Useful definitions

These definitions have been put together by the Changing Spaces Award Partners to help potential applicants. They are for guidance only and should not be seen as definitive. These definitions are subject to change.

Statutory allotment
Parcels of land acquired or appropriated by the local authority specifically for use as allotments. These sites cannot be sold or used for other purposes without relevant consent.

Temporary allotment
Land that is allocated for other uses but leased or rented by allotments' authority. Temporary allotments are not protected from disposal the same way that statutory allotments are.

Private allotment
Privately owned land can also be let for use as allotments. These plots have the same legal status as temporary allotment sites, but the local council has no control over them.

Open space
Public space relates to all those parts of the built and natural environment where the public has free access. It encompasses all the streets, squares, and other rights of way, whether predominantly in residential, commercial, or community/civic uses; the open spaces and parks; and the 'public/private' spaces where public access is unrestricted (at least during daylight hours). It includes the interfaces with key internal, external, and private spaces to which the public normally has free access.

'Open to the public most of the time'
No age limitations on the public but all age groups do not necessarily have to have access at the same time. No one particular group can be excluded permanently, not withstanding health and safety and security considerations.
Access to the facility cannot be prohibited due to the right of entry through an adjoining site/building which is restricted by opening times, membership etc. The facility must not be fee paying.
The facility can be locked overnight. The facility must be available for a substantial part of at least 6 days per week. No pre registration.
Monitoring usage and safety of site is permissible

Formal sports pitch
Measured and marked out to official pitch size. Hosts organised matches and events with referees in attendance. Is linked to a formal sporting organisation. Has a reservation and booking system.

Informal sports area (kick-about area)
Not designed for regulation games. An area with or without marked lines but does not conform to official size. Has no reservation or booking system. Does not host matches or events. Games are not refereed. Can be used by one or more groups at a time.

Building
A static physical structure with four walls and a roof that cannot be considered 'open'. The structure may have some sort of door or a form of closing mechanism.

Storage
A facility to store maintenance and site equipment, located at the project site. Such as a shed. These facilities will not be considered as buildings as they are integral to a project.

Churchyard
Church owned land. Usually located attached or adjacent to a church building.

Cemetery
Varied ownership but principally secular. Land specified as a burying ground. Usually not adjoined to a place of worship. Cemeteries may become closed, meaning no new graves for interment are available so the cemetery becomes full.

Play area
These places may or may not be specifically designed for play or informal recreation (dedicated or non-dedicated) and may or may not be supervised by staff trained in playwork or other skills.

Trim trail
Trim trails are a trail or course which will help keep you fit and trim. Trim trails can consist of virtually any obstacle such as tyres, monkey bars, beams to help develop balance, nets to help develop spatial orientation, bridges, climbing frames, and anything which will stretch individuals both physically and mentally, and therefore encourage development in both areas.

Sensory garden
A garden specifically created to be accessible and enjoyable to all visitors, but more specifically to the disabled and other challenged individuals.

Pond
Man-made or natural water bodies between 1m and 2ha in area, which hold water for 4 months of the year or more. This definition is deliberately broad and includes even very small water bodies, which can sometimes have a high conservation value. The definition also specifically includes semi-seasonal and temporary ponds, which often dry up in summer but can support both specialised and valuable pond communities.

Access improvements
Improve access on paths/routes using a variety of techniques including resurfacing, drainage and vegetation management.

Art
Projects can have 'art' as an element but not be exclusively an 'arts' project.
Some examples of art include sculptures, mosaics, and living art.

The coast
The urban coast can be defined as a narrow strip which includes: near shore waters to 1000m; foreshore; seaside promenade, park, pier etc; harbour areas, slipways and maritime infrastructure. The rural coast can be more broadly defined to include near shore waters, foreshore, coastal habitat, paths and trails, viewpoints and the broader coastal landscape and its key features. Estuaries also fall into the definition of coast because of the profound impact that sea and tide has on life there.

A community group
The people living in one particular area or group of people focused on a neighbourhood who are considered as a unit because of their common interests, background, nationality or other circumstances.

A shared interest group
A group of people with a shared interest not necessarily living in the same area such as lesbians, gays, bi-sexuals and transsexuals.

Mental health
A level of emotional well-being that allows an individual to function in society or an absence of significant mental health problems.

Mental distress
Mental distress covers a range of experiences that can seriously limit an individual's ability to cope with day-to-day living. One person in four will have some form of mental health problem, according to some estimates, and for as many as one in fifty, it will be serious. Although figures and definitions vary, what is clear is that millions of people in the UK will be affected either themselves or by knowing someone with such an issue.

'Disadvantaged'
People who do not experience the standards of living that the majority of people have or people who do not have access to necessary services that the majority of people do. Disadvantage can occur in every community from affluent to poor and from rural to urban.

Hard to reach
People that still experience profound exclusion and diminished life chances when compared with the average.
The people and groups that experience the most complex and challenging problems and people who suffer from deep exclusion as well as wide exclusion.

Social exclusion
Social exclusion is the term used to describe what happens when people or areas are excluded from essential services or every day aspects of life that most of us take for granted.

Area in need
An area that lacks in basic amenities and social qualities, those of which are required to live a satisfactory life.
An area where the community has high levels of unemployment and endures hardship, debt, anxiety, low self-esteem, ill health, poor skills, and bad living conditions.

Core costs
Where an applicant wants funding for a project, which is the sole activity of that organisation, all operational costs are regarded as project costs, so therefore full cost recovery would not apply.
Where an applicant wants funding for a project, which is part of a range of activities they undertake, then it can be requested that a proportion of their overhead costs are directly related to delivering that project.

Development of an existing project
Project development is a different process to that of funding a shortfall on an existing project.
It is expected that a project applying for continuation of its existing work will have demonstrated that some form of evaluation has taken place and that this has identified the need for its continuation. It is expected that as a result of the evaluation areas of improvement are identified and incorporated into the project's development.

Report on title
This report is similar to the search that is carried out when a house is purchased. This report also confirms the financial and legal status of the grant recipient and whether they are acting within their powers in delivering a project. The title will also show any encumbrances that may be attached to the land. The solicitor responsible for the title will also prepare and execute the deed of covenant and register the restrictive covenant on the Land Register.

Deed of covenant
This is designed to protect land used for projects from another use throughout the liability period. Once approved the deed is forwarded to the Land Registry so the restrictive covenant can be placed on the land.

Planning permission
Groups are required to make enquiries of their local planning authority to see whether permission for their proposed project is needed. In some cases it will not be needed, such as refurbishment of a site, and in others it will be needed, such as conversion of agricultural land into green space. Copies of the planning authority's decision must be kept and filed.

Land tenure documents
Documents that certificate the purchase of land. Care must be taken on leases of land as in some cases these may come in conflict with a project's grant terms and conditions, or the spirit of the programme.

Restriction
This is the protection placed on the land to prevent its use as anything other than the original project.