Successful bid writing and sources of grants for museums 5 th February 2016 Worthing Museum

Content This workshop will help you: Put funding into perspective Develop your idea into a project Develop and submit your proposal Identify funding and key funders Monitor and evaluate

Funding context Autumn Statement Councils’ cuts More competition Need for innovative new projects Additionality Resources required

Funding myths Too difficult Bureaucratic and lengthy process Too much jargon On top of my daily work No support

Skills required Patience Being able to write in Plain English Being able to convey enthusiasm Partnership working Value for Money Clear outcomes and outputs

To bid or not to bid... How well you fit with the eligibility criteria The application process The net value Timescale Scoring criteria Competition/difficulty

Developing your idea into a project WHAT is your project about, what are you trying to achieve? WHY did you come up with this idea? WHO will benefit from and be involved in your project? WHERE will the project take place? WHEN will the project start/finish, how long will it last?

Planning Triangle More children going to the museum More educated adults with better job prospects Better quality of lifeBetter results Increased confidence Workshop in schools with parents/carers Work experience in museums Story telling project in school Overall aim Outcomes Outputs

Issue Cause Effect Level 2 Level 1 Level 2 Developing a project

Lack of access to culture Lack of access to cultural resources Lack of support to children Lack of interest in visiting museums School drop-outs of parents Lower level jobs or unemployment of parents Social issues Poor quality of life Learning difficulties at school Poor child development Lack of opportunities School drop-outsLower level jobs or unemployment Social difficultiesPoor quality of life Level 2 Level 1 Level 2 Developing a project Case study

Before you start Read the guidance! Check the application process/form Partnership requirements Level of grant/match funding Grant payment – cash flow Monitoring and audit requirements

Top 10 application errors 1.Not eligible 2.Applying for too much... Or not enough 3.Too much information 4.Too much jargon/buzz words 5.Use Plain English 6.Budget 7.Talk to the funder 8.Cutting and pasting... 9.Don’t assume 10.The difference you will make

Jargon Outputs Outcomes Baseline Milestone SMART Language used

Evidence of need Issue(s) being addressed Relevant and up to date research Consultation Why is your project an appropriate response to the need? Do you know of relevant strategies/initiatives or other projects working in this field and how your project will fit in?

Type and level of evidence Relevance and source Reports Statistics Consultation/survey People telling you Useful websites

Budget Early draft using Excel Currency/exchange rate Formal commitment Budget lines/cash flow Match funding Audit/funder’s requirements Procurement Full cost recovery

Writing the application Keep it simple, short, to the point Use bullet points Active, not passive, positive not negative Learn from others Get feedback Cutting and pasting

Exercise 1 Assessing the opportunity

Exercise No 1: Assessing the Opportunity Scenario: A friend who works in a museum has mentioned to you the Pilgrim Trust as a good funder to apply to. Unfortunately, she didn’t give you much information about it, so you need to check details to see whether you think it might be a funding opportunity worth pursuing. Task: Not following the guidelines is cited as one of the top reasons why applications fail, with this in mind, carefully read the guidelines of the Pilgrim Trust and answer the following: Do you think your organisation is eligible to apply? How much money could you get? Is there a deadline? Can you think of a project you have been involved in and for which you could have applied for funding? Can you think of a project that you will be working on that could be eligible for funding from this trust? How will you progress this?

Identifying funding Funding databases Websites Newsletters Guides Social Media Word of mouth

Key funders Lottery Trusts and Foundations Government Europe Others

Lottery 28% of lottery tickets to good causes £34m each week through four funders Arts Council England Heritage Lottery Fund BIG Lottery Fund – Awards for All – Reaching Communities

Arts Council England Grants for the Arts PRISM Museum Resilience Fund

BIG Lottery For projects which address issues, needs and aspirations of local communities Awards for All - between £300 and £10,000 Reaching Communities – from £10,000 Focus on outcomes No deadline

Some Trusts and Foundations Local Trusts and Foundations Community Foundations Museums Association Association of Independent Museums Other Trusts and Foundations

Government Town and District Councils County Councils Department for Culture, Sports and Media Landfill Tax Credit – SITA – Biffaward

European funding Different routes to apply Length and complexity Language/jargon Partnership requirements Monitoring, claims Record retention and audit requirements

Key European Programmes “Local” – LEADER – Through the Local Enterprise Partnerships Cross-border – INTERREG V A Channel (Northern France) – INTERREG V A Two Seas (parts of Northern France, Belgium, Netherlands) Across Europe – Creative Europe

LEADER Central Sussex Sussex Downs and Coastal Plain WARR – Wealden And Rural Rother Rural Surrey

LEADER - Central Sussex

LEADER – Sussex Downs and Coastal Plain

LEADER – Wealden and Rural Rother

LEADER - Rural Surrey

Exercise 2 Funding challenges

IssueChallengeAnswer Guidelines Writing the bid Communication Timing Staff Financial resources Partners Competition Having to fit in with funders’ requirement Exercise No 2: Funding Issues Task: Working in groups, think about key funding issues, what challenges they bring and how these can be tackled.

Monitoring and evaluation Different types of monitoring Level of monitoring Roles and responsibilities What do you want to find out? When will you need to know? How will you get feedback and from whom? Where will you store it? Will it be the basis for another bid?

Plan the activities What needs to be done When it should be done Who will be involved in doing it What resources are needed How long it will take to do How much will it cost

Different methods Surveys and questionnaires Face to face or phone interviews Focus groups, users forum Logbooks, blogs, webchats Doing a SWOT analysis Photo diaries and scrapbooks Video and audio diaries Performances and presentations

Using the information To improve timing of planned activities To adjust budgets To improve future planning and decision making To indicate where future work is necessary To inform other agencies of activities to encourage publicity and cooperation To inform funders of progress an future plans

Graeme McKirdy Heritage Lottery Fund

Support available Funding databases Councils for Voluntary Services County Councils Publications Libraries One to one advice

Thank you! Any questions?

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