Contact: Jeff Pattison, ext 7321; email [email protected]

1 Summary

1.1 This report introduces, for approval, a scheme whereby each member of the County Council is allocated a budget of £10,000 to be spent on initiatives which benefit their local community. The report indicates the framework within which the scheme is to operate and also the processes to be followed.

1.2 Overall, a significant sum of money (£780,000) is being provided to members which is predicated on community benefits which satisfy one or more of the Council's three corporate priorities.

2 Recommendations

That the Cabinet recommend the following to the County Council:

1. To approve the allocation of £10,000 to each member of the County Council to be utilised for community benefits in accordance with the protocol attached to this report at Appendix I.

2. To approve the process for handling budget allocation to members and the funding of community initiatives with delegation being given to the County Treasurer to approve the payment of appropriate funds from individual budgets allocated to members.

3. The Chief Executive to publish full details of all expenditure from the budgets allocated to individual members on an annual basis.

4. The scheme to be reviewed in 12 months and, if necessary, refined or withdrawn in the light of experiences.

3 Background

3.1 At the Council meeting on 21 February 2007 the Leader announced that as part of the budget, £10,000 would be made available to each member of the County Council to be spent by them on initiatives within their Division which benefited their community.

3.2 The budget would become available to members in the 2007/08 financial year, but not until after the Annual Council Meeting in May. The reason for that was to allow the Leader to consider the parameters within which members could allocate their budgets and bring these to the Council meeting for agreement.

3.3 This £10,000 allocation per member represents a significant expenditure of Council Tax and it is therefore important that maximum community benefit is obtained. Furthermore, it is important that legal and financial standards are complied with so as to ensure probity in the expenditure of this money.

3.4 It is also important to recognise that this expenditure, significant though it is, represents only part of other budgets that the Council has, aimed at voluntary and community organisations. It is important to ensure that there is clarity for voluntary and community organisations so that they understand the relationship between the new arrangements and the existing grant funds, and that the application and decision processes are open and transparent and comply with the Compact principles.

3.5 The overall value of existing grants is approximately £3.9m, the majority of which is to support the operating costs of organisations providing complementary services to those of the Council. £355,000 is provided from the Policy and Resources budget to the Voluntary Sector for specific projects, with other smaller budgets being available from other budget headings.

3.6 In view of this proposed addition to community grant giving and the total amounts involved, it would be sensible in the medium to long term to consider bringing together these disparate administrative elements involved. The fundamental objective in doing so would be to determine if cost savings could be achieved, to ensure a comprehensive support service regarding all grant giving and, significantly, to ensure that a corporate assessment was made of all grant applications and their rating in the context of fulfilling the Council's three priorities of:

· Hampshire safer and more secure for all

· Maximising Well-Being

· Enhancing our quality of place

As part of current administrative arrangements for processing grants, queries are often raised by the applicant. The recently developed grants database provides a comprehensive, historical, corporate record of which organisation has received what level of grant and for what purpose. This aids transparency and equity in the distribution of what is still a limited grants budget.

3.7 However, it is acknowledged that little or no extra resources are available for the administration of the £780,000. Furthermore, in view of the amount of budget per member, the number of members and the potential size of any budget allocated by a member, i.e. 78 members x £10,000 = £780,000 x average £500 allocation = 1,560 `events', it is unrealistic to expect the normal administrative arrangements to be absorbed by existing staff.

3.8 As an example, the Chief Executive's Department, on behalf of the Leader, handles about 75 grant applications per year which go forward for decisions, which utilises about 50% of the officer's time. Perhaps about another 25% of her time is spent dealing with applications which do not go forward. The resource potential for handling perhaps 1,500 applications is obvious. It is understood that Surrey County Council, in administering their individual member budget scheme, utilise the equivalent of 5.5 FTE staff. £20,000 has been allowed for the administration costs of the members' budgets. If this is exceeded, the County Council may have to topslice members' budgets or apply any indexation of members' budgets towards administration costs.

3.9 In the absence of any additional resources, for officers to fully support members in the utilisation of their budgets, a `light touch' approach has been designed. This will fulfil minimum legal and financial constraints for the Council and individual members and is one which should not result in adverse comment from the Audit Commission. However, it will, of necessity, place greater responsibility on individual members to keep within agreed parameters, to monitor their own expenditure on grants and also to retain all documentation for possible future scrutiny, review and analysis by, for example, both internal and external audit. Members will need to sign a formal agreement before having access to their budget, to confirm they understand how the scheme operates and that they agree to comply in full with the scheme's protocol.

3.10 The process will be for members to either initiate projects (provided that there is a sponsoring organisation and therefore no continuing liability for the Council) which they consider to be of value to the local community or to receive and consider suggestions from local groups or organisations (but not individuals). This might be to initiate a project, to contribute to a community based project that might otherwise be vulnerable, or to make a grant to a local organisation usually for a specific one-off project.

3.11 Members will need to carefully consider any request that they receive and make a judgement, taking account of the extent to which it meets the aims of the Council's three priorities and the Protocol criteria referred to in Appendix I. In making an assessment, members will want to ascertain whether the organisation is receiving funding from elsewhere in the County Council. The member can then assess whether the total funding being sought from all quarters is consistent with the priority that the project should be given set against the Council's three main aims. The application form filled in by the organisation will contain all of this necessary information, but in addition, members may also wish to consult the grants database, for which training will be provided in due course.

3.12 If a grant application is received by a member from an organisation, it is a requirement that the organisation is asked to complete the Council's application form (Appendix IV) to be submitted with a covering letter on the organisation's letterhead. Sufficient copies of these will be distributed to all members in advance of the scheme commencing. The form will contain important information for the member to consider.

3.13 The member will then need to consider each application for funding to the extent that it meets the Council's priorities and fulfils local community needs and meets their own aspirations and then complete their own application form (see Appendix III) to endorse the proposed expenditure.

3.14 Whether requests for funding are agreed by the member, or not, brief reasons for the decision should be recorded and also given by the member to the organisation concerned.

3.15 As, under current legislation, non-executive members may not take individual decisions on behalf of the County Council, the approval process must involve either an executive member or an officer. To reduce bureaucracy, where a member does recommend that funding be provided to an external organisation, a copy of the organisation's application form, together with the member's endorsement via his/her own application form should be submitted to the County Treasurer for approval. The County Treasurer will, however, simply pass the recommendation for payment on the basis of the details provided, i.e. without making further enquiries, unless there is something obviously untoward.

3.16 Members should assume that payment will be made by the County Treasurer within 14 days of receipt of the completed and endorsed grant application being received. The County Treasurer will inform the member by exception if the payment cannot be approved and made. To ensure the completeness of the Council's corporate records, the County Treasurer will insert details of the funding provided on the Council's grants database.

3.17 It is important for members, and the Council as a whole, that members retain the originals of all paperwork regarding the processing of their budgets as it may be needed subsequently by either internal or external audit for examination.

3.18 In undertaking this process, members also need to be aware that their Code of Conduct will apply throughout. Thus, if a member considers they have a personal interest (as defined in the Code) in any matter which comes before them, they should declare it. If that personal interest is considered to be prejudicial, they should take no further involvement in the matter other than inform the applicant about this and refer them to another named member who will consider the application and recommend it for approval or refusal in the normal way. If the application is approved, the expenditure will be drawn from that member's budget to whom the application was first directed, subject to a maximum limit specified by the originating member.

3.19 In addition to this, members will need to be aware that the process is likely to involve public scrutiny. Members will need to be careful to avoid allegations of partiality or favouritism. For the Council's part and to assist transparency and openness, it is the intention, at least annually, to publish details of the use to which each member's budget has been put and the organisations and communities thereby benefited.

4 Conclusions

4.1 The report, and the accompanying protocol, sets out the framework within which the allocation of individual budgets should be managed. It gives flexibility to enable members to be able to respond directly to some of the needs of their community.

4.2 It is, however, acknowledged that this is the first occasion that the County Council has operated such a scheme and it is therefore suggested that its operation is reviewed in 12 months, taking into account both members' and officers' experiences.

APPENDIX I

Protocol for individual budgets for Hampshire County Councillors

Introduction

1. Each county councillor will receive a budget of £10,000, to be spent on local projects or initiatives in their divisional area. Bona fide groups and organisations, but not individuals, will be able to apply to their county councillor for a grant. A bona fide organisation is one which can demonstrate that it has at least one of the following:

· A formal letter heading

· Independently verified statements of account or at least, a formal letter from an independent person with the requisite ability and practical experience to carry out a competent examination of the accounts

· A published statement of its objectives

· A committee or board of governors or trustees

· Minuted meetings and an annual general meeting

What type of projects/initiatives are covered by the scheme?

2. Groups and organisations can apply for funding for both revenue (one-off) and minor capital projects. It is hoped that grants would benefit a wide range of groups/activities: for example, vulnerable children or adults, young people, facilities for older people, community facilities, parish councils (but only for specific projects), minor traffic or safety works, local environment projects, and community safety.

How will applications be judged?

3. Applications for grants must demonstrate that their project or initiative contributes to one or more of the county council's corporate priorities:

· Hampshire safer and more secure for all

· Maximising wellbeing

· Enhancing our quality of place

Who can apply?

4. Applications can be made by all types of organisations and groups located within the administrative County of Hampshire, but the organisation or group must have a bank account, headed notepaper and (for grants over £2,000) a set of accounts. A list of organisations that would be generally eligible is attached at Appendix II. Applications will not be accepted from individuals (e.g. for personal sponsorship) or from political parties or groups affiliated with a political party or from lobbying organisations. However, an organisation that meets the criteria (see Appendix II) may apply for a grant on behalf of an individual member. Applications from religious groups may be considered, but the application must show that the project will bring wider community benefit. A list of organisations that would generally not be eligible is attached at Appendix II.

The approval process

5. Organisations/groups applying for a grant must complete an application in the prescribed form, which should be submitted to their local county councillor for approval. The application form will require specific information to be inserted including whether funding applications have been or are about to be made elsewhere in the Council. The member will check the suitability of grants noting whether funding is being provided from elsewhere in the County Council already. Individual county councillors will agree which applications they wish to support and the onus will be on the county councillor to outline briefly the reasons for the application and to satisfy him/herself of the business case for the application. Those unsuccessfully applying should also be replied to giving brief reasons for the decision. The organisation's application form, together with the member's application form, will be sent to and processed by the County Treasurer's Department.

6. At the present time, until new legislation is enacted, it is not possible for non-executive members to authorize expenditure. Therefore the final decision on whether a grant is awarded (after it has gone through a checking process) will be made at officer level, but cabinet members will be kept informed of grants which are relevant to their portfolio.

7. The County Council's Code of Conduct for members must be adhered to. The member will need to declare a personal interest so that the officer approving the grant is aware of this. If a member has a prejudicial interest in any matter coming before them, they should declare it and take no further part, other than inform the applicant about this and refer them to another named member who will consider the application and recommend it for approval or refusal in the normal way. If the application is approved, the expenditure will be drawn from that member's budget to whom the application was first directed, subject to a maximum limit specified by the originating member.

Timetable

8. The scheme will commence in June 2007, and will be subject to annual review.

9. The deadline for submitting grant requests to the County Treasurer will be the end of February in that financial year (i.e. February 2008 in the first instance). If a member has money remaining in their budget at the end of the first year, it will be carried over into the next year but not for a third year.

Financial issues

10. There will be a minimum grant set at not less than £100 with the maximum set at £10,000.

11. Grant payments will be one-off, and there should be no expectation of future funding. The grants are expected to support projects and not to contribute to an organisation's revenue costs: for example, annually recurring costs.

12. The scheme may be used to facilitate matchfunding from other organisations, but matchfunding is in no way a requirement.

13. The County Council is not able to undertake feasibility work to assess the merits of an initiative/project nor to assist applicants in making their bid beyond advising on the application process.

Publicity

14. The scheme will be published, e.g. on the County Council's website, but support from the council's corporate communications team will not be available to publicize individual members' grants. Members must deal with all correspondence and media comment that arises from their grants and fully recognise with the media and others that the grant has been provided by the County Council in furtherance of the County Council's priorities.

Administration of the scheme

15. Funding recommended by members will be processed and payments made by the County Treasurer's Department. The scheme will be advertised county wide with a focus on the County Council's website.

Audit and reporting

16. The scheme will be subject to scrutiny in the same way as any other county council budget would be. Members must therefore retain all original documents including application forms and correspondence for at least six years for future reference by either internal or external audit.

17. For grants over £2,000, applicants will have to report, to the county councillor who has made the grant, on how the money was spent, either in the form of a letter or by providing a set of accounts which shows details of the expenditure.

18. It is anticipated that the County Council would report annually on the out-turn and nature of grants made by county councillors.

19. Grant information will be entered by the County Treasurer on the corporate grants database once payment has been made.

APPENDIX II

Examples of Generally Eligible Organisations (as may be amended from time to time)

This is not intended to be an exhaustive list - other organisations who seek to serve the people of Hampshire may well qualify, provided that they satisfy the Council's corporate priorities.

· Parish Councils (for specific projects only)

· Scout, guide, boys and girls brigade local organisations

· Religious groups where the project will bring wider community benefit

· Shopmobility (local)

· Citizens' Advice Bureau (local)

· Riding for the disabled (local)

· Village or community hall associations

· Age Concern, Mencap

· British Legion, Services' benevolent societies

· Parent teacher associations (formally constituted)

· Organisations promoting the locality

· Nursery education groups

Examples of Organisations that are not Eligible (as may be amended from time to time)

· Any political party

· Any organisation with political aims

· Any campaigning group (CPRE, Friends of the Earth, etc etc)

· Any organisation that raises funds nationally - for national distribution

· Any organisation that is principally funded by national government (SEEDA, SEERA, National Parks, District Councils, Natural England, Highways Agency)

· Any government quango

· Any pressure group formed solely for one issue

· Any group formed to oppose any proposed/likely county council policy

APPENDIX III

Signature of County Councillor ......................................................

Date .....................................................

Endorsed by County Treasurer ..........................................................

Date ...........................................................

APPENDIX IV

Application form

Grants for local community initiatives

COUNTY COUNCILLOR DEVOLVED BUDGET SCHEME

If you have problems answering the questions on this form, please contact your local county councillor for help.

Guidance notes for completing this form are attached at the back of this form, including information, should you require it, on how to find out who your local county councillor is.

Contact details for your organisation

1. Name of your organisation

2. Address of your organisation

3. A. website address of your organisation

Leave this question blank if your organisation does not have a website.

4. Bank account details for your organisation for payment, should a grant be awarded

Account name

Bank

Sort code Account no.

The main contact person for this application

5. Title First name Surname

6. Position in your organisation

For example, `Treasurer' or `Secretary'.

7. Address

8. Contact details:

Daytime Evening Mobile

Fax number Email

Information about your organisation

9. How would you describe your organisation?

Please tick all boxes that apply.

Registered charity Registration number:

Voluntary organisation Community Group

Company limited by guarantee Social Enterprise

Not-for-profit organisation School/college

Other Please describe:

10. Please write a brief description of your organisation (i.e. history, activities, membership, ages, etc) Please try to write no more than 50 words.

Your project/proposal

11. Please suggest a title for your project/proposal

If your project/proposal title is the same as your organisation's name, please write your organisation's name in the box below. Please try to write no more than 8 words.

12. Please write a brief description of your project/proposal and tell us what this funding will pay for if your application is successful. Please try to write no more than 50 words.

13. If your request is for building works within your premises, please tell us when the works are due to commence and finish (approximately).

14. If you are a community organisation, please tell us which groups, if any, use your premises for their activities.

15. Estimated expenditure for your project

Please put down all the items you will need to carry out your project and their estimated or actual costs in the table below. Please ensure you only put down costs that will relate to the specific project your are applying for and not your organisation's normal running costs.

16. How did you identify the need for your project/proposal?

For example, you could tell us about any research or surveys you have done. You could also tell us about any national or local guidance which has affected your decision to apply for a grant. You will find some ideas to help you in the guidance notes for this application form.

Please try to write no more than 100 words.

Finance for your project/proposal

17.How much funding are you seeking from your County Councillor and if a grant were to be awarded to whom should the cheque be made payable?

18. Have you previously (within the last five years) applied for funding, or are you applying to any other funder(s) now or in the foreseeable future, including departments of Hampshire County Council, other county councillors, or the appropriate borough/district council, for the purposes described in this application? If so, please tell us in the table below.

19. How will the balance of the project be funded?

20. If you are part of a larger organisation or have an umbrella group, please write the name of this organisation here:

Monitoring supplement

Please do your best to answer the questions in this section as accurately as you can. You must complete these questions as they provide us with important information about the people who will benefit from your project/proposal.

This information is collected in order to monitor our grant programmes for equal opportunity. The answers you give will not affect your application for a grant from Hampshire County Council.

21. Of the people involved in your organisation (for example, as staff/ volunteers/trustees/members of the management committee) how many would you describe as:

People from black & minority ethnic communities

Disabled people

Men/boys

Women/girls

Young People (under 25)

Older People (65+)

22. Please tell us about the people who will benefit from your project/proposal. (Please tick all that are appropriate)

We realise that it can be difficult to know exactly who will benefit from your project/proposal, but please try to make a good estimate. It is perfectly acceptable if you only tick one or two boxes.

You should only tick the category `Whole community' if you have no indication at all of who might benefit.

Whole Community Other voluntary & community organisations

23. Please tell us which geographical area will benefit most from your project/proposal.

Towns/places:

Districts or boroughs:

If you think your project/proposal will benefit all of Hampshire, tick here

Supporting documentation

24. Please supply the following documents when you submit your application. If you do not supply these documents, we will not be able to process your application.

Tick the boxes to show which documents you have attached to this application.

Set of Annual Accounts

Estimates for work or items of equipment

Data Protection

Details you have provided to Hampshire County Council will only be used for the purposes of duly considering your grant application and in particular, as part of this process, will involve publishing your organisation's name, town where it is situated and brief details of your project on Hantsweb. This data may be viewed by any individual worldwide, therefore if the information is personal data which can identify you and you do not wish it to be published, please put a cross in the box.

We may occasionally wish to share your contact details with other statutory bodies and voluntary and community organisations for use in surveys and consultations. We may also share your contact details with organisations wanting to send you information about matters of interest to the voluntary and community sector. Please tick the box if you agree that we may use your contact details for this purpose.

Declaration

I declare that the information supplied in this application is true and that any grant money received from Hampshire County Council will be used for the purposes described in this form.

Signed Date

Position in organisation

Submitting your application

Please make sure that you have enclosed all the supporting documents requested in Question 24, then return your completed form to your local County Councillor. Please either email your application, or if this is not possible, send it in hard copy form*:

c/o Chief Executive's Department

Hampshire County Council

The Castle

Winchester

Hampshire

SO23 8UJ

* If you are unsure who your local County Councillor is or want to check their email address, please refer to the County Council's website

http://www3.hants.gov.uk/yourcountycouncillors/findyourcouncillor.htm

or telephone 0800 028 0888 (a freephone number for Hampshire callers)

GUIDANCE NOTES - HELP WITH COMPLETING YOUR GRANT APPLICATION FORM

The main contact person for this application (Questions 5-8):

Please make sure that this person knows about your project/proposal and is able to talk about it with a County Councillor if required.

Information about your organisation (Questions 9 & 10):

Your organisation may fall under more than one category - please tick as many boxes as necessary.

Your project/proposal (Questions 11-16):

If you are applying for a grant to support the general running and activities of your organisation, please use this section to tell us about the usual services and activities you provide or, if you are a new organisation, the activities and services you intend to provide. Please also tell us about any improvements you will be able to make to your service if you receive this funding.

If you are applying for a grant to support a one-off activity or event, please give us a description of the project and try to tell us exactly what the grant will pay for.

All grants must show how they relate to one or more of the County Council's set of three priorities which are as follows:-

· Hampshire safer and more secure for all

· Maximising wellbeing

· Enhancing our quality of place

Monitoring Supplement (Questions 21-23) and Supporting Documentation (24): If applicable, please include the following information (on a separate sheet if necessary):

· Submission of annual accounts to show where money was spent (mainly for large grants)

· Financial report on a project (unaudited)

· Surveys or questionnaires to ask users of a service what they think of service/project

· Attendance figures

· Site visit (building work/arts events etc.)

· Newspaper cutting relating to event

· Photo

· Receipts

· Simple letter saying how money was spent and what outcomes the grant helped to produce

· Organisations with quality marks can supply monitoring data in their own format

Applying for a grant

Who can apply?

Each county councillor has access to a budget of £10,000 to be spent on local projects or initiatives in their divisional area. Bona fide groups and organisations, but not individuals, will be able to apply to their county councillor for a grant. A bona fide organisation is one which can demonstrate it has at least one of the following:

· A formal letter heading

· Independently verified statements of account or at least, a formal letter from an independent person with the requisite ability and practical experience to carry out a competent examination of the accounts

· A published statement of its objectives

· A committee or board of governors or trustees

· Minuted meetings and an annual general meeting

Please see copy of the guidelines used in awarded grants attached as an appendix to this document.

Who can't apply?

Please refer to guidelines (see attached appendix)

What we can't fund

Please refer to guidelines (see attached appendix)

When to apply

The scheme will start in June 2007, and applications will be welcome throughout the year, however all grants must be approved by the County Councillor and submitted to the County Treasurer for payment by the end of February 2008, so please be sure to send your form off to your County Councillor in good time to ensure that, if your request is successful, there is sufficient time to process it.

What happens next?

If the County Councillor does not wish to make a grant to your organisation, he/she will contact the person named on the application form to let him/her know briefly why the request is not being supported. If the County Councillor does wish to recommend that you should receive a grant, your application form (with a covering endorsement form filled in by the County Councillor) will be passed to the appropriate officer of the County Council to check the paperwork and then arrange for payment to be made. If successful, applicants will be advised in writing within two weeks of the decision with payment to follow within a week thereafter. If conditions are placed on the grant monies then this timetable could be extended.

Follow-up action

Where grants of £2,000 or more are awarded by the County Council, it is a legal requirement for the organisation concerned to provide written confirmation, within 12 months of the grant being paid, as to how the grant was spent. Failure to do so may result in a request for the grant to be returned to the County Council.

Appendix

COUNTY COUNCILLORS' DEVOLVED BUDGET SCHEME

GUIDELINES FOR ALLOCATION OF GRANTS

TO COMMUNITY GROUPS AND ORGANISATIONS

These notes should be regarded as guidelines and not prescriptive rules.

(i) Assistance will be considered only in response to direct applications from the organisation seeking assistance. Applications cannot be made by individuals, but an organisation can make application on behalf of an individual member (eg for sponsorship).

(ii) Grants will normally be "one off" and not recurring.

(iii) Preference will be given to applications for specific projects rather than "general running costs" of organisations or projects with on-going revenue implications. Any applications for the latter must state how the on-going costs will be met.

(iv) The following organisations will be generally considered eligible for the award of a grant:

· Parish Councils (for specific projects only)

· Scout, guide, boys and girls brigade local organisations

· Religious groups where the project will bring wider community benefit

· Shopmobility (local)

· Citizens' Advice Bureau (local)

· Riding for the disabled (local)

· Village or community hall associations

· Age Concern, Mencap

· British Legion, Services' benevolent societies

· Parent teacher associations (formally constituted)

· Organisations promoting the locality

· Nursery education groups

Please note that this is not intended to be an exhaustive list, and it may be amended from time to time. Other organisations who seek to serve the people of Hampshire may well qualify, provided that they satisfy the Council's corporate priorities

(v) The following organisations would not be eligible for a grant:

· Any political party

· Any organisation with political aims

· Any campaigning group (CPRE, Friends of the Earth, etc etc)

· Any organisation that raises funds nationally - for national distribution

· Any organisation that is principally funded by national government (SEEDA, SEERA, National Parks, District Councils, Natural England, Highways Agency)

· Any government quango

· Any pressure group formed solely for one issue

· Any group formed to oppose any proposed/likely county council policy

· Government Institutions (e.g. NHS)

· Overseas and out of County organisations which have no direct Hampshire involvement

· Branches or organisations assisted centrally with a sum from the County Council (e.g. Citizens Advice Bureaux)

· Bodies requesting funds for onward distribution to charities e.g. mayoral appeals, carnivals, fetes, etc.

(vi) Where possible self-help within organisations should be encouraged and to this end, grants will normally be a percentage of the sum required to complete the project.

(vii) Requests may be considered from County wide groups (e.g. Guides, Scouts, Hampshire County Youth Orchestra) for specific trips, e.g. for an international jamboree or cultural tour.

(viii) Conditions may be attached to any grant if considered appropriate, e.g. availability of minibuses for community use when not in use by the owning organisation.

(ix) As a general rule, grants below £100 or in excess of £10,000 will not be awarded.

(x) Where financial support is sought towards a facility, which is used by others, such as a hall or minibus, details should be given of the extent of that use (in % term(s) and to what extent charges are made.

(xi) As a general rule, grants will be held up to a maximum of three years after the award is made.

REPORT ENDS