Using portals to source funding
The UK’s charities have felt the full force of the pandemic when it comes to funding. Operating within a sector already tackling budget restraints and limited resources, many charities have had to scale back the services they deliver. Restrictions on fundraising events have resulted in charities having to rethink their strategies despite resources being stretched to the limit. The increased pressures have meant that the task of connecting charities to those offering grants has never been more necessary and urgent.
Currently there are around 166,000 registered charities in the UK which aim to make a positive impact on a wide range of social causes. It’s estimated that together the current revenue comes in at around £48 billion. Yet, many charities continue to struggle with fundraising.
As well reported, cancer charity Macmillan has forecasted a £28m shortfall in donations driven by lack of in-person events and the British Heart Foundation reported a 40% income drop due to its charity shop network closures. Consequently, charities are overwhelmed with increased demand and less income to work with while also lacking the time and capacity for deep investigation into available funding – many continue to operate on dwindling reserves.
It’s not all bad news, though – donations are now on the rise again, and there is funding out there available to those who need it which waits to be discovered – through the use of portal technology.
Undiscovered funding opportunities
Most charities rely on grants to some extent to fund their services. Yet, a 2020 survey of 164 funders found that 30% hadn’t allocated their full budget, with many citing that they didn’t receive enough applications which met the criteria. This suggests that those applicants either lacked the resources they needed to apply for these funds, or simply weren’t aware of them in the first place.
Unallocated grants are an unfortunate and avoidable waste. In the wake of the pandemic, However, with charity retail outlets closed due to lockdowns and fundraising events cancelled in response to restrictions, charities have been hit hard financially. As a result, many have had to rapidly adapt to changing conditions in terms of service delivery and fundraising, with stores turning to an e-commerce approach, for example.
So, searching for external funding remains a key priority. This is easier said than done, though, as it requires significant time commitment, information trawling and data gathering, of which the majority of charities lack the resources to complete. The process itself demonstrates the clear demand and need for a way to streamline this process, through assigning and connecting the right funds with the most fitting charities.
Flexible funding
To help tackle the issue of eligibility, the Institute for Voluntary Action Research (IVAR), in collaboration with London Funders and a small group of UK foundations and charities, launched the #FlexibleFunders campaign to support the Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise sector. The campaign urges those offering grants to adopt more open and trusting practices, and commit to them for the long term in order to ignite real social change in this area. These commitments involve accepting risk and acting with urgency, and encouraging those in a position to allocate funds to be more open minded about where they are delegating their funding.
Further, a report published by the Association of Charitable Foundations found that in a survey of 80 foundations (of all sizes), more than eight out of 10 stated an ongoing commitment to increased flexibility for grantees and reduced administration for funding applicants. Funders are broadening the possibilities of what can be achieved. This is a step in the right direction, but doesn’t solve the problem of connecting the funds to the funders which is a huge blocker.
With flexibility and adaptability increasing for both charities and funders, now is the time to ensure both groups are brought together – this is where technology comes in.
Matchmaking charities and funds
With such a high rate of unallocated funding, it’s clear that charities are missing out on opportunities for valuable financial backing, in too many cases because they don’t know where to look or which funds are right for them. Now, though, there are real-time portals available which display relevant funding opportunities and help charities identify the ones that are the best fit.
By using a portal like this, users can also be notified of new opportunities when they arise, keep an eye on new developments and stay up to date on application processes. Specialist funding platforms can also help identify funders who are willing to cover core costs. This was identified in a recent report from UK Community Foundations as the biggest challenge for charities whose fundraising has been impacted by the pandemic.
The same way a recruiter links new jobseekers with suitable companies they perhaps weren’t aware of or didn’t know were hiring, technology can play that role for charities. To reduce the risk of missing out, the portal provides clear and simple notifications that contain all the key application information, including deadlines, criteria and regulations.
These coincide with helpful news alerts which show whether an earlier fund has reopened, for instance, or if there has been a notable change in strategy which could impact the funding provision – crucial information for those seeking grants. There are also how-to guides available and blog posts which offer advice on applying for funds, flagging common application mistakes to avoid.
Matching charities with volunteers
It’s not only matching charities with funders that should take priority, though. A recent report from the National Lottery estimated that more than 10 million people volunteered with initiatives responding to Covid-19 alone. Volunteers not only help run and operate initiatives, but they contribute financially too – 1.9 million charity volunteers contributed £4 billion to the economy over the past few years, thanks to National Lottery Community Fund grantmaking. Therefore, matching charities with volunteers is just as important as matching them to funding.
Volunteer-finding infrastructure has improved hugely over the last 18 months, which is good news and a huge timesaver for charities seeking support in this way. For example, Team Oxford is a non-profit partnership which focuses on connecting employers with charities looking for volunteers. Its Furlough Exchange website helped match furloughed employees with charities and voluntary groups. Elsewhere, Reach Volunteering specialise in matching skilled volunteers with charities looking for trustees or advisers.
Similarly, the Do it platform offers a national collaborative network which links volunteers and opportunities for charities of all sizes. Progress is clear and initiatives like this are clearly benefitting from intelligently applied technology.
Loosening funding restrictions
For charities, the hunt for financial backing has never been easy, but one is seeing significant developments heading in the right direction. Funders are becoming more flexible and opening the bidding process to make it more seamless and effectively easier for grants to be secured. For example, in response to Covid, nearly half of funders were looking to contribute to funder collaborations, which demonstrates the strict processes are loosening to help those in need – a positive development, with positive outcomes ahead.
Aside from this, there have also been instances of “pivoting” funds. Some funders have written flexibility into their strategies to support funders through COVID, an example being Sport England. This recognises that it may now be difficult to deliver projects, programmes or events as planned, so if an organisation has received funding from it for something specific, but it's no longer possible to deliver it in its original form.
Sport England is open to discussing how the funding can be used for other initiatives. In other words: the situation may have changed, but the funding can take a different direction too. Adaptation and flexibility are becoming more common in these situations.
There has also been an increase of funders adopting fast-track application processes – for example, making it easier to submit an application, meaning fewer stages to go through to get approved for funding. This signals that the rigid structures of funding delegation are slowly relaxing in response to increased demand.
In view of the ongoing effects of the pandemic, the role of portal technology cannot be understated. Technology will continue to connect charities with funders and enhance the process for those seeking financial backing. The connectivity and intelligent insight that come from the use of portal technology should be embraced as much as possible.
