SUCCESSFUL BID WRITING - Paula Bennetts - Dorset Community Action

SUCCESSFUL BID WRITING
       Paula Bennetts

Describing your project
  GOOD IDEA / IDENTIFICATION OF NEED (EVIDENCE)

         AIM = WHAT YOU HOPE TO ACHIEVE

OUTCOME = WHAT YOU WANT TO CHANGE ( aim / need) /
   INDICATORS (measures/incremental/milestones)

ACTIVITY REQUIRED (to meet aim) / OUTPUTS (what you
                     delivered)

 IMPACT = CHANGE THAT HAS OCCURRED (link to need)

Evidence of Need
You need to be able to demonstrate

1) That you have correctly identified the
   needs of your beneficiaries.
2) How you know they have such needs
3) That you have evidence to support your
   claim.

What credibly sourced information
         can you provide?
• National Statistics & Reports – Charity
  Commission, NAVCA, NCVO
• Your own monitoring & review data
• Your own surveys and consultation
• Office for National Statistics (ONS) – Census of
  population, index of multiple deprivation
• Public Health England – health inequalities,
  incidences of certain diseases and conditions
  e.g. cancer,
• Dorset Council, Dorset NHS

Project Check
• Does your AIM reflect the NEED you have identified and sum
  up the purpose of your project in one sentence?
• Have you used words of change (eg; more, less, improved,
  increase, decrease or maintain) to describe your OUTCOMES?
• Have you stated what will be different by the end of your
  project?
• Do your OUTCOMES link logically to the NEED identified?
• Do your OUTCOMES describe CLEAR, SPECIFIC & REALISTIC
  CHANGES?
• Have you limited your OUTCOMES to a manageable number?
• Will your ACTIVITY meet your stated OUTCOMES?
            THIS = the start of a Case for Support

Due Diligence Check
•   Check Budget
•   Charity Commission Reporting Up to Date
•   Most Recent Accounts etc..
•   Check Your Reserves
•   Policies & Procedures
•   Check Your Governance Arrangements

       Always check FAQ’s & “Attachments”
                Ask for Feedback

Why We Didn’t Fund & Why…
• They didn’t pass our eligibility & due diligence
  checks;
• Lack of evidence that applicants understand
  the problem to be solved;
• Presenting a solution without defining why it’s
  the right solution;
• Applicants didn’t say how the work would
  benefit their network or wider sector.
                                        Catalyst & National Lottery
                DON’T GIVE UP!!        Fund – Digital Response Fund
                                               (Audit 2020)

Finding Funders
• Dorset Community Action –
Advice, Information, Webinars
sign up for enews or become a member for fortnightly funding updates

• Dorset Council Fund Finder – FREE (Dorset)

• GRIN
£15 per year for an individual subscriber; or
£25 per year for an organisation with two or more subscribers.
Ask for a recent example or request a FREE 2-week trial.

• Funding Central –
Free for organisations with an annual income under £100,000
£120+VAT for organisations with an annual income over £100,000

DCA Funding Updates
    21st January
        2021

Local Connections Fund to launch on 5 January 2021

Book clubs, walking groups and other community projects will be able to apply for a £4
million fund designed to help reduce loneliness in the coming months.

This will be used for hundreds of small grants worth between £300 and £2,500. These
investments are designed to help local organisations bring people and communities
together as the country recovers from the coronavirus pandemic.

The fund will launch on 5 January 2021 and applications should be made through The
National Lottery Community Fund. Applications will close on 26 January and the project
must be completed by 31 March 2021.

THE 29TH MAY 1961 CHARITY

General grant-making Trust offering revenue and capital grants to UK registered charities,
with a particular interest in the arts and museums, conservation, employment, education
and training, homelessness, leisure, offenders, social welfare and young people. Grants
are made for both capital and revenue purposes

Application deadline: none – applications may be made at any time in writing.

Thriving Communities Programme: Learning Together:

Deadline has been extended to 25th January 2021.
Please ensure application forms are sent to
SouthWest.ThrivingCommunities@NASP.info and for more details on Learning
Together and to download the application form please click here.

THE VOLANT CHARITABLE TRUST COVID-19 RESPONSE FUND

Revenue grants for UK registered charities and social enterprises that are
supporting vulnerable members of society and reducing social deprivation among
people who have been adversely impacted by COVID-19.
Who can apply: UK registered charities, community groups, Community Interest
Companies and social enterprises based and working in the UK.
This is a revenue-only grant fund that will support project and administrative costs
(the Trust does not fund capital expenditure).
There are no minimum or maximum grant levels for the Fund. Matched funding is
not an essential requirement.
Applications for consideration in October 2021 are currently open, with a deadline
of Saturday 31 July 2021.

Business Support Grants
The current round of Additional Restriction Grants (ARG) relating to the lockdown which ended
on the 5th December will be closing on the 31st January 2021. If you are eligible for the grant
and have not already applied please do so.

A further round of the Business Support Grants will be launched soon relating to the current
lockdown which began on the 5th January 2021. We are awaiting further details from
Government.

                        Postcode Local Trust:
Funding for smaller charities and good causes in the west of England under the themes:
• Improving mental wellbeing
• Enabling community participation in the arts
• Preventing or reducing the impact of poverty
• Supporting marginalised groups and promoting equality
• Improving biodiversity & green spaces
• Enabling participation in physical activity
• Responding to the climate emergency & promoting sustainability
• Increasing community access to outdoor space

Next funding round opens on 1 February 2020

The Smart Energy GB in Communities fund
The grant programme, which is in its sixth round, works with charities and voluntary
groups to ensure that people can be informed and inspired about smart meters and the
benefits they can bring. This year, we are targeting grant funding to organisations who
reach people who are either on a low income or are offline.

National Energy Action are offering grants of between £7,500-£10,000, and £15,000-
£25,0000. Grants will be awarded to regionally-based organisations, with local networks,
that have a trusted voice amongst people who are:
• on a low income (annual household income of less than £14,000 before tax), with the
    total amount of grant requested being between £7,500 and £10,000
• are offline (adults who have no personal internet access anywhere, inside and outside
    home, including via mobile devices), with the total amount of grant requested being
    between £15,000 and £25,000

Housing associations, registered charities and non-registered community groups are
eligible to apply. Applications are also welcome from former applicants, both successful
and unsuccessful.

Applications are now open must be submitted by 12 noon Friday 12th February. Project
delivery will commence from 1st April 2021.

To find out more about applying, please contact smartgrants@nea.org.uk or
partners@smartenergygb.org