The nuts and bolts of making your case for grant funding if you are a small VCS

organisation.

Emma Plouviez Organisational Development Team

One Westminster eplouviez@vawcvs.org

GETTING IT RIGHT

1. Looking at a basic framework to help you build successful bids.2. Exploring some basic dos and don’ts.

Today we will - review or refresh your approach to making funding bids by:

Not sure? Ask!

And this is to remind me and you please to keep asking questions or share ideas as we go through the workshop ….

1. Why funding bids fail - a reminder

• Documents incomplete, incomplete applications (questions not answered, signatures missing, contact details, references)

• Doesn’t meet the aims of the funder• Not enough need demonstrated; poor needs

assessment • Not enough community consultation• Poor value for money• Budget doesn’t correspond to application

Not sure? Ask!

2. The 20 checklist:1. Constitution or Memorandum and Articles, charity and/or company number2. Policies – Equality and Diversity; Health and Safety;

Safeguarding Children and Vulnerable Adults; Volunteer Policy. (full policy list available from VAW)

3. Last set of annual accounts4. Bank Account details5. Trustees/Board/Management Committee details

including contact details – on website if you have one.6. Aims of organisation – what you want to change for

people/environment in what area7. Objectives of organisation – what you will do to make

the change.Not sure? Ask!

The 20 checklist continued:

8. Aims of Project – what is/are the change(s) the project will make to which people and where?

9. Objectives of project – what will the project do (to make these changes happen)?

10. What is the need?11. How do you know there is a need? – your own

research locally12. How do you know there is a need? – other more

general sources of information13. Why is your organisation the best to do this project?

Evidence of similar past work you have done.Not sure? Ask!

The 20 checklist continued:

14. Who benefits?15. Outcomes – what changes will there be? How will

the project improve things for the beneficiaries?16. Monitoring – how will you measure the change(s)

made by the project? How will you record a starting point, then record change?

17. Project outline (brief)18. Project outline (detailed)19. Budget for project – based on the detailed project

outline.

Not sure? Ask!

20. Look for funder(s) that support what you want to do, and apply …

The 20 checklist is not a Rolls Royce,

it is the essential bicycle!

and …

3. Building up your project:

Aims:Why do you want to develop the project?E.g. to improve peoples lives, to increasewellbeing, to prevent X from happeningObjectives:What are the activities that you aregoing to provide? E.g. training, information,referrals, health checks, counselling, etc.

Not sure? Ask!

Building up your project:

Outcomes (quality/change):What is the difference that your project

will make? e.g. More adults accessing education; people have greater confidence; people are

less isolated; there is less anti-social behavior in a community.

Outputs (quantity):What is it that you are providing?Workshops, leaflets, activities, books –

including the number of things.Not sure? Ask!

4. Monitoring and Evaluation

How would you know if you have beensuccessful in delivering your project?

How do you know you achieved yourplanned outcomes?

What have you learn from this project?

What would you do differently?Not sure? Ask!

Monitoring and Evaluation

Needs to be planned from the beginning.

Collection of information should be systematic.

Explore different tools to collect information: interviews, questionnaires, focus groups, diaries, case studies.

Check if the funder has its own monitoring and evaluation requirements e.g. forms and reports.

Not sure? Ask!

Now you really are ready for the journey …

Not sure? Ask!

THANK YOU