September Funding Round-up

September 8, 2011 Leave a comment

Here’s a round-up of some of the recent funding that has become available or with deadlines coming up in the next few months:

People’s Postcode Dream Fund: Applications for 2012 are now open! This funding exists to give organisations the chance to  deliver a project they have always dreamed of, but never had the opportunity to bring to life. In order to make the most of resources available, all applications must come from a collaboration of one or more organisations.  Registered charities and community organisations in Scotland can apply for up to £100,000 to deliver a new and innovative 12-month project that meets one of the following funding criteria: Helping Communities Lead an Active Life; Helping to Involve Volunteers; Helping to Tackle Climate Change. The deadline for all applications is 5pm on Friday 2nd December 2011.

SITA Trust – Enhancing Communities Programme: Up to £60,000 is available to projects that will make physical improvements to community leisure facilities and historic buildings / structures. Not-for-profit organisations including not for profit organisations, community groups, parish councils, local authorities and charities can apply. Check their website for eligibility (you need to be based within a certain range of a SITA site). The next funding deadline is 28th November 2011.

Heritage Lottery Grants are available providing more than £50,000 for projects that relate to the national, regional or local heritage of the UK. To receive a grant your project must: help people to learn about their own and other people’s heritage; and do either or both of the following: conserve the UK’s diverse heritage for present and future generations to experience and enjoy; help more people, and a wider range of people, to take an active part in and make decisions about heritage. The next funding round closes on 17th October 2011.

Young Film Fund UK: First Light Moves – which provides grants to projects that enable young people to participate in all aspects of film production – has announced that its Young Film Fund has re-opened for applications. Funding is available to organisations such as; schools; youth services; community and voluntary groups that work with young people aged between 5 and 18. Two types of funds are available: Studio Awards – up to £30,000 for between two and four films of up to 10 minutes; and Pilot Awards – up to £5,000 for one short film of up to five minutes in duration. Application deadline is 22nd November 2011.

TalkTalk Digital Heroes Award: these will be given to outstanding individuals working within a group, charity or organisation (as long as it isn’t a commercial enterprise) to use digital technology to solve a social problem or improve peoples’ lives. The winners will receive £5,000 in prize money for their project plus free broadband for 12 months. The deadline for entries is midnight on Sunday 11th September 2011.

The Architectural Heritage Fund: Funding is available to voluntary organisations building preservation trusts to regenerate historic buildings to create community and education facilities, workspace and homes. The project must also involve a change of ownership and/or a change of use. Previously funded projects include turning run down historic buildings into community theatres, resource centres, community learning centres, workspaces and meeting places, etc. The next closing date for applications is the 26th October 2011.

UK mammals grants: Applications are welcomed from voluntary conservation organisations, scientific researchers, individuals and consortia for financial support for work that relates to the conservation of mammals in the British Isles and Eire. Acceptable fields of work for funding include scientific research, practical habitat management work, reintroduction and monitoring programmes and educational projects. Priority will be given to work likely to further the aims of Biodiversity Action Plans and similar initiatives. Individual awards are unlikely to be more than £30,000 or less than £250. To date, the average amount granted per project has been about £9,000. Applications are considered by an advisory group in December and funding decisions are confirmed by the trustees in January. The next deadline for applications is 1st November 2011.

Community Radio Fund: The second round for funding applications in 2011/12 will open on 19 October and close at 5pm on 16 November 2011. The Community Radio Fund Panel will meet to consider applications on 30 January 2012. The Community Radio Fund has been established to help fund the core costs of running a community radio station.

Queen Elizabeth II Fields Challenge Fund: 2012 marks Her Majesty The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and this Challenge, operated by Fields in Trust, is a new campaign to protect 2012 outdoor recreational spaces in communities all across the country as a permanent living legacy. From sports pitches to woodlands, children’s play areas to gardens and bicycle trails to parks, the Queen Elizabeth II Fields Challenge will protect a diverse range of outdoor spaces ensuring that there is something to appeal to everyone. The Queen Elizabeth II Fields Challenge will give communities an opportunity to vote for an outdoor space in their area to become part of the scheme and be permanently protected as a tribute to the Diamond Jubilee. Grants of up to £5,000 are  available and the next deadlines are 28th October and 21st November 2011.

First Light 90 Second Comedy Shorts Grant: First Light has recently become a YouTube partner and to celebrate, is launching a ‘90 Second Comedy Shorts’ round. People all over the world are watching billions of videos every day on YouTube, which is increasingly becoming an important outlet and means of online interaction for young people.  This popular genre of filmmaking can enable your films to be seen by more people and it could also help us inspire even more young people from across the UK to share and create their own First Light films. Organisations can apply for up to £20,000 to make between 3-6 comedy shorts up to 90 Seconds each in duration. 50 applications will be accepted for 90 Second Comedy Shorts grants. Application deadline is 12th October 2011.

Bank of Scotland Foundation Small Grants Programme: the Foundation accepts applications up to and including £20,000 from charities registered in Scotland to help with: developing and improving local communities; financial literacy and financial inclusion. The next deadline for applications is 14th October 2011.

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Facebook preferred Social Media for Fundraising

May 17, 2011 Leave a comment

The result of our recent poll on LinkedIn showed that Facebook used more for fundraising than other social media. Having read Pamela Grow’s blog on yesterday’s SOFII post, this is perhaps an area that more organisations should look into, as one charity has enjoyed phenomenal success using the basic Facebook platform effectively.

No matter what the media, I’ve always said that fundraising doesn’t have to be expensive to work.  You don’t have to have heavyweight paper, embossed in gold with expensive print and design any more than you need a database that can do everything but make the tea (although you do need a database!).  Often you can adapt what you already have to reach donors by thinking creatively and using a bit of imagination.  I think that Pamela’s blog outlines this beautifully, as the Soi Dog charity shows how it harnessed Facebook properly, using a little bit of work and imagination – without breaking the bank!

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New Funding Opportunities

March 18, 2011 Leave a comment

New Funding Opportunities:

£1m Poetry & Literature Awards
The Clore Duffield Foundation has launched a new £1m programme to fund poetry and literature initiatives for children and young people across the UK. The Awards are will run from 2011 to 2015 and will allocate amounts up to £10,000 in two funding rounds a year. Schools, FE colleges, community groups, libraries and other arts/cultural organisations are eligible to apply.   

BIG Lottery have launched Improving Futures fund
Every child deserves the best start in life, but we know that some grow up in difficult circumstances. Some families experience multiple and complex problems – for example, to do with poor health, unemployment, debt or housing problems – which can affect their children’s wellbeing and life chances.  The Improving Futures programme aims to improve outcomes for children within these families.  The deadline for submitting “Expression of Interest is the 12th May 2011.  Partnerships successful at this stage will have until the 30th September 2011 to submit full applications.

Hilton in the Community Funds
Organisations that work with young people can apply for grants up to £30,000 per year for up to 2 years that meet one of the Foundation’s chosen areas of focus: disabled children; children in hospital; homelessness; and life-limited children in hospices.  The next closing date for applications is the 3rd May 2011.

Easi-Drive launched £60,000 Charitable Fund for 2011 in February
The ‘wheelsforgood’ community fund was created by Easi-Drive’s Managing Director Simon Bellamy in 2009, to give something back to the community in which the business operates. The award-winning company, which celebrates its 10th birthday this year, donated £60,000 in 2010 to a number of ‘wheel’ based projects, which ranged  from buying a new wheelchair wheel for a 2016 Paralympic hopeful to donating £10,000 to the  Motor and Allied Trades Benevolent Fund (BEN).  Commenting on the launch of the 2011 fund, Simon Bellamy said: “It’s been great to see the difference wheelsforgood made to individuals, groups and projects in 2010. We see this as a long term commitment and a key part of our corporate strategy, and are delighted to be pledging £60,000 once again this year.”

Make a Splash!
As well as running a series of training events, the Make a Splash! project also has a small grants programme, offering small voluntary groups in Scotland the chance to apply for between £250 – £2,000 so that you can try something new and help even more people discover how good it feels to take part in arts and crafts activity.

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Fundraising – How to Beat the Recession

March 9, 2011 Leave a comment

There’s no denying that the recession – and the impact that it’s had on donors and trust investments; government spending and general household income – has had an adverse impact on fundraising in general.  We recently asked charities and arts organisations to complete a survey into how the recession had affected them – and there were a few charities out there who bucked the trend and hadn’t seen their income reduce.  They were, however, in the minority.  The survey results are interesting – and there are a few glimmers of hope in there as to how organisations can move their fundraising forward in these difficult times.  Difficult but not impossible perhaps?

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Thank You, Thank You!

January 31, 2011 Leave a comment

Two little words that are probably the most important in the whole arsenal of tools, techniques and tips available to fundraisers.  If anyone gives you support – no matter how small – say thank you.  Don’t leave it months until you finally mail out a response to their gift, don’t add them to a mailing list for a future event as a thank you.  Get the gift, add their details to your database and send out a thank you letter as soon as possible.

Of course, you may not have the resources to write tailored, individual thank you letters to every donor you have – particularly if you have a large number – but you should at least endeavour to make it look like it’s a tailored response.  Use their name, spell it properly, get their address right, make sure you know how much they gave and to what.  Don’t write ‘Dear Friend’/’Dear Supporter’, don’t ask them for another gift in their thank you letter, don’t leave it too long to send it.

SOFII (Showcase of Fundraising Innovation and Inspiration) runs a thank you letter clinic which is well worth a look if you need some ideas – and you can even submit your own letters to receive comments back and help you make sure you are thanking people in the best way possible.  It is, after all, the way that you will encourage people to continue to support you and perhaps give more – and it’s always easier to raise further gifts from existing or previous donors than it is to win a new donor in the first place.

Thank you, by the way, for reading this post!

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We Wish You a Merry Christmas…

December 23, 2010 Leave a comment

Final day of Activate Fundraising’s Top 10 Fundraising Tips – and here are the final two.  This is by no means the definitive list on everything you need to consider when fundraising but it should give you an idea of the different aspects you need to consider and help you to focus your ideas. 

9. Use trustees effectively.  Who has the best networks?  Who is happy to ask for money (because not all will be)?  Who is most knowledgeable or passionate about your organisation (hopefully, all of them!).  It is vital that trustees lend their support to fundraising.  They may not all be comfortable asking for money but they don’t all have to be – as long as they will introduce your organisation to their networks and be an ambassador for your work (which they should be anyway).

10. Say Thank You.  It may be obvious, but you’d be surprised how often donors aren’t thanked.  You can’t say thank you enough.  Provide the personal touch – a scanned signature is unlikely to make anyone feel their gift meant much.  £20 may be a small donation to you but it could mean a lot to the donor.  And you never know how much could follow on from the smallest gift.  If you don’t thank people you are closing the doors to future support and wasting all the effort put into getting that initial donation.

I hope that these tips have given you some food for thought over the past few days and that you implement some or all of them when you come back into the office in January.   And if you’d like some help with your fundraising, please get in touch.

Merry Christmas and a Happy 2011!

by Flickr user Frits Ahlefeldt-Laurvig

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Christmas Countdown Giveaway: 22nd December

December 22, 2010 Leave a comment

Like me, you probably only have another couple of days in the office, so make them a productive couple by using them to think about how you’re going to come into the office in January and kick start your fundraising with a few new ideas – or maybe just visit some old ones from a different perspective:

Tip 7. Stay ‘on message’.  Fundraising is another way of communicating to your audience and, while the methods of delivery may be different, they should still reflect your core messages.  If you’re fundraising for a programme that doesn’t fit with your overall vision, you need to ask yourself why.  If you don’t, potential donors will.

8. Fundraise within resources.  Regardless of how many fundraisers you have (or don’t have) you need to be realistic about what you can deliver.  How much time can you allocate to fundraising?  What tasks need to be delivered e.g. research, applications, meetings, planning?  Who will deliver these tasks?  Often fundraising focuses solely on target but if it’s unrealistic within current resources, you need to either reduce the target or devote more resources to fundraising.

Check in with us tomorrow for the final two in our top 10 Fundraising tips series.

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Christmas Countdown Giveaway: Day 4

December 21, 2010 Leave a comment

A few more free advent tips from Activate Fundraising:

5. Research your donors.  You need to identify who is likely to support your organisation – and being wealthy is not enough.  If I had £1 for every time I’ve been told to ask a certain businessman for money, I’d be rich!  Look at your projects, your beneficiaries and your organisational vision.  Who supports the work you are doing?  There are numerous resources out there to help with your research – too many to mention here – but start by reading local and national press; keeping up to date with sector developments; and using your networks.

6. Network.  Spread the word about your organisation.  Be known as leaders in your field.  Use networks available to you – through trustees, volunteers, professional groups and your donors.  Consider online networking – ask your Trustees and CEO if they’ll introduce your organisation to their Linked In contacts or send out occasional tweets on your behalf.

Is there anything from the list of tips so far that you think is missing?  What would you add and why?

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Christmas Countdown Giveaway – 5 Sleeps ’til Santa!

December 20, 2010 Leave a comment

As we’ve only 5 days to go before the big man arrives, today I’ve included 2 fundraising tips to help you focus your fundraising:

3. Review the market.  Look at your competitors – who supports them?  Are there programmes like yours that have failed or succeeded?  Why?  Is there an organisation in your area doing similar work?  How are you different?  Fundraising is competitive so it’s vital that you stand out from the crowd.  Knowing who you’re up against will help you to position yourself effectively.  But as well as looking at competitors, also think out the box too.  What has motivated you to give to a charity – why was it effective?  What advertising campaigns have really stood out for you and why?  And remember, you are not your donors – so get the views of others too.

 4. Get everyone on board.  You should set out the reasons why you are fundraising and what your objectives are (see point 1) so that everyone in your organisation knows why you’re fundraising, what for, how much and in what timescale and what you are hoping to achieve.  You can’t under estimate the power of internal support for your fundraising so make sure your trustees, staff and volunteers know why you are fundraising.

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Day 2: Christmas Countdown Giveaway

December 17, 2010 Leave a comment

by Flickr User Andreas Cappell

So, you’ve thought long and hard about what, why and how you’re going to fundraise, what next?

2. Put systems in place.  Without systems you will find it difficult to sustain your fundraising.  Get a database and use it – this doesn’t have to be expensive, you could use Constant Contact, Access or any number of other databases before you even think of splashing out on a fundraising specific system.  Decide who you will target for funding – trusts, individuals, Lottery, business or a mixture?  Establish systems that will help you to look after your donors by determining how and when you will communicate with them.  You don’t have to recreate the wheel – this could sit within a communications programme that you already use, taking into account the specific audience(s) you are communicating with and always ensuring that your donors receive appropriate communications.

So what next?  Look out for tomorrow’s tip…

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