Taking on a funding application of any scale is a daunting task. No matter how seasoned or practised you may be. Funder priorities and eligibility requirements change, and by the time you’ve read (and re-read) the guidance, considered how to squeeze what you do into the word limits, it’s not surprising that even the most focused of us begin to lose perspective.

We can help you consider which funding approaches are right for you, plan your application, help you get the right people in your organisation involved and offer constructive feedback and advice to help you strengthen your case.

Why come to us for help?

We have been through the funding application process many times! We have experience of working with Creative Scotland, Arts Council England, National Lottery among others. We have set up and managed national grant schemes and bursary programmes, and we've been assessors for both national and targeted funding programmes. We've also researched and written about funding policy for over a decade.

What we can do for you

We can help you translate application guidance and requirements, and help you consider how your organisation or project fits with funder criteria and priorities.

We can provide constructive challenge, suggest tactics and options and provide feedback and comment on draft applications. All of which will help you build a strong case and maximise your chances of success.

What we can’t do

We can't write your funding application for you, or guarantee success - sorry! But we can help you make the best possible case and improve your chances.

How it works

After meeting with you, discussing your needs and agreeing an approach and timescale, we will work with you and your team to prepare a workplan. Some clients find scheduling weekly, hour-long sessions over an agreed timeframe can be a good way to keep a steady momentum going. Others prefer 2-3 intensive workshops bringing together relevant members of the team (and/or board) to deal with critical chunks of the application one at a time. Either way, we will monitor progress with you and adjust the number of sessions you need (down or up) as we go.

Estimated cost

Every organisation's needs are different - as a guide, previous clients have used 8-10 hours of support over 2-3 months, charged at £150 an hour. Additional support between sessions (for example reviewing or feeding back on application drafts, providing support to team members preparing additional documentation) is charged in half-hour sessions. Contact us for an informal chat or a bespoke quote.