Neighbourhood Proportion

Neighbourhood CIL (NCIL) is intended to help address the demands of a new development on the local area. It is therefore distributed and spent at a local level to help smaller scale projects. It is a great opportunity for communities to access funding to support local projects and initiatives in their area.

More significant infrastructure projects will be funded through the Strategic CIL Fund. 25% of all CIL receipts in an area will be set aside in the NCIL fund if the area is covered by an adopted neighbourhood plan. Elsewhere up to 15% of receipts will be set aside in the NCIL fund.

How NCIL funds are used is dependent on whether the area where the development takes place is in a parished area (i.e. one with a Parish Council) or an unparished area (i.e. an area without a parish council).

In parished areas the funds are passed directly onto the Parish Council (every six months) and they are responsible for deciding how to spend the money and then spending it; whereas in non-parished areas the Council retains the funds and allocates it to ward based, local community projects.

The rest of this page describes how the non-parished ward based NCIL is used, for parished areas it is suggested you contact the individual parish council direct to ask them how they use their CIL funds. The bidding process outlined below does not apply to parished areas.

What is the process?

Engagement will take place with the community (within non parished ward areas) to raise awareness of the funding available for communities to use.

There will be an opportunity for groups within wards to ‘bid’ for funding from the ‘ward pot’ for their area. Groups/Individuals should request a call back from the CIL team to discuss plans for a project by emailing cil@solihull.gov.uk (detailing your name, phone number and a brief description of your project idea).

The fund total available is released annually and these funds will be open to bids throughout the summer and autumn. Projects will then be assessed against our Scoring Matrix Criteria and reported to Cabinet Member for Communities and Leisure for final decision in the winter.

If you are interested in applying for funding, please read our help sheet and see the ‘how to apply’ section of this page.

What is available to bid for in 2024?

Wards that have reached the pot threshold (of £10,000) and are open for bids are listed below:

Area Totals
Blythe £14,639
Dorridge £48,449
Elmdon £12,327
Knowle £62,167
Lyndon £20,585
Olton £16,251
Shirley East £13,314
Shirley South £211,009
Silhill £15,167
St. Alphege £27,182

Projects must be classified as ‘infrastructure’ and/or must benefit the community (by alleviating the demands development places on an area). Monies cannot be used to fund events or fetes.

More information as to what will be considered for allocation of CIL funds can be found within our help sheet. Bids can be made for either part or the full amount.

Bids for the 2024 funding can now formally be made. The closing date for submissions is Friday 1 November 2024. Projects will then be reviewed to enable them to be reported to the Cabinet Member for Communities in January 2025. 

How to apply

The following criteria is mandatory to bid for Neighbourhood CIL:

  • project should be classed as Infrastructure/meets the demands development places on an area
  • projects should not require on-going maintenance

The body applying should be:

  • formally constituted
  • has a bank account requiring two unrelated signatories
  • has at least two unrelated management committee members if they are an unincorporated organisation or voluntary group
  • demonstrates good financial management procedures including records of income and expenditure (or to be partnering with a delivery body who has these structures in place

To apply for funding from a ward allocation pot, please email the CIL team to request a discussion of a potential project - cil@solihull.gov.uk

Please leave your name, number and a brief description of your project idea.

Following a brief discussion with a member of the team about your project idea, an application form will be sent to you.

All applications must provide a detailed description of the nature of the project, including how much money is likely to be needed and for what purpose. It must identify every party with a legal interest in or responsibility for the land/buildings where the project will be undertaken.

The key stakeholders included in the project must agree to the nature of the project (including, spending cost, timescales, extent etc.).

An application to allocate NCIL will be unable to be taken forward for consideration if it does not make an attempt to meet all of the criteria listed within the guidance sheet. However, the project will be assessed against a set of criteria and will be considered on a case by case basis.

Where possible, grants will be paid in arrears, i.e. after the project has been completed. However, we recognise that this is not always possible, particularly for small voluntary and community groups who we are keen should be able to access these funds.  

When making your applications we will ask whether payment in arrears would present you with any difficulties and, if your bid is successful, we will work with you to seek an alternative approach to ensure that the project can be delivered.  Please note that this will have no bearing on assessing whether the project should be funded or not.

If your project can’t be funded using NCIL, then you may wish to consider whether there are any alternative community funding or support arrangements in place. These are detailed on our Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) Funding page.

16 bids were allocated funding in 2019. The following projects were considered to be the most appropriate and scored highly in the assessment:

  • Dorridge & District Residents' Association (DDRA) - A Path for Bentley Heath Park (£12,865)
  • The Knowle Society - #LoveKnowle Park (£35,000)
  • Olton Mere Sailing Club - Pontoon Floatation Replacement (£15,895)
  • Langley School - Provision of a covered, outdoor seating area (£14,000)
  • SMBC Public Realm Shirley High Street Shirley High Street – Using Green infrastructure to Improve the Public Realm (£10,000)
  • SMBC Public Realm Jacey Park - Jacey Park: Increasing Access to Nature (£8,000)
  • Friends of Green Lane Park - Green Lane Park Development Project: enhancement of green space (£13,330)
  • Shirley Parish Parochial Church Council - Recovery from Lockdown: including computer skills club & technology to reduce isolation (£2,700)
  • Shirley Parish Parochial Church Council - Back yard refurbishment to outdoor room (£2,000)
  • Greswold Primary School - Greswold Primary School Community Access Project (£5,000)
  • Solihull BID - Community Seating Hub: greener spaces for all (£30,000)
  • Shirley Institute - Upgrading/replacing of windows (£12,695)
  • Visit Knowle - Central Knowle Improvement Plan 2020-21 (£17,000)
  • Knowle Allotment Society - Knowle Allotments Security Fencing (£3,000)
  • Solihull Round Table - Langley Hall Park Natural Play Area (£5,000)
  • Shirley Old People’s Welfare Committee Limited - Extend dining room at Elizabeth House care home (£20,000)

7 bids were allocated funding in 2019. The following projects were considered to be the most appropriate and scored highly in the assessment:

  • Dorridge Village Hall Association - Extension to Dorridge Village Hall (£20,000)
  • Knowle Village Hall - Installation of emergency exits throughout the building (£8,200)
  • Olton Library (SMBC) - Olton Library improvements (£18,363)
  • Palmers Rough(SMBC) - Health and well-being and outdoor gym equipment (£7,500)
  • Light Hall Youth and Community Association Trust - Replace worn and damaged tables (£8,092)
  • Friends of Shirley Park - 9 picnic benches (£7,830)
  • Haslucks Green Junior School - Replacement windows for music/SOLAR room (£6,000)

9 bids were allocated funding in 2021:

  1. Marjorie Willis Educational Foundation - Outdoor Seating at Alderbrook School - £10,455
  2. Shirley Parish PCC - Restoration of the tower clock in St James’s Church - £4,104
  3. Royal British Legion Knowle (Club) Ltd - Project Jubilee Room - £5,591.90
  4. Shirley Sea Cadets - Unit extension - £45,000
  5. St Phillips Church Dorridge - Installation of disabled and wheelchair bound person's lift - £20,507
  6. Dorridge Scout Hut Car Park - Dorridge Scout Group - £7,500
  7. SMBC Palmers Rough - "Palmers Rough Pond Enhancement (part of Newts & Shoots Pond Creation & Enhancement works contract)" £27,795.75
  8. Knowle Park / The Knowle Society - Knowle Park Basketball Court - £2,531.99
  9. Ordinary Magic CIC (The Magic Bean Coffee Shop) - Community IT and Communication Infrastructure Project - £12,000
  1. Dorridge Cricket Club -Development of second pitch at the main ground and accompanying new pavilion with changing facilities - £48,000
  2. Knowle & Dorridge Cricket Club – Clubhouse Redevelopment Project - £20,000
  3. Dorridge Scouts - Dorridge Scout Hut Roof Modification and Replacement - £15,000
  4. Knowle, Dorridge and Bentley Heath Neighbourhood Forum (KDBH) -KDBH Community Engagement & Social Infrastructure Building Project - £10,000
  5. Visit Knowle - Northern Gateway to Knowle - landscape and public realm improvements - £9,960
  6. Solihull & District Hebrew Congregation - Solihull Jewish Community Centre Insulation and Energy Saving - £7,500
  7. Langley Primary School – Repair school drive - £5,000
  8.  Ralph Road Allotment Society - Creation of wildlife and community area - £4,616
  9.  Shirley Methodist Bowling Club - Purchase of an Electric Mat Winder for the short mats used by Shirley Methodist Bowling Club - £5,056
  10.  Solihull Municipal Club Sport and Social Club -Resurface Road Entrance - £4,120
  11.  Solihull Municipal Cricket Club - Repair to Garage Roof at Cricket Club - £4,680
  12.  Shirley Institute - Car park resurfacing -£25,000
  13.  St James Primary School, Shirley - Building an inspirational library - £3,325
  14.  SMBC Public Realm – Malvern Park play area improvements - £80,000
  1. Friends of Shirley Park - The Rose Garden redevelopment in Shirley Park - £22,419
  2. Burman PTA (Burman Nursery and Infant School) - Preloved Uniform Shed - £715
  3. Tudor Grange Primary Academy Yew Tree - Yew Tree Primary Academy Outdoor Centre and Playground - £80,800
  4. Tudor Grange Academy - Tudor Grange Academy Solihull Tennis and Netball Community Hub (Court resurfacing) - £32,407
  5. Ecclesiastical Parish of Shirley (St James Parish Church) - St James’s Church Pod Project - installation of a disabled toilet and kitchenette in the South Transept of St James's Church - £5,000
  6. Shirley and District Sea Cadets - Development of outside classroom and recreation area by laying block paving and resetting slabs - £5,900