Natalie Egleton, FRRR

15 March 2018

Practical tips on grant-seeking

@FRRR_Oz @negleton

Overview

▪ Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal (FRRR) – Who we are

– What we do

▪ Grant seeking stages1. Planning & Preparation

2. Identifying Opportunities

3. Writing the application

4. Reporting

▪ Resources

▪ Questions

About FRRR… a “philanthropic toothbrush” taking philanthropy to the hard to reach places.

▪ Established in 2000 to stimulate and support rural and regional renewal in Australia

▪ Our mission: To champion the economic and social strength of Australia’s regional, rural and remote communities

▪ Focus on small rural communities –fewer than 10,000 people

▪ Work in partnership with philanthropic, government and private sectors

What FRRR does

We help philanthropy reach rural and regional communities:

1. Provide grants to not-for-profit community organisations and act as a clearing house / referral service

2. Help non-DGR NFPs to fundraise, by receiving funds on their behalf for an agreed purpose; and

3. Help to build local capacity to find local solutions to local problems.

Grant applications … we’ve seen it all!

▪ Since 2000, FRRR has distributed more than $70 million in grants to support more than 8,000 community projects in rural, regional and remote Australia.

▪ This means FRRR has seen a lot of grant applications. Thousands!

▪ We’re well-placed to share insights about what makes an application stand out.

Local communities are best placed to know what they need

But sometimes they need a helping hand

Stage 1: Preparation & Planning

And… how much?

Shout out:

What does your community or organisation

need most, right now?

What do you want to do?

▪ What’s your idea?

– Address an issue?

– Capitalise on an opportunity?

– What would funds actually be used for?

HOT TIP: Make sure others in your community share your enthusiasm & commitment

Who?

▪ Who will be involved in and/or benefit from the project?

– Partners / Supporters

– Participants

– Volunteers

– Beneficiaries

– Community demographics

– How many people?

HOT TIP: Be specific - ‘The whole community will participate / benefit’ won’t cut it

Take two minutes:

Write down WHO you will involve & who will benefit from your project.

Be specific

How will the project be delivered?

▪ What are the key project stages?

– Tasks / Resources / Responsibility

▪ When will the project happen?

– What are the critical dates?

▪ Where will the project happen?

– Is the venue / site fit for purpose? Permits? OH&S?

▪ How will you know if the project has been successful?

– What measures are relevant/appropriate for your project? Are they robust enough? What existing measures can you use?

– How will you share the story of your project?

HOT TIP: Evaluation and acquittal documentation needs to be planned at the beginning

How much will it cost?

▪ Expenditure

– Consider all costs – materials, labour, marketing, admin, etc.

– Consider in-kind use of time/goods/services

– Get quotes for larger items/costs

– Don’t just make costs up

▪ Income

– Contribution from your own organisation & partners / supporters

– In-kind contributionsHOT TIP: Be realistic – don’t inflate OR underestimate

Stage 2: Find your opportunity!

Identifying Opportunities

▪ Identifying potential funders

⎯Government (local, State & Federal)

– Business (sponsorship)

– Philanthropy

– Crowd funding or giving circles

– Other

▪ Consider

– Scale of project

– Capacity to raise funds

– Grants may seem the easiest but they are hard work and bring responsibilities

Research opportunities

▪ Look at similar projects that have been delivered elsewhere

▪ Philanthropy Australia

▪ ourcommunity.com.au

▪ Grants Victoria (government)

▪ Strategic Grants

▪ Grant Ready

▪ Google

Match Making

▪ Check out the funder’s website

– What are their interests?

– What are they trying to achieve?

– What have they funded in the past?

– What are their values?

▪ Check you align with the funder

– Same beliefs, common purpose, scale

– Do you have any questions?

▪ Read the guidelines thoroughly

– Are you eligible to apply?

– What can/can’t be funded?

Examples of Eligibility / Guidelines for different FRRR programs

▪ Must be not for profit (not for private or commercial gain)

▪ Must have an ABN or be Incorporated

▪ Must be located in a recognised Victorian dairy area –either Gippsland, South-Western or Northern Victoria

▪ Must offer a clear public benefit, be for charitable purposes, and address a need in the community

▪ Only one application per group will be accepted

▪ Applications from communities with a population of 5,000 or less will receive priority

▪ Priority will be given to projects that assist in strengthening small rural communities, building their capacity to deal with local issues, or enhancing existing community infrastructure

Don’t waste your valuable time

▪ What can’t be funded by FRRR?

– Prizes, gifts, awards or trophies

– Things that have already happened

– Projects that take place outside rural, regional or remote Australia

– Political parties, lobby or religious groups

– Sport and recreational activities that don’t benefit the entire community

– Federal or State Government core business - this doesn’t exclude Government owned land but there are conditions

– Local government core business – this doesn’t exclude Council-owned facilities/land but there are conditions

Don’t apply to us if idea / project is one of these

Stage 3: Grant writing – the basics

▪ Use clear, simple language

▪ Assume the reader knows nothing about your organisation, project or community

▪ Avoid technical language, define words

▪ Spell out acronyms

▪ Use evidence to support claims

▪ Use facts, not opinions

▪ Be specific when answering questions

▪ Be clear re what you will use the funds for

Grant writing - essentials

▪ Answer all questions

▪ Ask someone who knows nothing about the project to read your application

▪ Triple check your budget

▪ Attach all requested documents

▪ Provide support materials wherever possible – A note on financial statements, organisational docs, letters of support

HOT TIP:Grant makers assess using what they have to hand – they do not have time to chase up material not provided

Show us the money

▪ Use the costs calculated in the planning stage to write your budget

– Use the template provided in the application

– Be specific about what you need the funds for

– Provide quotes for materials, equipment and skilled work or show how you arrived at your figures

– Ensure your budget is consistent with the rest of the application

HOT TIP: Make sure your budget balances!

Assessment & Decision Making

▪ How are applications assessed?

– Against program criteria & the strength of the project

– Usually limited funds and a competitive process

▪ Who assesses applications?

– FRRR Program Manager & Support Officers, CEO

– Advisory or Assessment Committee

– Recommendations made to FRRR Board

▪ Who makes decisions?

– The Board of Directors

Stage 4: Project reporting

Reporting (last but not least!)

▪ Review your application – grant-makers will

▪ Share your story, the inspiration, excitement and achievement or failures

▪ Promote your work and build your group’s profile

▪ Use the form provided by the grant-maker

▪ Explain what happened

▪ Provide photos or videos to help tell your ‘story’

▪ Reflect and learn

Resources

▪ FRRR website – Communities / Resources

▪ FRRR’s webinar series produced with Our Community – Funding options beyond grants

▪ www.OurCommunity.com.au

▪ Creative Victoria (Making Art with Communities: a Work Guide)

▪ Philanthropy Australia How to Guide: Effective Grant-Seeking

▪ Google

Let’s recap, what is good practice

▪ Read and follow guidelines – note closing date and word count!

▪ Plan evaluation at the beginning – what are you wanting to

change/improve/increase/decrease etc?

▪ Make sure people are on board

▪ Ask for help

▪ Allow plenty of time

▪ Use clear language and be specific

▪ Provide quotes, financials and letters of support

▪ Quadruple check the budget!

This is not going to help your cause…

▪ Not answering the question properly

▪ Not attaching information that has been requested

▪ Asking for more $ than you need or providing unjustified costs

▪ Dwelling on the problems ✓Instead provide a solution

▪ Subjective or emotive language ✓Just deal with the facts

▪ Incomplete applications

And the winner is… YOU- even if you don’t get a grant

▪ Successful:

– Celebrate

– Say thank you, acknowledge your funder

– Deliver your project!

▪ Unsuccessful:

– Don’t take it personally

– Ask for constructive feedback

– Re-visit the project

– Explore other funding options

Questions

Thank you for your time

Stay in touch

www.frrr.org.auinfo@frrr.org.au

www.facebook.com/followFRRR

@FRRR_Oz@negleton