1. WRITING GRANTS AND GRANT SUCCESS STORIES WORKSHOP 2 FRIDAY 19 FEBRUARY 2016 ROSEMARY SHARMAN

2. THE WORKSHOP You will have: 1.Written your grants wish list 2.Determined your grant priorities 3.Drafted a needs statement for one item on your wish list 4.Learned about types of granting bodies 5.Discovered tips for grant writing success

3. BEFORE YOU START WRITING A GRANT APPLICATION Make a list of everything you would like to do, if only you had the money Organise your ideas – what are the main themes or concepts?

4. BEFORE YOU START WRITING A GRANT APPLICATION Use your worksheet 1.Write your grants wish list 2. Allocate your list: A – for those items to do with your community or groups B – for those items that relate to your organisational capacity 3.Choose 1 item from your Group A list

5. BEFORE YOU START WRITING A GRANT APPLICATION – THINKING ABOUT A PRIORITY Why is your Group A proposal needed?  The need should relate to y our Mission and Purpose  Be supported by Evidence – facts, expert views, trends and comparative data  Do you have the ability to respond to the need?  Is the need easy to express (without jargon) and simple to understand?

6. NEEDS STATEMENT  What problem do you think a grant might help you fix?  Can you write a needs statement about it that: 1.Relates to your mission and purpose 2.Focuses on the people you serve, not on your organisation?

7. NEEDS STATEMENT EXAMPLE The problem is that we have no youth centre in our town. Building a youth centre will solve the problem. What is wrong with this statement?

8. AN EXAMPLE OF A NEEDS STATEMENT Use your worksheet to write a needs statement for your chosen grant wish. Think about convincing the grant assessor that what you propose to do is important and that you are the right organisation to do it. Keep it weighty yet balanced. School refusal by 15-17 year olds is a problem in Gippsland. Each day 1000 students stay away from school. Police report a high incidence of theft and vandalism by 15-17 year olds during school hours. There are more convictions of 15-17 year olds in Lakes Entrance for theft and vandalism than in the rest of Gippsland combined. Our school engagement program, in which we collaborate with all the town’s schools, health and youth services and with the police, is needed here more than in any other Gippsland town.

9. TYPES OF GRANTS Government grants  Can be relatively inflexible and are outcomes-oriented  Will take your track record into account – they dislike inefficiency  Dislike organisations not spending grant money because things didn’t work out – poor planning and identifying need Philanthropic grants  Most likely to support groups with DGR status  Flexible, forward-looking – want to share a mission

10. TYPES OF GRANTS Corporate grants  You will need to be pro-active to attract grant funds from corporates  Want to achieve their goals and aims through working with you  Be sure the specific corporate aims are a good fit with your strategies and mission For all types of grants  Can your idea be replicated – is it widely applicable? Could it be scaled up to a larger state or national project?

11. TIPS FOR GRANT WRITING SUCCESS  Take time and care – write an outline first, get others to review it  Include human interest – include the facts and add stories about people to illustrate the issues and need you have identified  Be realistic – if you exaggerate a problem, you may make it seem that your idea is not doable or manageable  Simplify your writing – wordy, complex applications won’t get you any more money  If you get confused – re-read the application and focus on your outline  Cool off - let your application sit for a few days; reread it, have others read it, then edit to final.  Are you certain your proposal meets the guidelines?

12. ELEMENTS OF A GRANT APPLICATION Cover letter  Always include a letter and write 3 or 4 paragraphs – last thing you write  Support from your Committee  Describe what you are asking for and how much you want – not repeating what’s in your proposal  Informs about how well you know the funding body’s needs and how your proposal fits their requirements  Thank you for considering

13. ELEMENTS OF A GRANT APPLICATION Executive Summary – focus on  Key points in each section, especially those you know are important to the funding body  Your mission and vision  Specific needs and your goals and objectives  Why the project is needed/important in your town  What will the project achieve  Why your organisation should do this  Thank you for considering the request for a grant

14. ELEMENTS OF A GRANT APPLICATION Needs statement - linked to goals and objectives Goals  Use aspirational words – decrease, deliver, increase, establish, improve Increase school attendance in 15-17 year olds in Lakes Entrance Objectives  Can be measured – SMART; identify target and specify results of activity  Allow plenty of time to be able to achieve them By December 2016, 100 15-17 year olds will have participated in our school retention program and have recorded 2 terms of full school attendance.

15. ELEMENTS OF A GRANT APPLICATION Method and program design  Show visually in a chart or logic flow  How you will achieve objectives, when and who Evaluation  How will you know you succeeded?  Consider using an independent evaluator – include in the budget  Connect with objectives and measures  Keep checking along the way (if you get the grant)

16. ELEMENTS OF A GRANT APPLICATION About your organisation  The funder wants confirmation that choosing you was wise. Let them know:  Financial stability  Well managed – great skills and great commitment  Provide essential services and understand your community and respected in it  Committee and staff reflect your community profile  Why you are unique – how you complement, not overlap, other services  Partnerships and letters of support  Attach testimonials, CVs, articles – don’t include in grant narrative

17. ELEMENTS OF A GRANT APPLICATION Sustainability  How will you continue with the work that this grant has helped you established  Let the funder know that your idea has a future  Outline how you have planned to keep the momentum Budget  Present it beautifully and balance it  Differentiate direct and indirect costs (admin, facilities, utilities)  Include other contributions – in-kind, other funds  Consider using a professional grant writer – budget for this  Will the project make a loss, profit or break-even?

18. GRANT SUCCESSES  Port Melbourne Neighbourhood Centre  Coonara House and Knox Alliance  CAIF grants in Gippsland REMEMBER  Is there a genuine need for your proposal?  Can your idea be replicated and scaled up?  Is yours the organisation to fix the problem?  Do you collaborate with others?

19. RESOURCES  Our Community website – Grant seeker’s template  Every application needs to be tailored to the funding body’s aims  Winning Grants, Step by Step, Carlson and O’Neal-McElrath, Jossey- Bass, 2008  www.about.com/Grant+Writing+Examples  www.business-in-a-box.com/Write+Grants