The answer
Can any other grant provide the match?
CARES may pay part of the eligible cost, but your group needs a plan for the rest, including work the fund will not cover. Check when each payment is due; another grant cannot automatically be used as your contribution.
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Work out your contribution from eligible costs
The published ceiling is up to 80% of eligible costs, capped at £80,000. It does not mean every group will receive 80%. Local Energy Scotland says you should request only the support needed for the project to proceed and may offer a lower percentage where your organisation has other resources. Build your budget around a realistic award scenario, not just the maximum headline.
For an illustrative £60,000 of eligible work, an 80% award would be £48,000 and your minimum share of that work £12,000. If the same project also needs £10,000 of roof repair that CARES does not cover, your group would need £22,000 before considering contingency or any change in the award. These are example calculations, not a funding promise. Keep VAT treatment and every excluded item visible in the real budget.
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Check the costs a quote can hide
Ask for separate lines for the renewable equipment, radiators or other enabling work, electrical changes, safe access, permissions, commissioning and making good. CARES may fund some work needed to install an eligible measure, but it does not turn a general refurbishment into eligible expenditure. For example, its FAQ distinguishes heat-pump-related emitter work from replacing floors or undertaking wider damp-proofing.
Add a sensible contingency and record who will approve it. If a quote says 'subject to survey' or 'grid costs excluded', do not fill that blank with zero. A survey can identify likely extras early enough for trustees to decide whether the plan still works.
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Make a cash-flow plan, not only a total
Put supplier deposits, interim invoices and final payment dates on a timeline beside the fund's claim and payment conditions. A grant that reimburses eligible expenditure later does not necessarily provide cash when the installer asks for a deposit. Check the written offer before agreeing any grant-dependent payment schedule.
If another funder or community-benefit grant will provide your share, check that its terms permit the combination and when its money actually arrives. Record confirmed funding separately from applications still pending. The useful board decision is not simply 'can we afford 20%?' but 'can we pay the whole project at the times the bills fall due, even if the award is lower or some costs are excluded?'
Where this guidance comes from
Check the original guidance.
These primary sources support the technical or scheme points above. Rules can change; follow the current source before making a commitment.
Apply this to your property
Know the project cost before closing the funding gap.
FLO can help define the technical scope and quote; your board and the funder can then test the match funding against actual eligible costs.