Comic Relief Grant Making Policies to consider before applying for a Project or Research Grant 2009-12
Policies relevant to summary project grant applications and research grant application Reserves Policy Comic Relief will not normally fund organisations with free or unrestricted reserves that exceed their last year s running costs, unless there are convincing reasons for them needing our funds. Responding to fund-raising appeals Comic Relief does not support or fund general appeals, individual or group sponsorship and marketing appeals. Funding Institutional Care Comic Relief will not fund work where the institutional care of children or adults is a preferred way of working such as orphanages. Funding Conferences Comic Relief is very unlikely to fund one-off conferences or workshops, as it is difficult to demonstrate what impact one-off events are likely to achieve. However we are willing to fund conferences, workshops and other gatherings as part of a longer-term programme of work where it can be shown such events will help to bring about improvements in the implementation and outcomes of programmes. Funding capital costs and basic services As a matter of general principle, Comic Relief is unwilling to fund the provision of mainstream, basic health, education or other services that are the primary responsibility of government with the support of major bilateral or multilateral funders. However, we recognise in many cases that government provision of basic services may be weak or nonexistent. In such cases we are willing to fund the provision of some services. Examples of this might be the provision of home-based care services to people affected by HIV or basic education for conflict affected children or health care for street children. In addition, while we will fund capital costs where these are an essential part and a proportionately small cost of the work to be delivered, we are unlikely to fund constructing domestic dwellings or public buildings as a major part of an application or vehicles, unless it is demonstrated that they are essential to the project. In these instances, applicants must be able to demonstrate whether they have thought about how costs will be met in the future. This applies to both capital costs such as textbooks, drugs or equipment, as well as recurrent costs, such as lighting, rent and salaries. Applicants should describe what aspects of basic services are expected to have a high degree of community ownership and control over the long term (for example, maintaining a water pump) and where government is expected to meet recurrent costs (for example, a teacher s salary). Funding Organisations that Evangelise or Proselytise Comic Relief will not fund organisations whose mission or charitable objectives state an intention to convert people to any kind of religious beliefs. This may be through evangelism (the practice of preaching or spreading religious beliefs) or proselytising (the practice of trying to convert people to one s own belief or opinion). We recognise that faith based organisations are key actors in undertaking development work and for this reason we are willing to support their work. We would expect these organisations to have a policy relating to diversity so that people from all faiths or persuasions can get employment as a member of staff, board member or volunteer, or benefit from the work.
Funding campaigning that takes a partisan political stance Comic Relief, invests in organisations in order to effect change in society, to bring about its mission, the creation of a just world free from poverty. To this end it will support organisations that undertake campaigns to influence public opinion. Comic Relief cannot support activities, which appear to, or actually seek to, influence public opinion in favour of a political party through adopting a partisan political stance. Comic Relief will take particular care to respect the Charity Commission guidance on this issue and it expects all charities it funds to do likewise. Funding the costs of grant administration and management by the UK charity We do not have a set percentage that we are willing to pay for the costs associated with the administration and management of a grant by the UK charity. These costs should be negotiated between the UK charity and the local organisations it wishes to support and be clearly justified in the application and budget. We look for costs that are appropriate to the level of support required by a local organisation. Co-funding Co-funding is when an agency is seeking a specific proportion of the total budget from Comic Relief and the rest from other donor s i.e. co-funders. (This policy does not refer to the process of fund raising by applying concurrently to a number of different donors for the same work. Comic Relief expects agencies to approach a variety of funders for their work.) Comic Relief wishes make a sufficient contribution to activities to ensure we have a meaningful stake in the work. This should be at least 25% of the total budget. If a contribution of less than this is recommended, a clear justification should be given. Otherwise, the proportion Comic Relief gives to an agency should be based on what has been requested and the quality of the work. Where co-funding hasn t been secured at the point when the grant is approved, the funding agreement should require the grantee to tell Comic Relief when a decision is made and to explain how they will fund the work if co-funding is not secured, or is less (or more) than requested. This may require them to provide Comic Relief with a revised budget and work plan tailored to the funds available. New applications from existing grant holders When considering new applications from existing grant holders Comic Relief will consider; the extent to which the applicant organisation would be dependant on Comic Relief funds and the extent to which a programme might be dependant on the work of one organisation or approach to fulfill its objectives, with priority being given to applications that will allow Comic Relief to fund a diversity of sound approaches. Continuation or follow on funding Comic Relief does not guarantee to provide funds beyond the life of an existing grant. Organisations can apply for follow on, or continuation funding. We would expect organisations applying for a continuation or follow on grant from Comic Relief, to be able to show they are also seeking funding from other sources, rather than just depending on Comic Relief. International grant holders applying for a grant from Comic Relief for work that has already been funded by us or by another funder are expected to have undertaken some form of evaluation or major review to assess progress and impact and lessons learnt before coming to Comic Relief for continuation funding. The review or evaluation will need to have been completed at least 3 months before a summary application is made so that the new
application is informed by lessons learnt through the review process. Applicants will also be expected to have analysed the findings of the review or evaluation. Agencies in receipt of a small (up to 25,000) Research, Consultation and Planning grant are expected to have submitted a report on the research study before coming to Comic Relief for project funding. Applicants will also be expected to have analysed the findings and recommendations of the research and how these can be addressed. Funding Diaspora-Led Organisations Comic Relief recognises the important role that Diaspora communities can play in supporting the development of their home communities. Thus particular consideration will be given to organisations that are Diaspora-led if they seek funds to support and engage with their home communities. Funding the provision of ARVs Comic Relief does not routinely fund the provision of therapeutic ARVs. Funding staff, consultants and volunteers who are not from the country where the work is taking place Our commitment to supporting local organisations and people means we want our funds to be used to build local capacity by employing, training and supporting local people. For this reason we will always encourage applicants and their partner organisations to seek to recruit, train and develop staff and volunteers, and recruit consultants, from within the country or region wherever possible. If a case is made for using non-national staff, we d like to know how local staff will be supported to take on the responsibilities held by that individual during the course of the project. Appeals on decisions to make or withdraw grants Comic Relief works hard to ensure that all applications are thoroughly considered and that everyone is treated equally and fairly. However, we will not consider appeals against the rejection of an application by a short-listing team or a final decision by trustees to reject an application or withdraw a grant. If applicants are unhappy with their experience of Comic Relief and have genuine concerns about the way an assessment has been undertaken, the general service provided or a recommendation reached, then this should dealt with through the complaints procedure. This will review the decision making process rather than about the decision itself.
Policies particularly relevant to your full application and research application Approval of grants All grants are approved by the Comic Relief board of trustees. Diversity Comic Relief is committed to help and encourage organisations to adopt appropriate diversity policies, which is dependent on the organisations size and age. We will assess the extent to which local organisations are representative of their intended end-beneficiaries and consider how this might inhibit or enable them to effectively deliver the planned support. Child Protection A Child Protection Policy and procedure is a requirement for all applicant organisations that work with Children up to the age of 18. Where they do not have one, any grant made should be conditional on the organisation producing one within 6 months of first payment. All organisations that we fund to work with children are required to submit a copy of their Child Protection Policy. Internationally, local organisations should have or begin to develop a policy appropriate to their activities and country context. Health & Safety Comic Relief expects organisations supporting staff and volunteers to have conducted a risk assessment and have adequate risk mitigation strategies in place. Financial Probity Applicants and grant holding organisations are expected to maintain minimum standards of financial probity. These will be assessed on application and will be regularly monitored through out the life of a grant. Funding organisations that are financially unstable We will fund or continue to fund organisations who are experiencing financial instability (e.g. are generating a deficit in unrestricted funds) if they have the potential to be viable in the longer term and are undertaking work that we consider to be of good quality, but we will insist that they have, or develop, an appropriate strategy to reduce their instability and we will monitor their progress regularly. Comic Relief staff will not offer direct instruction as to how organisations should manage financial instability. But we would expect a high degree of commitment from the board and staff (were appropriate) to a clear plan of action. We may terminate a grant early to ensure an effective exit from activities that are compromised due to financial instability. Withdrawal of application An applicant may withdraw their application by written or email notice so long as this is received at least fourteen days before the application is scheduled to be reviewed by the relevant grants committee.