Church Links
Churches Supporting Communities Across the Borough of Walsall
What you will need to have thought about and written down before applying for funding
The aim of the Project
What do you want to achieve, how do you know that there is a need for it, how are you going to achieve it and how will you measure if you have been successful. If you intend to employ someone then you need to have written a job description. If you want to set up new clubs or groups, how many do you expect to have achieved by the end of the first year, the second year and the third year. How many people will attend these clubs and groups. If you intend to do building work then you need to have plans available.
Funders want to see this information, it shows that you have properly planned and thought through your Project, and it shows them how successful you hope to be and what their Trusts money will achieve. It may make the difference between your application being successful and somebody else’s.
Set a realistic budget
This can be a time consuming piece of work but it is worth doing it well and, again it shows that you have properly planned and thought through your Project.
Write down every area of cost that you can think of. If your Project involves employing a member of staff then you need to include advertising costs, salary, tax and national insurance, the rent of an office if necessary, computer, telephone and travel expenses, will they need money for resources relating to the people they will work with.
If your Project involves running a new club think about the set up costs including room hire.
If your Project is about renovating, extending or building work then you need to involve an Architect, have plans drawn up, put the job out to Tender and get quotes for the work that will be done.
Once you have set a budget show it to someone else outside of your Organisation, they may see other areas that you have missed or questions they want to ask, if they are asking you then a Trust may also want clarification and if it is not clear or realistic then they may discard your application.
Is the Project financially viable
If you can’t get all the funding you need from one Trust, where else are you going to get the money. Will you do fund raising, will you be applying to other Trusts, have you got some of the money you need, where did it come from. When you have set your budget it is important to write down how much money you already have and where it came from, how much money you still need and where you hope to get it from. It gives a Trust confidence if you can show this detail.
If after the initial set up, your Project will have ongoing costs like a Salary for example, that will not be met from any money that is generated by the Project, then you should explain what will happen at the end of the funding period. If you have employed a member of staff for two years, will the job end at the end of this time or will you need to look for more funding. If you will need to look for further funding then you should show that you have plans to make applications before the end of the funding period. If a Trust is to give you money to set up a Project they may want to know how long it will last for. Depending on the Project a Trust may favour another application that can show how they will make a difference for longer than you.
How will the Project be organised and managed
Who will be involved in setting up this Project and what experience do they have. Trusts will want to know that their money is in good hands, so have your Project managed by a group of people with a variety of experience. Your management group doesn’t need to be made up only of professionals, experience and common sense are just as important.
If your Church has a governing body or PCC, they may want to formally note who will be part of the management team for the Project, while it is important that the whole Church are behind the Project, it would not be helpful to have everyone make a decision on every item, a group of 5 to 9 people would be ideal.
If your Project will involve significant non church agencies or groups, you might also like to consider whether they could provide someone with relevant experience for your management team.
Larger Trusts may also ask for copies of your Accounts so have photocopies available to send out.
Finally
Once all of this information has been discussed, developed and written down, ask other people to read it, show it to someone else outside of your Organisation, they may see other areas that you have missed or questions they want to ask. If they are asking you then a Trust may also want clarification and if it is not clear or your ideas or budget are not realistic then they may discard your application.
Any or all of this work may seem daunting, but the key is to work on one area at a time and if you need help as a group then Church Links is happy to help. We work with Churches, Groups and Organisations that are at different stages of their Project work, some may want more help than others.
Once this information is in place you will be ready to look at Trusts that might be interested in your work
