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- Dorset County Council grants are available for village halls anywhere in Dorset (outside of the unitary authorities of Bournemouth and Poole). North Dorset and West Dorset District Council grants are for halls in their respective regions only.
- A hall will not normally be considered for grant aid within three years of a previous successful application. However, phased applications are permissible and in these circumstances the Capital Grants Committee has the discretion to consider consecutive applications.
- Grants are only available to properly constituted halls where there is an established management committee comprising members elected from the community as well as representatives appointed by the regular user groups. Such halls will normally be registered as a charity with the Charities Commission
- The property may be freehold or leasehold but management committees of a leasehold property must hold a lease that has a minimum of ten years remaining at the time of application.
- Grants will only be made to halls which are run as community facilities in villages or areas that do not already have a properly constituted village hall. It may be possible for a hall in an area which already has a village hall to apply but success is dependant upon whether the village hall committee in such areas is not only aware of the application but in full agreement with it. This is to prevent grant aid being given where the need is not proven and agreed by all members of the community.
- A hall or centre must have purposes which are wholly charitable, benevolent or philanthropic in nature and must be run by a committee or group with powers to control the day-to-day management of the building including its finances. Within this proviso, the committee may be a sub-committee of another body providing that this body has no powers to amend or override the decisions of the sub-committee concerning the grant application and / or community use of the building. The managing committee or group must have full responsibility for the building, its finances and its usage
- The hall or centre must be made available for use by the whole community without discrimination. The managing committee / group must be able to demonstrate how this is implemented
- The hall or centre should normally have an Annual General Meeting to which all members of the community are invited although not necessarily with voting rights, although the managing committee must be able to demonstrate how user and community views are taken into consideration in the running of the facility.
- The managing committee / group must have an accounting system separate from any other body. It must have powers to exercise control over its own funds even in circumstances where the managing committee has to report to another body. It would normally be expected that any surplus funds should be used solely for the community facility. No other organisation, whether charitable or not, shall benefit from the proceeds of the use or letting of the facility
- In the event that the facility does not remain available for the use of the whole community without discrimination for a period of five years immediately following a successful grant application, the owners of the building may be required to repay all or part of the grant.
- All larger schemes must have undertaken a feasibility study and have discussed their project with the Village and Community Halls Adviser before applying for a Capital Grant. Projects falling under category A would include the building of new halls, the demolition and rebuilding of an existing hall, major extensions or annexes to an existing hall or a complete and extensive refurbishment of a hall.
- Smaller schemes to upgrade, or provide, basic facilities (usually toilets and kitchens); new or improved access for the disabled; major repairs or small extensions are deemed category B projects.
- Items not eligible for Capital Grants include general maintenance and redecoration of a hall or furniture and equipment (such as table and chairs) although some kitchen appliances may be considered as part of a kitchen refurbishment project.
- The hall must be affiliated to Dorset Community Action during both the year in which the grant Application is made and for one further year either preceding or following the grant application / award