Trips Fund

The Union has a pot of money set aside to support Clubs, Societies and Projects (CSPS) in funding the trips they deliver for members both in the UK (United Kingdom) and abroad. This money is provided to us by the Imperial College Trust.  

An application needs to be completed to apply for money from which is then reviewed by the Clubs, Societies & Projects Board (CSPB). 

NOTE: A trip proposal must be submitted for your trip to be considered for funding.

Criteria & Guidelines

Trips funding is allocated in accordance with the Trips Funding Policy.  Funding is allocated by student representatives on the Clubs, Societies & Projects Board (CSPB), with a final decision made by the Deputy President (Clubs & Societies).

Trips Funding Policy

  • What the Trips Fund will not consider for funding
    • BUCS/sporting fixtures and or competitions inside or outside of London 
    • Trips that only focus on delivering a social trip / aren't delivering activities related to their group
    • The trip fund will not consider funding to cover further costs of regular activities that are already funded through the annual grant (i.e groups regular weekend trips)
    • Trips that have already taken place
    • Trips that have no core, educational or enhanced experience aspect to them
    • We will not be funding sports tours that are primarily focused on social activity and a lack a depth of sporting activity or purpose.
    • Funding for non-members or associate members
    • Funding for trips that only focus on outgoing students or trips that are delivered post academic year for that years leaving students. 
    • Funding for trips that are solely or largely for the benefit of associate members. 

Application and Deadlines

Applications can be submitted online via the Trip Funding Application Form. 

Trip Funding applications will not be approved, without having submitted a trip proposal form. 

Below you can view the funding review deadline dates for Trip Funding for this academic year 

2023-24

Round
Application Deadline
Outcome Deadline
One (Term 1) Friday 20th October W/C 6th November
Two (Term 1)  Friday 17th November W/C 4th December
Three (Term 2) Friday 2rd February  W/C 12th February * Delayed 1 week to W/C 19th February
Four (Term2) Friday 1st March  W/C 18th March 
Five  (Term 3) Friday 24th May

W/C 10th June

If the board receives an excessive number of applications, they may begin to process them before the deadline to ensure we can effectively review applications on time.  

Once application deadline has passed for each round, CSPB (Clubs, Societies and Projects Board) will review all applications within 2 working weeks and you should expect a response within 3 working weeks with the outcome of your application.  

Successful Applicants

If you are successful there are a number of conditions that you must adhere to upon notifications of a successful application:  

  • You must ensure your trip form and budget have been submitted to the Union and are approved before you go on your trip. You can find out more about planning a trip here.  

  • You must ensure that you have advised your members to purchase the appropriate insurance for your trip 

  • Successful applicants submit a Trip report following the completion of the trip. Please visit the Trip Report page for more information on how to compose your Trip report. 

For any applications that are successful we are happy for you to spend the money from your accounts as soon as you receive confirmation of the approval. It may take up to 3 working weeks for the funds to show in your CSPs lines. When the funds arrive, they will come into the "ICTrust" transaction line on eActivities.

Imperial College Trust (IC Trust)

IC Trust provide the money which is allocated for trip funding. When donated to Imperial College Union for trips funding, the money from IC Trust is a "restricted" donation. This means the money donated can, by law, only be used for the purpose it was donated for. In the case of trips, this means it can only be used for the trip it was granted for. If, for any reason, this is not possible, the money must be returned to IC Trust.

Further Support and FAQ's:

Your MG (Management Group) Chair/CU Committee is trained to help you with this topic. Please find your relevant contact here

  • What have we changed about the Trip Fund?
    • There are a number of steps we have taken to make the trip fund easier for committee members and simpler in its process.  

    • We have removed the defined difference between a trip and a tour. It created confusion and over complication. Every time a group takes its members away on an activity outside of London, it is simply a trip. So, we will move forward by renaming everything a trip and not always a tour. 

    • We have removed ‘Tour Periods’ - They were unnecessary. CSP’s can run trips whenever they like throughout the academic year. 

    • We have separated the Trip Fund from the process of organising a Trip and Submitting a Trip Budget. This is because it added confusion. You should be organising and budgeting for your trips using the information on this page as if you were not receiving any funding at all, being granted funding is a bonus which reduces the cost for your members, it is not a given.  

  • When planning our Trips, should we assume, we will get given any funding?
    • No, the panel only has a limited pot of funding and therefore cannot fund everything. You should plan your trip as if you are getting no funding at all.  

    • We understand this can make things difficult regarding charging ticket prices if you are organising a trip soon, you can support this by breaking up your trip payments into a Deposit and a Final Payment. The Final Payment can then be adjusted/reduced if successful in receiving funding.