The Innovative Resource Fund (IRF) will provide direct funding to school/colleges to support the development of a wide range of educational resources by individuals or groups of practitioners.

The programme will operate under the following guidelines.

Funding
Timescales
Proposals
Materials
Approval

Application form
Copyright

1. Funding
   • funding for projects will range between £500 and £1,000,
   • if the application relates to a network of practitioners, resulting in the development of additional materials then extra funding would be available – up to £6,000,
   • funding will be paid to the school/college or practitioner concerned on production of materials,
   • funding may be used to release practitioners or may be awarded to practitioners that develop materials in their own time,
   • if practitioners intend to do the work in their own time and wish to paid directly they need to make NGfL Cymru aware of this on the application form,
   • if payments are awarded to the practitioner, then they will be liable for taxation by the Inland Revenue according to the usual rates.
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2. Timescales
   • clear and definite timescales will be agreed,
   • normally resources should be completed within a maximum of 3 months of notification of the award by letter,
   • the work will be quality assured mid way through the project and at the end. All practitioners need to ensure that they act on feedback given,
   • Field Development Officers (FDO) or other NGfL Cymru Officers will support the work during the development period.
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3. Proposals
   A full description of the proposed activity, utilising the appropriate application form will be required by NGfL Cymru including;
   • reference to Key Stage and age range of the pupil/student target group,
   • a clear set of objectives and targets for the subject or theme,
   • reference to National Curriculum/Examination Specification requirements,
   • how learning outcomes will be enhanced.
     
     In addition all proposals must gain the support from the Head teacher of the school/college.
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4. Materials
   Materials produced should conform to most of the requirements below.  
   Materials should;
   • be part of a complete unit of work that will contribute to atopic area or theme,
   • be part of a complete section or sub-section of a syllabus or scheme of work,
   • include where appropriate attractive interactive elements (e.g. using animation, audio, video), which could be developed in partnership with NGfL Cymru,
   • include whole class teaching activities that may be used on an interactive white board,
   • include extended activities, differentiated work, worksheets and homework if appropriate,
   • include brief, succinct instructions and guidance to practitioners including suggestions on how the resources can be blended with other materials,
   • where appropriate, take account of the Skills Framework and clearly state how the resource addresses key elements such as thinking skills,
   • include a good practice example of the resource being used in the classroom which is documented in the NGfL Cymru templates,
   • be prepared in Welsh and/or in English or bilingually.
     
     NGfL Cymru fully recognises that there will be resources that may not fit within these requirements and will be more than happy to discuss those ideas with the practitioner.
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5. Approval
   Please contact a member of the NGfL Cymru staff to discuss your initial idea. A member of the team will then visit to help develop your proposal and complete an application form.
   
   In approving projects NGfL Cymru will ensure that;
   • the materials produced fit within the NGfL Cymru strategy and priority areas,
   • there is no duplication of materials within NGfL Cymru,
   • materials are approved by the NGfL Cymru quality assurance process,
   • the proposal has sound pedagogical, teaching and learning benefits and meets the requirements of the National Curriculum,
   • there is no duplication of funding, with regard to other schemes such as the GTCW CPD programme,
   • there is equitable sourcing of resources from across Wales, where possible.
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Schools/colleges and teachers bidding for approval should also be aware of the following terms;

a. Projects and practitioners may be identified by NGfL Cymru FDOs, other NGfL Cymru Officers, and officers from individual LEA’s or colleges.

b. Where such projects are identified there will be a simple application form for practitioners to complete, upon which the decision to accept the submission will be based.

c. Alternately projects are identified from application forms submitted directly to NGfL Cymru by practitioners.

d. Where technical support is required, e.g. the development of animations, then these should be discussed with the FDO and may be produced by NGfL Cymru.

e. Authors will be responsible for clearing any copyright issues that may arise from their work.

f. NGfL Cymru will own the rights to the materials – Crown Copyright.

g. Materials will be subject to a quality assurance process and may be returned to the author for further development.

h. It will be expected that all practitioners will trial their work and complete the NGfL Cymru Good Practice Documentation

i. NGfL Cymru reserves the right to edit, adapt and develop the materials in accordance with their requirements.

j. Materials will be placed on the NGfL Cymru portal for distribution to school/colleges in Wales.

k. Practitioners and their school/colleges will be acknowledged on the website by NGfL Cymru.

l. Contributors are expected to produce work within the allocated time.

m. No payments will be made to supply hardware, software or other consumable materials.

n. The recipient will enter into an agreement with NGfL Cymru to ensure that both parties have a clear understanding of expectations and requirements.

o. If requirements are not met, NGfL Cymru reserves the right to reduce or refuse to pay the fee.

For further information contact NGfL Cymru on 029 20265177 or via email info@ngfl-cymru.org.uk
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