Following on from the success of our Transport Issues in Communities (TIC) Small Project Funds – see details of our winners here, we at The Transport and Health Integrated Research Network (THINK) are delighted to announce our Transport Issues in Rural Communities (TIRC) Small Project Fund.
We welcome you to submit a proposal on the role of transport in creating healthy rural communities. We welcome exploratory projects from interdisciplinary/multi-background teams and we are looking for a proposal that brings together partnerships of people from different backgrounds (e.g. communities, charity and third sectors, academics, health-boards, local authorities) to work together to address a “rural community in need” with a “specific rural transport issue”.
What is a rural community in need?
A rural community in need may be defined as any community in a rural area that has an issue associated with transport, or health and wellbeing or both.
For example, it might be:
- a geographically defined community such as a small town, village or street,
- and/or a community defined by socio-demographics or background, for example older people, children, LGBT+ community within a rural areas,
- and/or by mode of transport (cyclists, pedestrians etc.) accessing a rural area.
The specific transport issue may be defined as one or a combination of the following:
- one affecting health including either injuries/fatalities (caused by collisions),
- air/noise pollution,
- improving active travel,
- community severance and wellbeing.
The problem can be defined by an issue such as reducing speed limits or connecting communities with an offroad walking/cycle path, for example.
Funds as a steppingstone to further research
The funds should be used as a steppingstone to further research, with the aim to understand the transport issue further, identifying it in more detail and beginning to create strategies or interventions that work towards mitigating or reducing the issue.
A grant of up to £2000 is available per project to support the activity. We will select up to 4 projects for funding.
The money might be used in your project to support the hosting of events, workshops or knowledge gathering in pursuit of that aim.
Requirements
A final short report must be produced reporting the activity that took place, identifying the next steps needed and how to address these.
It is anticipated the funds would develop a project so that it would be easier for the community to apply for further funding for the next stages of the project. In addition to the grant of up to £2000 you will have the support of THINK to promote your work and work with you to identify and apply for further funding as appropriate.
Application Assessment
Projects will be assessed by the THINK project team, and an expert reviewer from Aberystwyth University’s Rural Futures Hub addressing:
- Community and Transport Impact: How far the proposed project might impact positively on the defined rural community with their particular transport issue
- Health Impact: How far the project would improve the health of the rural community
- Ambition but that it is Realistic and Achievable: How realistic projects are in achieving that aim and whether they represent value for money.
- Lead to Further Research Activity: How far the proposed research might underpin further research.
Submission – DEADLINE 15th July 2023
Please fill in the following form and send it back to think@aber.ac.uk before the deadline 15th July 2023.
If you would like to discuss any of your project ideas or gain greater clarification please contact Professor Charles Musselwhite chm93@aber.ac.uk
If you require an editable version of the form in a Word or PDF format for your submission, please request via think@aber.ac.uk
A downloadable flyer is available, if you require an editable Word doc version for submission rather than the online form, please email think@aber.ac.uk to be sent one.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Can we submit our application in Welsh?
A: Yes, you can submit your applications in Welsh or English because Aberystwyth University is the institution processing the fund and its main languages are Welsh and English.
Q: Does the fund consider both capital and revenue costs?
A: Yes, but the fund cannot pay for specific bits of kit on their own, there has to be a research element to the project.
Q: Can the community or applicants be based outside of Wales?
A: Yes, but the applicants can’t be just a business, there needs to be a element of collaborative working.
Q. When will projects receive the money?
A: We will announce the winning projects within 3-4 weeks of the deadline. Lead organisations will need to invoice us at a time agreed on a project-by-project basis, depending on project and organisation need. We want to make this as flexible as possible, but we have to be aware that we need to coordinate payment to follow the processes of the finance teams of any organisations involved.