible, please contact us via email to pcc@cheshire-pcc.gov.uk (opens email application) or call 01606 364000.

Alternatively, if you require advice or guidance with the application itself you could contact your local Council for Voluntary Service, Voluntary Action organisation or Community Development Agency.

Cheshire East CVS

Cheshire West Voluntary Action

Halton & St Helens Voluntary and Community Action

Warrington Voluntary Action

Yes. If you are in the process of setting up the account, you can still apply, but please advise us of this before applying.  If your application is successful, we will need a letter from the bank confirming the account details before we could make a grant award.  We can not pay a grant award into a personal bank account.

All our grants are paid via BACs.  If you are successful, we will send out all documentation required for you to receive payment.

No.  We do not want groups or organisations to waste their time in applying, if they are ineligible, as we understand how much time and effort goes into completing application forms.

Please contact the office, via email to pcc@cheshire-pcc.gov.uk (opens email application)   or call 01606 364000.

All successful applicants will be asked to complete a monitoring form including impacts achieved.  You will also be required to supply a case study.  All successful applicants will be invited to share with us their successes. This is not too onerous as we want you to focus on delivering to the community.

The Police and Crime Commissioner may request to come out and visit your project and/or a member of the team. This is a great opportunity for us to take pictures and share the great work you are doing.  Please try to be as flexible as possible so the commissioner can meet you.

You should notify us as soon as possible.  Please contact team, via email pcc@cheshire-pcc.gov.uk (opens email application) or call 01606 364000.

We will always consider changes to the application where the overall aims and objectives still reflect the initial application, so please do let us know and we can work with you.