Engaging with the Iraq War Inquiry

In June 2009, the UK Government announced the establishment of an independent inquiry into the Iraq war.  The inquiry's remit is to "consider the period from the summer of 2001 to the end of July 2009, embracing the run-up to the conflict in Iraq, the military action and its aftermath .... [It will] therefore be considering the UK's involvement in Iraq, including the way decisions were made and actions taken, to establish, as accurately as possible, what happened and to identify the lessons that can be learned." (source: www.iraqinquiry.org.uk) The Inquiry team recently indicated that it is open to receiving evidence from the public.

JRCT is keen to enable civil society organisations concerned with promoting peace, democracy and human rights to engage effectively with the Inquiry.  Engagement could take the form of submissions and direct engagement with the Inquiry process, or initiatives to scrutinise its functions.

Grants are likely to be up to £1,000, but please discuss this with us if you have particular expenses to cover. 

Trustees are open to applications from current grantees and other organisations.  Please note that JRCT is a charitable grant-maker and cannot fund work which would not be considered charitable under UK law.

To apply, please send us:

• A completed 'registration form', which can be downloaded from this page
• A letter of no more than 2 sides explaining how you wish to engage with the Inquiry and which issues you wish to bring to its attention
• A brief budget breakdown
• If applying on behalf of an organisation, your most recent audited accounts.

Please send us this information by email to: rachael.hansen(at)jrct.org.uk

If you would like to discuss an application prior to submission, please contact Celia McKeon on 01904 627810 or celia.mckeon(at)jrct.org.uk

Assessment criteria

JRCT will consider how well applications meet the following criteria:

• Is the applicant promoting messages that are consistent with the Trust's concerns with peace, human rights and democracy?
• Are these messages presented in a coherent way?
• Is the strategy for engaging with the Inquiry sound?
• Could this piece of work be considered charitable?

Given the tight timeframe, we will try to give you an answer, positive or negative, as quickly as possible.