When it comes to writing your CIF Bid Application, there are a variety of documents required that you need to be aware of to fully write and maximise your chances of a successful application. As it can be somewhat unclear and daunting, we have compiled a list together of the documentation you will be required to produce, to collate enough evidence to support your bid. We have broken this down into the 3 sections you are required to complete when uploading your bid to the CIF portal: Project Output, Cost Criteria and Project Planning.
Output:
- 2 x statements from school staff about the issue (usually Head, Business Manager or Site Manager)
- Building Surveyor or relevant Consultant’s Statement
- Environmental Sustainability Statement
- Any relevant invoices for repairing the issue for the bid
- A Specialist Report (such as a Specialist Roof Survey in great detail)
- Property Condition Survey of the site, containing details of the relevant issue
- A photographic schedule of the issue (often contained within the PCS)
Cost Criteria:
- Procurement and Financial Analysis (this is where you will include the relevant details of the tender submissions received to build the quoted cost for the project)
- Each tender submission received attached in full
- Copy of the Project Specification sent out for the tenders received
Project Planning:
- Options Appraisal (where you outline all the different options that could be taken to tackle the problem, with pros and cons for each, and which one has been chosen and why)
- Project Risk Register (risks that may be faced during construction etc.)
- Consultant’s Project Programme
- Contractor’s Project Programme
- Building Regulations Approval
- Site-wide Master Plan (over the next 5 or 10 years)
- Good Estates Management Document (see our previous article on this here)
- Planning Permission / Listed Building Consent, if required for the project
As well as this, you will need to fill in the relevant information into the CIF Portal to upload your application for consideration. Typically, the deadline for CIF is mid December, however, last year’s deadline was brought forward to the 6th December. We begin preparation of these documents as early as possible, usually from early September, to allow sufficient time to gather the information, in case of a shorter deadline than expected.
We know that initially looking at the list above is daunting and it can be hard to know where to start. That is where we come in to help. At Kenneth and Edwards, we are greatly experienced in facilitating our client’s CIF Bid Applications and can advise on what documents are necessary, and what will best increase your chances of being granted the funding.
If you are interested in the Condition Improvement Fund for 2024/25, we are now taking applications for consultations for prospective CIF Bids for submission later this year.
Get in touch with us here.