stop funding war sign
Well I promised to get back to you in 2 days with the fundraising tips. Here they are. Many thanks to Yemi Olowoyo and Ken Lowles for providing their interesting comments:-
Committment
Yemi Olowoyo from New Ark Foundation, Northampton says that one major reason why small groups struggle is down to level of commitment from volunteers. She says “it is important that groups focus on what they are delivering – the needs in the community”. If this is done, the funding applications will appear genuine by decision makers.
“It is tempting to look at what funding is out there, and morph the project, but it is better to stay with your original project and then identify the right funding stream for the project“.
K.I.S.S.
Complex details will be of no interest to grant makers – MAKE IT SIMPLE!!
“All questions in a fundraising application are linked”. They will form part of the bigger picture and should not be compartmentalised on their own. “Therefore, don’t tell a story in each section” – MAKE IT REAL”
Involvement from the community is very important. Yemi uses visual aids: DVD and photographs. These evidence the success of her programmes and events.
nothing personal
Finally, when experiencing a funding setback, she says “do not take it personally”. LEARN FROM IT. “Do your best and get plenty of experience and exposure to others with fundraising advice and support”. Do not rely on one person. No one person is going to be there for you 24/7.
Ken Lowles from Hollycroft Business Services is a very experienced fundraiser and assessor of grants by comparison. He says that a major problem is that people write their answers to their own questions, rather than reading what is asked. e.g.
- “How will you use the money?“
- What do you understand by Equal Opps and what does your policy say?
- . “How do you know there’s a need?“
‘We set up in 2001, and work on a housing estate in east Mnmnsdshire, with lots of deprived families, and we have been doing a,b,c,d,e,f,g,h, and we want the money to do more of the same.’ NO GOOD ”
‘We treat everyone the same: black, white, yellow. We don’t discriminate, though we don’t have too many immigrants in our town. We have a ramp at the front of our building………………. We are Scouts, and we follow Lord Baden-Powell’s rules; everyone one is welcome here. …………………………………etc’ WRONG!
Everyone who comes to our centre tells us what they want. They want a,b,c,d,e,f and we provide it. NO GOOD!
One application he assessed said, “we want a fence to protect our allotment from vandals.” NO GOOD!
Hard Lines
So you see, fundraising is alot harder than we think. It is so difficult that it becomes a full time job if we are to learn to do it well. It is truly the learning that takes up all of the time. The crafting of a really balanced bid is an art form in itself.
More tips to follow in July re. core funding.
Suzanne
Yes it is so easy to fall into the trap of what not to do highlighted here. Yet if we think about it we know it is not the right answer. We need to show that we are committed to providing to our strengths, equal opportunities and that we have a certain direction. How do we like it when funders reject us for funding and when asked for a reason come up with a casual to-demand answer, we don’t – so why should we expect them to get excited about us saying ‘ we will provide when necessary’ ‘ we have a ramp’ ‘when they ask we’ll provide’?
Some people think because they are a constituted group they are entitled to funding – wrong! A number of us do not actually understand what outcomes are – in as much as the idea is good in your head or as you discuss it within your group, the outcome is key to what you want to achieve. Until we understand and appreciate the significance of the change we aim to bring about, most of our funding applications will not succeed. Sometimes we do not have evidence of need for what we are trying to deliver especially for young people, in a number of cases they have decisions made on their behalf and are not engaged in the process of deciding what activities and projects they want to be involved in. Sometimes they have no rerperesentation on management committees – so were is their voice? Furthermore our objectives are far removed from the project or vice versa – so we want to deliver outside of our aims simply because the money is tehre for that particular area – mission drift!
New models of funding are already available though sadly not in our backyard!