Guidance

Common Ground Award: scoring framework

Updated 28 October 2025

Applies to England

This guidance provides you with information on the criteria used when your application for the Common Ground Award is assessed. Officials from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) will assess all bids from eligible applicants against this common assessment framework.

Eligibility

Is the organisation a:

a.            Registered charity
b.            Charitable incorporated organisation
c.            Company limited by guarantee
d.            Community interest company
e.            Community benefit society
f.             Unincorporate community group/organisation or an unincorporated association, provided it is:
    i.         Established for charitable, benevolent or philanthropic purposes;
    ii.        Has a governing body with at least three members;
    iii.       Has an inclusive Membership policy;
    iv.       Has a governing document;
    v.        Can provide accounts for the last two financial years;
    vi.       Has its own UK business bank account; and
    vii.      Can hold land or property and enter into contracts either by itself or via Trustees.

Strategic alignment

This section is assessed.  It is weighted at 25%.

We will ask for an explanation of how your organisation aligns with the core objective of the fund to build bridging social capital.

Score	Descriptor
0	No or unclear explanation of how the organisation aligns with the award objective
1	Application references bridging social capital or cross-community working but lacking detail or connection to strategic goals of the organisation
2	Clear explanation with supporting evidence, of how the organisation supports bridging social capital
3	Detailed and well-evidenced explanation showing strong strategic fit, with building bridging social capital as a core aspect of the organisation’s strategy or activity

Community engagement

This section is assessed. It is weighted at 25%.

We will ask how your organisation engages with communities and other organisations throughout its work.

Score	Descriptor
0	No or unclear evidence of community engagement or partnership working
1	Some evidence of engagement with at least one community or group, but limited scope or depth
2	Good evidence of engagement across multiple and diverse communities or groups, and/or partnership working with other organisations
3	Strong evidence of thoughtful and inclusive engagement across multiple communities or groups; may include co-design of work with communities, showing responsiveness to feedback and diverse community needs, and partnership working with relevant organisations

Community impact

This section is assessed. It is weighted at 25%.

We will ask how your organisation has made a positive impact on the communities it serves, by building bridging social capital.

Score	Descriptor
0	No or unclear evidence of impact or outcomes related to bridging social capital
1	Some evidence of impact, but limited and anecdotal, or not clearly linked to bridging social capital
2	Good evidence of impact, with an example showing improvements in inter-community relationships (e.g. greater levels of interaction, trust, understanding)
3	Strong evidence of impact, with an example or examples showing that the organisation’s work has formed or significantly strengthened relationships, networks or partnerships across communities

Sustainability

This section is assessed. It is weighted at 12.5%.

We will ask how your organisation will continue to make an impact into the future.

Score	Descriptor
0	No or unclear evidence of plans to sustain or build on current work; unclear how current impact will be maintained
1	Some reference to sustaining projects or measuring outcomes, but lacking detail and depth
2	Good evidence of plans to sustain or improve projects, with consideration of evaluation of impact
3	Strong evidence of credible long-term plans to sustain and improve projects, with impact evaluation

Use of funding

This section is assessed. It is weighted at 12.5% and will be used to determine the size of capital grant awards. Funding should be committed during this financial year, but can contribute towards longer-term capital projects that will not complete during this financial year.

Score	Descriptor
0	Proposed use of funding is ineligible (not capital expenditure), or an unclear explanation of how the funding will be used to enhance the offer of the organisation
1	Some reference to how the funding will be used to enhance the offer of the organisation but lacking detail and depth
2	Good evidence of how the funding will enhance the offer of the organisation, with adequate detail around how the funding will be used during this financial year
3	Strong evidence of how the funding will enhance the offer of the organisation, with good detail around how the funding will be used during this financial year