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‘Ask and Act’ are new duties proposed in the Housing (Scotland) Bill that requires public bodies to ask about a person’s housing situation early—and take action to prevent homelessness before it happens. The Scottish Government’s Homelessness Prevention Pilot Fund (up to £4 million) supports a range of bodies including, local authorities, Health Boards, the police service, registered social landlords, prisons, along with 3rd Sector Organisations experienced in preventing homelessness. The pilots will develop, test, scale and cost the new prevention duties in real-world settings. The fund is being administered by Advice Direct Scotland. It is designed to help public bodies, alongside third sector organisations experienced in preventing homelessness, prepare for and test the practical application of the new prevention duties with a particular focus on how ‘Ask and Act’ can be effectively embedded in day-to-day practice. It will also help relevant bodies and others to scope out the groups most at risk of homelessness, identify resource requirements, and best practice approaches.Examples of the types of approaches the fund will support are:- Early intervention and targeted prevention activity.- Multi-agency approaches to support people navigating housing, healthand social care services.- Partnership models and processes that can be replicated and scaled.- Collaborations involving shared resources, data and transitional orreferred services.- Initiatives that centre people at risk of homelessness and/or people with direct experience of homelessness in the design and delivery of theservice.- Initiatives that target groups at risk of homelessness and critical points- in service pathways that have been identified as leading tohomelessness.

This fund supports community engagement activities that help shape Scotland's policies and strategies on:- infection prevention and control (IPC)- antimicrobial resistance (AMR).Successful organisations will recruit and host a community voice and engagement co-ordinator. The co-ordinator will work with communities to gather and share insights that support national health strategies, campaigns and action plans.A particular focus will be on engaging people and groups whose views are not often represented in policy development.You can use funding for: - staff costs- project delivery costs- reasonable participant incentives- equipment costs that support project deliveryProjects should start in August 2026, with all funding spent by March 2027.

The Local Employability Partnership (LEP), Employability Funding Midlothian is a Scottish Government fund delivered in partnership with Midlothian Council. It supports employability programmes that help Midlothian people overcome employment barriers.

CivTech is a Scottish Government programme that brings people from the public, private and third sectors together to build things that make the world a better place.The Round 11 Challenges are focused across a wide range of areas including education, the natural environments (land and marine), the economy and health, core government functions, the Gaelic language, and more. Individuals, teams, pre-starts, start-ups, early stage or established SMEs, and large companies are all welcome to apply. For more details on the process and to view all of the current challenges, visit the CivTech website.

The SME Loan provides unsecured, interest free loans from for the installation of energy efficient measures such as lighting and heating upgrades, double glazing and insulation. The loan can be used to pay for: - heating, ventilation, and air conditioning upgrades.- renewable heat technologies such as installing an air source heat pump.- improving insulation, draught-proofing, double or secondary glazing.- installing LED lighting.- installing solar thermal systems, wind turbines and biomass boilers.

The Essentia Foundation is a charity that once operated Health and Social Welfare telephone counselling and information services supported by data processing and analysis in the field of public information. Their clients included HEBS, the Scottish Government, the Department of Health and the Central Office of Information as well as pharmaceutical companies. When the company was sold, the Essentia Foundation was established.The Foundation provides financial support to charities and community groups to help achieve the following objectives:- Improved health and social welfare of children and young people up to the age of 25 years old.- Increased opportunities for training, enhancing learning, upskilling, and developing career opportunities, and supporting young people up to the age of 25 years old to move towards employment.- To learn more about the Essentia Foundation, please visit their website (https://www.essentiafoundation.org.uk/)The fund is looking for projects that:- Support the participation in mainstream society for individuals with learning disabilities or long-term life limiting health conditions- Support young people who face long-term challenges living in poverty and inequality. - Support those who have been excluded from school to access or return to education or training opportunities- Provide skills and training to those who are furthest from the labour market- Aim to improve the health and welfare of children and young people (being those under 25) Please note the above are all in relation to supporting young people up to the age of 25 only.

Funding for an organisation to deliver ongoing support to sector organisations in Scotland, to help them drive transformational change in response to national, regional and place-based climate ambitions and policy. They want to fund a specialist organisation that can:- Help the sector track progress towards a climate ready, net zero Scotland by supporting data collection and reporting on progress.- Provide practical tools, clear guidance and training so organisations can achieve their goals for change.- Provide expert advice and connections to key networks, including tailored advice for the Screen sector.For activity between 1 April 2026 and 30 March 2027 (with a possible extension to 30 March 2028, following a review).

The primary objective of this funding call is to empower community groups and third-sector organisations to develop and implement projects that enhance resilience to natural hazardswithin their specific communities. They will support 12-month projects that that not only address immediate vulnerabilities butalso consider the broader context of community well-being.Projects should address one or more of the following key areas:1. Community-Led Risk Assessment: Develop initiatives that engage the community in a comprehensive assessment of local natural hazards, vulnerabilities, exposures and risks.2. Place-Based Resilience Planning: Support projects that facilitate the development of community-specific resilience plans that consider the unique characteristics, resources, and cultural aspects of the local area.3. Collaboration and Networking: Encourage community groups to form partnerships with local government agencies, emergency services, educational institutions, and other stakeholders to create collaborative networks that strengthen overall resilience.4. Knowledge Sharing and Replicability: Emphasise the development of project frameworks, documentation, and best practices that can be shared with other communities across Scotland, enabling them to replicate successful approaches.

Funding for innovative business models designed to help the bus sector adopt zero-emission buses along with charging or refuelling infrastructure. The scheme encourages bus and coach operators, financiers, local authorities and other relevant stakeholders to work together to transform the bus and coach market. Eligible expenditure includes (but is not limited to):- cost of charging unit or refuelling station- electrical or other power components- civil engineering works related to electrical charging units or hydrogen refuelling installations- capital costsPhase 3: Drawdown will be available in financial years 2026/27and 2027/28. Project delivery may continue beyond 31 March 2028. Please read the guidance available on the Energy Saving Trust website for more information.

Peatland Action (PA) is a peatland restoration project run by Scottish Natural Heritage and funded mainly by Scottish Government. The funding primarily supports on-the-ground restoration activities. This includes:- installation of peat dams in man-made ditches to increase water levels- allowing the peat-building mosses called sphagnums to re-establish. - more novel techniques such as peat hag re-vegetating by using the surrounding vegetation to stabilise the bare eroding peat