The following information has been provided to help you understand all the steps involved when making an application to the Rural Down Partnership for LEADER+ grant assistance.

STEP 1 Initial Enquiry
You should contact the Rural Down Partnership if you have any queries or comments in relation to its LEADER+ Programme and/or your proposed project.

STEP 2 Expression of Interest
You may be asked to complete an Expression of Interest Form. This form will enable us to gauge whether or not your project is suitable to receive LEADER+ grant assistance. If your project meets all the core criteria requirements, you will be asked to complete a full application form.

STEP 3 Application Form
The full application form is divided into Part A and Part B. You are required to complete both parts before your application will be considered.

STEP 4 Processing the Application
When both parts of the application have been received by the Rural Down Partnership, it will send these to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development will carry out an additional eligibility check and an assessment panel will consider the application if eligible for funding. A site visit will also take place to evaluate the project. The Rural Down Partnership will also liaise with other funding bodies to ensure that a) there is no duplication and b) the LEADER+ Programme is the most suitable funding source for the project. On completion of this process, a recommendation will be made to the Rural Down Partnership Board. The Rural Down Partnership Board will make the final decision on whether or not to approve funding for each project.

STEP 5 Letter of Offer or Rejection
The applicant will be informed about the Board's decision in the form of either a letter of offer or rejection. The latter will explain the Board's reasons for rejection.

Important Information:

Administering and Allocating Grant Assistance
To ensure that its grants are administered in the most effective way, the Rural Down Partnership will deliver its themes on either a one-off or rolling basis with set timescales assigned to each theme. There will be a number of application closing dates and only completed full application forms received by the closing date will be considered. The Rural Down Partnership aims to deliver a decision on projects to all applicants within a three-month period.

Monitoring and Evaluating Grant Assistance
On receipt of grant assistance from the Rural Down Partnership, all successful applicants may be subject to a project progress inspection from a representative of either a local, national or European Union funding body. The purpose of this is to ensure successful applicants have fulfilled all the necessary requirements and to assess the impact of projects in terms of targets achieved as outlined in the original application.