If faith is the engine that drives your community work, then funding is the lubrication that keeps it running. Because no matter how small your community project is or how large it becomes, funding will always be an issue.

In this, the sixth of the ‘Faith into Action’ series, which aims to take readers through the 7 steps of setting up a community project, Faithworks examines how churches and Christian projects can acquire funding for their community work.

For many churches and Christian projects, getting hold of long-term sustainable funding for community work can seem like searching for the pot of gold at the end of a rainbow. But the reality is that there are many potential sources of income, depending on the nature of your project.

A community café, for example, is likely to be able to produce a good percentage of its income simply from its sales, while a project that partners with a local school may find much of its funding coming from the Local Education Authority (LEA).

Before you set up a sales arm to your project or apply for funding from your LEA, it is helpful to return to the original vision for the project - what it exists for. You should be at the stage where you can rely on clearly stated aims and objectives, a mission statement, a business plan and a budget to guide your approach to fundraising.

Mixing it up
It is a good idea to aim for a mix of funding from different sources. Some might come from your church/organisation, fundraising events, individuals donating money, or on the other hand, from businesses, charitable trusts or government bodies (known as statutory funding).

	Here are just some ideas for potential sources of income for your community project: · Charitable grant making trusts · European Social Fund · Local Authority / NHS Trust grants · Community Fund · Local Business / Company support or sponsorship · Central Government · Membership Fees · Contracts with statutory bodies or other organisations · Charges to users · Individual donations and legacies · Local fund raising collections and activities · Support in kind

Grants and Trusts
If you are looking to apply to a grant making body or charitable trust, it is important that your applications are targeted and project specific. It is a waste of time writing a standard letter and circulating it to 30 different trusts, as not all of these will fund what you want to do. Find out which trusts provide funding for your area of work (e.g. homelessness) as well as those that fund organisations in a particular geographic area.   

Many community projects say that while it is possible to get funding for activities, it is almost impossible to get funding for capital spending or core costs. This is where you have to be ‘project specific’. It is much easier to attract funding for something specific like a discrete project or piece of equipment because most funders want to see exactly what their money is being used for and the results of their donation.

For more detailed advice on how to apply for statutory funding, including writing your application, visit the Association of Charitable Foundations website, www.acf.org.uk.

Relational funding
Relationship is also central to the way that you approach any potential funder. If you are successful in your application, some funders will want to come and visit you, while others will correspond with you by letter or email. In any case, you will want to avoid adopting a ‘hit and run’ approach where you take the money, never to be heard of again.

Always be sure to write to the funder to thank them and be helpful in complying with any requests for information from the project. Funders will want to be kept up-to-date with the progress of the project they have funded and the impact that their specific contribution is making.

Relationships can also be helpful in applying for funding. You might want to consider getting together with other churches or community projects when applying for funding. Other groups have a wider range of resources, skills and ideas than people acting alone and some funders are more likely to listen to a representative from a group rather than a lone voice.

Final thoughts
While funding may be essential to your work, it is important to remember that it’s not the reason for your work. As you look at ways in which your project can acquire funding and how to present your work in a way that will attract potential funders, don’t lose track of your original aims and objectives. After all, funding is only a means to a much greater end!

Funding is a complex and ever-changing part of running a long-term community project, but there are several organisations and websites to help make this process a little simpler:

Association of Charitable Foundations – advice on how to apply to trusts and foundations. Visit www.acf.org.uk

Directory of Social Change – provides books and training on statutory funding. Visit www.dsc.org.uk

GrantNet – an online grant locator for UK businesses and charities. Visit www.grantsnet.co.uk

Faithworks – provides bespoke consultancy and up-to-date information on sources of funding. Visit www.faithworks.info/funding.

For further information on setting up a community project, visit the online version of the ‘7 Step Community Project Guide’ at www.faithworks.info/7steps.

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‘Excerpt from an article written by Rev Malcolm Duncan, Leader of Faithworks, www.faithworks.info.’

Rev Malcolm Duncan
Leader of Faithworks
1 Kennington Road
London SE1 7QP