Agreeing the frequency of grant-making

In designing a grant-making programme that works well for the community, decisions will need to be made on a number of things including its frequency. It may be that a ‘rolling 2 programme’ is favoured (i.e. applicants can apply at any time), or that a number of ‘rounds’ are set with clear deadlines for funding proposals or applications to be received by and dates for making a decision on these. Setting rounds is essentially a way of managing demand on the Fund and planning the workload of those involved in decision making and administration.

Key factors influencing the approach and number of rounds are show in the diagram below. The factor ‘likely demand for funds’ can at best only be estimated, based on:

  • the number of eligible applicants locally
  • their activity levels (including any projects in development), and
  • the timing or frequency of their likely need for funds.

Blue box with white text in top corner reads 'key considerations in setting the number of award-making rounds. Four cogs make up the diagram, with text in their center. Cog 1: "Minimum & Maximum Award size (see section 1.2)' Cog 2: "Likely demand for funds" Cog 3: "Size of fund" Cog 4: "Resources available for fund governance administration."

If demand for funding is likely to be high and funding proposals are to be considered in relation to each other rather than on a first come first served basis, then setting rounds is a good idea. If the Fund is small and competition likely, then a small number of rounds in each year may be best. Similarly, if there is not capacity to conduct a review of funding proposals (see section 3 below for a description of this) and award decisions will be made by a small number of already busy volunteers, then that might suggest a small number of rounds would work best. If the Fund is large and levels of demand are high, a larger number of rounds may work best, assuming there is sufficient capacity available to manage all the work involved.

In setting dates for submission deadlines and for subsequent award making meetings, be sure to leave enough time for the funding proposals to be read over, scrutinised and perhaps further information gathered where required. Having said that, some of the proposals may be for projects that are time dependent (e.g. events over Christmas, School holiday clubs) and may require a funding decision to be made in sufficient time before those projects are due to start. Be thoughtful also about the community calendar and that any funding rounds may either complement or compete with key local events or activities already planned. Be aware of holiday periods and the annual cycles of community groups’ regular activities