1. How to access money locally
Dom Weinberg, Policy Officer,
National Council for Voluntary Youth Services
dominic@ncvys.org.uk

2. Fundraising info sources
• http://www.ncvys.org.uk/funding_update.html - includes NCVYS
monthly update
• Funding Central - includes funding opportunities in the form of
grants, loans and contracts, as well as advice, support services and
partnership opportunities
• Community Matters Preparing Good Funding Applications
• The Directory of Social Change
Top Tips for Applying to Grant-Making Trusts and Foundations.
• South Yorkshire Funding Advice Bureau (SYFAB) has regular
updates and information sheets appropriate to groups in other
regions
• Local CVS and CVYS
• Colleagues, trustees and beneficiaries

3. Funding possibilities
• Funding streams for sports, art, environmental projects
• Participation funding and young people’s leadership. Even if this
doesn’t directly bring funds into the organisation, will it develop skills
which help it with future funding opportunities?
• Workforce development – think long term (e.g. how to keep and
develop your best volunteers)
• Lots of funds are for targeted work with disadvantaged young people.
These might be large contracts you wouldn’t dream of delivering, but
could you be part of wider bids in some way
• Trusts and foundations have £billions - some may work locally
• Do funds fit with your mission and values?

4. Should we apply?
• Questions to think about before applying
• 1. Is it deliverable? (That is, can you do what needs to be done
without having to significantly change your operating model or
deviate from your core work?)
• 2. Is it winnable? (That is, do you meet the funder's criteria in the first
instance, and do you have a strong case that elevates your proposal
above others?)
• 3. Is it financially viable? (That is, can you do all that needs to be
done with the funds available?)
• Questions to think when writing application
• 1) What are you doing; 2) who will benefit; 3) why
are you doing it; 4) what difference will your
project make; 5) is your project likely to work?

5. A pplying for funding
• Participatory – work with young people (and the community)
• Innovative – doesn’t have to be groundbreaking, but something a bit
different and exciting is probably far more appealing to funders. Accept
that there can be a risk, but show evidence of good probability of
success.
• Collaborative - inter-faith, intergenerational, international: contacts are
crucial for building relationships
• What are current buzzwords? Early intervention, community, citizenship
and responsibility, social mobility, leadership , opportunity
• But, be careful. Jargon can be a real problem, whether used by
applicants or foundations, because it tends to suffocate the good stuff.
Don’t let it cover up your passion and what you actually intend to do.

6. Funder's perspective
• Funders will have a key set of guiding principles, an overall vision
that they are trying to achieve. Your bid's outcomes need to be in
step with those of the funder. You'll need to show how you've
identified the need for your service, engagement with the intended
audience, and most importantly, the measurable outcomes you are
aiming to achieve.
• Soft outcomes seem to be out of favour in the current climate;
successful bidders are identifying hard, tangible outcomes in order to
win funding.
• The funder should be a stakeholder in your charitable activities, and
that means building a meaningful relationship with them, not just
cashing their cheque.

7. Task
• Come up with an ‘accessing money locally strategy’.
• What will you do in the next 6-12 months
• What will you do over the next 2-3-5 years?
• Firm plan to generate sustainability for the brigade
• Set out next steps – e..g who will you approach next
week?

8. Group discussion
• What are you fundraising for? What is your strategy and what are
your targets?
• How much support do you rely on from grants / public donations /
sponsorship from private business?
• Who can you directly approach for support, e.g. business – and are
these short-term arrangements (e.g. per camp) or do they have
longer term agreements e.g. sponsorship, in-kind donations, cash
gifts over the period of several years?
• How do you work with neighbouring organisations other youth
organisations – are you collaborating or competing?
• Is ‘traditional’ fundraising – cake sales, sponsored events etc –
worthwhile? Does it involve the community and can it be used in a
positive way to reel people in and get them to donate more, become
more involved in fundraising and promotion for the brigade?
• Think about ‘alternative’ funding sources?

9. Strengthening the
Youth Sector Market
• Strand 1 of Catalyst:
• A youth sector specific Social Finance Retailer
• ‘yeah’ CIC as vehicle to access new and bigger
markets
• Please contact ana@ncvys.org.uk with all enquiries
and she can signpost you to the most relevant
individual in the correct organisation

10. Social Finance Retailer
• Impact measurement framework
• Educational and capacity building programme – social
finance and investment readiness
• Brokerage service

11. Building and accessing new and
bigger markets
• A young person led approach to product development
• Legal agreements
• Business support programme
• Leadership and ‘replication in action’ programmes

12. yeah C IC
Taking the Best to the Rest
• Licensing and franchising service for the VCS
• Looking for ready-to-roll business-in-a-box models requiring little or no
start-up investment
• Keen to help members ‘discover’ whether they have tangible, saleable
products that they could generate an income from through sales