District fund

The district fund provides financial support for the implementation of smaller projects in the district and the associated commitment of citizens and local institutions.

The fund

• is a financial grant from the Department of Housing, Social Affairs and Integration for neighborhood projects that cannot otherwise be financed from their own resources
• it is made available for neighborhood projects that could not otherwise be financed from their own resources
• promotes the bottom-up principle: the aim is to facilitate ideas from the local community that pursue the goal of activating and involving other neighborhood residents in a needs-oriented manner
• should enable participation in social life
• involves the district conferences as an advisory body for project approval
• strengthens spatial identification with the neighborhood
• Promotes integration in the neighborhood and district, contributes to a sense of belonging and to the positive image of the district
• is designed for neighborhoods that have a district conference

Who can apply for a district fund?

Institutions and facilities in Aachen neighborhoods in which a district conference exists are eligible to apply.

Residents can also implement a project if they find an institutional partner to carry out the project. In this case, please contact the relevant spokesperson team of your local district conference.

Only projects that meet the "Criteria for the assessment of projects for funding by the District Fund" and are of a non-profit nature are eligible for funding.

How is a district fund application submitted?

1. Step: After you have completed the analog or digital application, if necessary with the support of the relevant district office, it will first be discussed and reviewed in the respective districts within the district conferences. Each district can organize this process individually. In most districts, the applications are discussed by the entire committee of the district conference and approved if all members agree.
2. Step: If the district conference has given its approval and a member of the spokesperson team has signed the application, submit the original application to the City of Aachen. This can be done both by post and digitally in advance at stadtteilkonferenzen@mail.aachen.de.
   The City of Aachen will check the application in accordance with the guidelines for the funding of projects from the district fund and for completeness of all required content specifications.
3. Step: If all parties agree, you will receive the corresponding grant notification. Send the signed duplicate back to the granting authority. As soon as this is received by the approval authority, the grant will be awarded.

The Department of Social Affairs and Integration decides on the approval of project applications up to an amount of € 2,000 per project. It informs the Committee for Social Affairs, Integration and Demography of this at regular intervals (once a year).

Project applications exceeding the amount of € 2,000 are submitted to the Committee for Social Affairs, Integration and Demography for a decision. A longer processing time is estimated for this. The application should therefore be submitted as early as possible.

What happens after the project has been assigned and implemented?

At the end of the project, the project sponsor provides evidence of the funds actually spent in the form of a where-used list. Please keep the originals of all invoices and receipts. The completed where-used list will be sent to the Department of Social Affairs and Integration with a statement. This is where the final review takes place. Unused funds must be repaid. Proof of use must be submitted to the Department of Housing, Social Affairs and Integration with original receipts no later than three months after the end of the project.