For grant-holders

Holding a grant

Jack Offord, Bristol Old Vic © - Two actors one in blue dungarees the other in a white top and trousers, sat down leaning against each other as part of their performance of 'A Million Tiny Glitches by Sleepdogs'

Once our Trustees have approved a grant, we will write to you outlining the terms and conditions, as well as what we need in terms of reporting. This letter will be sent by email and sets out what financial information we need from you in order to make electronic payments. We aim to make payments quickly (usually within one month) of making a decision.

We ask for updates from our grant-holders about their work, because we want to learn more about what is working and why.

We ask for progress reports and financial updates on the grant usually once a year.

Learning

We ask for updates from our grant-holders about their work, because we want to learn more about what is working and why. We understand that organisations sometimes need to change their approach or that things do not go to plan - we encourage grant-holders to be open about this. If the changes are significant, such as the financial condition of the charity, the senior management team, or something which could materially affect the purpose for which the grant was made, we prefer that you let us know. You do not need to wait until the formal reporting point to inform us of such developments.

The practicalities of reporting

If the grant is a single payment, we will ask you to send us a report after one year.

Most of our grants are for two or three years. You will need to provide Progress Reports one year after the previous payment was made to trigger the next payment. We also expect a Final Report at the end of the grant period. We ask that Progress Reports and Final Reports are ideally no more than four sides of A4.

We will send a reminder asking for your Progress or Final Report one month before the report is due.

The following information is requested for Progress Reports:

Your organisation: Outlining any major changes in management, staffing or policy since the application; and telling us briefly about your organisation's main activities and achievements during the past year
The last year: Outlining the difference the grant has made, e.g. by summarising what you said you planned to achieve in the application/last year's report, and tell us about the progress toward this; outlining what has gone well and why; telling us about any outcomes that you have not intended or anticipated, and how you dealt with these; and if you have not achieved what you intended, telling us why.
The year ahead: Sharing whether your plans remain the same or have changed, and if they have changed telling us why and what you now intend to achieve.
Anything else: This might include other things you would like us to know like any work with others, and how you have shared your experience.

We also need a financial update, and this includes:

A breakdown of income and expenditure for the work funded against your original budget. If this differs from your original income and expenditure budget please explain why. If our grant was for core costs, you should simply send us your management accounts covering the last 12 months.

A copy of your latest approved annual report and accounts (if you have not already sent them). If they are not yet available, please send them to us as soon as they are.

The following information is requested for Final Reports:

Overview: Outlining what has changed across your organisation since you first received the grant - in terms of the work you do, the strength of the organisation and your financial position; and any key developments in the final year of the grant
Difference the grant made: Outline of what has been achieved since the grant started based on what you originally identified as outcomes in your original application, along with a summary of changes and whether this has resulted in your achieving something different instead; and what difference you think the Foundation’s contribution made.
Learning: Outline of what you have learned, e.g. what has gone well and why; any outcomes that you had not intended or anticipated that may have been positive or negative; any problems you've faced and how you've tackled them; the main things you have learned; how might you do things differently in the future; and any plans to share your experiences more widely.
The future: Outline of how you plan to continue the work, or if it was a time limited project, how you have wound it down
Anything else: This might include other things you would like us to know.

We also need a financial update, and this comprises:

A copy of your latest approved annual report and accounts (if you have not already sent them). If they are not yet available, please send them to us as soon as they are.

Reapplying

If you have received a grant, you are welcome to apply to us again within the final three months of your grant. However, if possible, we encourage new applications to be made once the grant has come to an end, as this means that we will have all of your grant reports available to support decision making. If you need the new grant to start as soon as your current grant comes to an end, then we ask that you speak to the member of the team who manages your grant for advice on this. If you are not sure who manages your grant, then please contact Beth Barker on beth@ellerman.org.uk to request this information.

If you have applied unsuccessfully, you must wait one year from the date of the decision before you reapply.

Publicity

If you wish to use our logo in an annual report, advert or elsewhere, please contact Beth Barker on beth@ellerman.org.uk. We have no specific requirements for acknowledging our grant.