RDA Illawarra_Waples Marketing Grant Writing Workshop - Feb 2016

RDA ILLAWARRA GRANT WRITING WORKSHOPS (FEB 2016)
Tehla Bower
Senior Consultant – Funding & Strategy

RDA ILLAWARRA | GRANTS WORKSHOPS FEB 2016
Introduction/background
• Who am I
• Grants/funding experience spans 13 years
• Specialist since 2009
• Approx $15m for projects valued at well over
$50m (exclusive of advice and coaching that has
led to funding success)
• Illawarra based
• Independent of funding bodies

Who are you?
• Non-profits, charities, councils, UOW,
community orgs, gov’t agencies
• Small business, gov’t departments
What do we all have in common??

When you think about grants..
Do you feel like this? Or maybe this?

When you think about grants..
This will hopefully be you by the end of
this workshop!

Difference between this
workshop and previous
workshop..

Session Overview
 Navigating the grants landscape – planning vs ‘scattergun’
(grants research tips)
 Planning your submission (before you start writing!)
 Developing your submission
 Preparing a strong Needs Statement, Aims & Objectives
 Timeline & Milestones
 Project Budget
 Collaborations, outcomes & sustainability
 Measuring the Economic benefit of your project
 Merit Criteria
 Q & A

Grants & Funding in Australia
• Currently approx $50bn available (market size)
• Over 1000 grants (conservative)
• Government grants, tenders, community
foundations, philanthropic trusts
• Others such as crowdfunding, venture capital,
angel investors (not a focus of this session)

The Grant seeker market ‘pie’
Grant seekers
Grant makers
Support
agencies (eg
RDA)
Project
supporters
Project
investors
Funding
Program
managers
Government
policy &
politics
©2016 Waples Funding & Strategy

• Hundreds of grants are announced each day
• Some recent examples:
– Data Retention Industry Grants Program - $129m for
telecommunications providers
– Catalyst National Arts and Culture Fund - $12m
– Protecting National Historic Sites (up to $80k per
applicant)
– Next Generation Manufacturing Investment Program
($30m)
– Gateway Motorway Upgrade Brisbane ($1.16bn)
– The National Science & Innovation Agenda (various)
– NSW Local Sport Grant Program (up to $25k per
applicant)

Where to start?
Navigating the grants landscape
• Grants/funding landscape can be a daunting and
overwhelming place
• So many opportunities – how to find the right
one/ensure we don’t miss out?!
• Importance of researching, planning,
understanding your project

Government’s ‘GrantFinder’
• www.business.gov.au (‘Grants & Assistance’)
• Australian Government’s official grant search
database
• User-friendly

NSW Gov’t
Department of Industry
• Range of Assistance & Support programs
• Innovate NSW - Connecting technology
development SMEs, researchers, major
corporations and business end users
• http://www.industry.nsw.gov.au/business-and-industry-in-
nsw/assistance-and-support

Our Community
• www.ourcommunity.com.au
• ‘Australia's Centre for Excellence for the nation's
600,000 not-for-profits & schools, providing
advice, tools, resources and training’
• The Funding Centre – great resource

GrantReady (non-govt)

Other resource examples
• Ministry for the Arts (Arts & Culture)
• Destination NSW (Tourism)
• Entrepreneurs’ Programme (Industry)
• iAccelerate (technology startups)
• UOW (Community Engagement Grants)
• IRT Foundation (Research/Community)
• IMB Community Foundation (closing soon)
• Also please refer to today’s resource handouts

Program Spotlight
Community Engagement Grants Scheme (UOW):
• Provides funding for the communities UOW serves to
connect with its staff and students for educational,
research or outreach projects
• Up to $50k each year
• Max grant of $10k per applicant
• Projects must be innovative, starting small and dreaming
big www.uow.edu.au/about/community/cegs

Are you ‘funding ready’?

Are you ‘funding ready’?
Simple Assessment – do you have:
• Strategic Plan/Business Plan?
• Project Plan and Budget?
• Organisational capacity to undertake the project?
• Sustainability post-grant?
• Capacity to at least match funding received?
• Appropriate legal structure for eligibility requirements
(eg incorporation, ABN, DGR registration etc)?

Funding readiness for NSRF
 Evidence of Incorporation
 Project Management Plan
 Business Case
 Risk Management Plan
 Procurement Management Plan
 Written confirmation of all partner funding (cash &
in-kind)
 Asset Management Plan
 Audited Financial Statements
 Evidence demonstrating applicant experience

NSRF Eligibility - recap
• Legal entity with ABN
AND either
• A Local Government body including ACT Govt,
or
• A Not-for-profit organisation, either in own right
or on behalf of consortium (that is not owned by
state or territory govt)

NSRF Ineligibility - recap
× NSW, VIC, QLD, WA, SA, TAS & NT
governments
× State and territory government-owned entities
× State and territory government-owned NFPs
× Universities, technical colleges, schools and
hospitals
× RDA committees
× For-profit organisations

Session summary so far..
Introductions 
Navigating the landscape 
Where to start? 
Grant Search Resources 
Funding Readiness 

Lets talk about Funding
Proposals

Planning your submission
(BEFORE you launch into writing)
1. Know your organisation
2. Background information
3. Identify your needs
4. Bring in your ‘champions’/supporters
5. Understand the difference between government
and private sources

1. Know your organisation
- Know your organisation and why it exists
- Understand key aspects of your organisation:
structure,
mission/vision,
financial processes,
clients,
products or services,
core competencies, and
future aspirations

2. Background information
- Reflect on the specific grant guidelines and consider
background information that could support your submission:
Academic articles
Primary and/or secondary research
‘expert’ opinions
Surveys
Case studies, etc

3. Identify your needs
SUBSTANTIATE your need for funding!
Evidence based
Reports
Survey results
Gaps in products or services required by your org
Reference these to demonstrate support for your project

4. Identify your ‘champions’ or advocates
Those who support you, love what you do and are willing to
put this in a formal written document – these endorsements
can add considerable weight to your submission:
- Contact list of possible champions
- Write letters to all expressing your need for
support
- Meet with representatives of funding sources
- Perhaps consider starting an Advisory Committee

5. Understand the marketplace
- Government (local, state, federal)
- Private (foundations, trusts, non-govt)

Create a submission timeline

The submission ‘skeleton’
The basic framework of any given grant submission:
- Covering letter
- Title page
- Summary
- Needs Statement/Assessment
- Response to all selection criteria
- Outcomes of your project (eg economic benefit)
- Articles, attachments & statistics
- Budget

Quick break?

Developing your submission
(now we can start writing)
1.
1. Needs Statement
2. Aims & Objectives
3. Project Timeline/Schedule (Milestones)
4. Project Budget
5. Outcomes
6. Sustainability past funding

1. Statement of Need
- Also known as ‘problem statement’, ‘need statement’ or
‘needs assessment’
- Commonly referred to as the ‘heart’ of your grant
application

Overall purpose is to demonstrate why the project is
important to the community:
- Describing the problem as it is NOW
- Indicating how the situation could be improved
- Should be motivating and capture the attention of the assessor
of the application – convince them that your project is
IMPORTANT

- Highlight your credentials and state why yours is the most
appropriate organisation to receive the funding
- Bring in some of your findings from the ‘planning your
submission’ stage from earlier
- Should be a concise and coherent statement, supported by
evidence, on why the project needs to be undertaken

General rules of thumb:
- Avoid jargon
- Avoid acronyms (do not assume that the assessor
knows what your abbreviations stands for)
- Do not assume any prior knowledge of the assessor or
funding body
- Don’t ‘editorialise’ – state the facts
- If you don’t have a compelling need, you don’t have a
compelling project!
REMEMBER - The Statement of Need drives everything else that is
in the grant proposal

General rules of thumb:
Also….avoid ‘circular reasoning’, for example:
“The problem is that we have no youth centre. The solution is to
build a youth centre”
How do you know that the absence of a youth centre is a problem?
What kind of evidence (data) do you have to support your claims?
Your solution is not your problem!!

1. Statement of Need – poor
example
“Our youth have limited access to educational
resources. They are mostly from low-income
households, and the neighbourhood in general
is very distressed. We have one after-school
program that is well attended, but we need
more resources to reach more of our students.
Please help us educate our youth.”
(www.livewell.marshall.edu)

1. Statement of Need – poor
example
Problems with this needs statement:
- No data or evidence included
- Emotional appeal rather than rational
- No evidence to explain assumptions (ie
where is evidence to show that the youth are ‘mostly’
from low-income households?)

1. Statement of Need – good
example
“A 1999 report from the New York State Department of Health showed that
the Town of Libraryfield ranked among the worst in the state over a 3-year
average for infant mortality, low birth weight and premature births, late
entry into prenatal care, unmarried parents, teen pregnancies and poverty.
An Everywhere County Prenatal Focus Group report revealed that
communication by families and doctors is generally poor. There is a need
for information on: childbirth education opportunities, support services,
childbirth preparation, breastfeeding, sibling preparation for new baby,
and post-partum depression. The focus group indicated that the public
library could be helpful in directing new parents to resources and
materials. In order to meet this need, the library proposes a grant program
to expand collections and programs by linking for the first time with family
practitioners and the Libraryfield Memorial Hospital to reach expectant
and post-partum mothers and their children.”
http://www.nysl.nysed.gov/

1. Statement of Need – good
example
What makes it a strong statement?
• References the problem through a report by a
government department as well as findings from a local
committee
• Clear definition of the problem, and clear role for the
library to fill
• Supports the library’s existing mission statement
• Mention of partners

AIMS:
• General statements of what you want to
accomplish
• Example: “To achieve greater workforce
participation by women”

OBJECTIVES:
• The standard format: “To (action verb and statement
reflecting your measurement indicator) by
(performance standard) by (deadline) at a cost of no
more than (cost frame)
• Example: To increase the business skills of women in
our town by 10% through training in book-keeping and
report writing over 12 months at a cost of $7,000

A word on language and
writing style…
• Style should be simple and concise
– Emphasise benefits and end results, not tasks or
methods
– Familiarise yourself with the funding body’s
application, guidelines and related policy
documentation and help join the dots between your
project and their program material
– Use the language of the reader (easier said than
done!)

A word on language and writing
style…
• Writing Style
– Must reflect what the funding body wants and what
the reviewers will be looking for
– Be concise & clear
– Use short sentences and paragraphs (bullet points
can help to summarise responses and keep your
wordcount down)

A word on language and writing
style…
• Writing Style
– Avoid over-the-top formatting
– Use bold headings
– Use charts and graphs where appropriate

3. Project Timeline & Milestones
• Common requirement of many grant submissions
• Essentially a listing of all the key outcomes you
aim to achieve with your project
• Each outcome might include:
– Start/Finish dates
– Number of hours required to complete
– Key personnel responsible
– Costs associated with each major activity/milestone
– Consultants & Contractor services
– Non-personnel resources
– Milestones/performance indicators

3. Project Timeline - example
Dept of Local Government WA
www.dlg.wa.gov.au

4. Project Budget
• Very rare to see grant application (particularly
govt funding) that doesn’t require at least a simple
budget
• Not the most popular part of the submission!
• BUT it is essential to complete if you want to be in
with a chance..

4. Project Budget
Examples of costs to include:
– Staff
– Labour (including contractors)
– Suppliers
– Insurance
– Plant & Equipment
– Office/Admin costs (if eligible project cost)
– Marketing/promotion
– Travel
– Consultants (if eligible project cost)
– IP

4. Project Budget
And Remember –
Your Project Budget is NOT the same as
your organisational budget!

4. Project Budget - example

4. Project Budget (complex)

4. Project Budget
other considerations
• Requirements can vary dependent on submission size
and complexity
• Important to clearly outline the amount of funding
requested for each activity (ie salaries, travel,
construction, rent, insurances, equipment, labour,
technology etc)
• Don’t forget about matching funds if applicable
• MOST IMPORTANT – cross-check all project expenditure
against the ELIGIBLE COSTS listing in the program
guidelines!

5. Outcomes & Sustainability
 Important to think beyond the grant lodgement
date and towards the outcomes and longevity
of your project if it’s successful
How will the funding for your project help
alleviate the problem described in your Needs
Statement?

5. Outcomes & Sustainability
 What are the expected outcomes and how will
they be measured?
Include a plan to assess the project
Describe who will evaluate the project
Detail what records will be kept
Define how success will be
quantified/measured/evaluated
How will your project ‘survive’ after the funding
date? Is your project sustainable in the long-
term?

‘Economic benefit’ of your
project – NSRF example
Successful projects must:
“Deliver an economic benefit to the region beyond
the period of construction” (Rd 3 summary slides)
HOW can we demonstrate this??

REMPLAN online tool
“REMPLAN provides access to detailed demographic
data for 1991 to 2011 Census years, economic data
and maps for up to 114 industry sectors as well as
population and employment forecasts”
http://www.remplan.com.au/

REMPLAN online tool

Wollongong employment data
(REMPLAN)

Shellharbour employment data
(REMPLAN)

For the tourism sector
Sites such as www.tra.gov.au can be useful

Merit Criteria
 Not all have but most large submissions will
 Provide clues and insight into what assessors are
looking for
 WILL be used to assess your application
 Some will include ‘weightings’ against each criteria
 Do not ignore!

Merit Criteria - NSRF
Extracted from: NSRF Copy of round three application questions
http://investment.infrastructure.gov.au/funding/NSRF/

Merit Criteria – NSRF eg

Merit Criteria – IMB Community
Foundation
Five (5) key Assessment Factors:
1. General Community support for project
2. Reach & Impact of project
3. Capacity for sustainability
4. Transfer of skills and knowledge (participants &
wider community)
5. Innovative qualities
http://www.imb.com.au/community-community-foundation.html

Other considerations
 Know the deadline and PLAN your submission!
 Get your team involved early (particularly anyone
who will be involved in implementation)
 Complete the application in its entirety (may seem
obvious but evidence shows otherwise)
 No gaping holes (ie just because you don’t like
numbers doesn’t mean you leave out the budget!)
 MANDATORY means precisely that
 Apply an ‘Evidenced Based Mantra’

Some ‘must-tick’ boxes for
success
1. Showing experience in the area that the grant
covers
2. Link this back to the grant’s objectives
3. Demonstrate your capabilities including resources
and staff and your methodologies
4. Show that you are already part of the community in
which the funds from the grant (show you
understand the issues)

Questions to ask
yourself
1. Am I writing more about my project or my
organisation? (very important)
2. Am I being specific about the features of my project
and the outcomes my project will generate?
3. Am I answering each question completely? (treat it
like a uni assignment and break it into chunks)

‘Collaboration’ – what does it
mean and how can you use it to
enhance your proposal?

“the action of working with
someone to produce something”
Oxford dictionary

The purpose of the program is to foster collaboration between
industry partners toward delivering a compelling, new-to-market
solution. This consortia model of Lead Company, Pilot
Organisation, and Partner is specifically designed to build
relationships that deliver a solution with a strong opportunity for
commercial success.
Collaborative Solutions funding program
(Innovate NSW)
Program example –
Collaborative Solutions

‘Policy’ vs ‘Politics’
Two quite different but interrelated factors that can have a huge impact
on your funding proposal – and both out of the control of the applicant

What does a successful project
look like??

NSRF Round 2 – local project
egs
Applicant/$$ Project
Shoalhaven Motorsports
Complex – Nowra ($9.5m)
To develop an integrated facility that enables
diverse motorsports uses
The KidzWish Foundation
(construction of KidzWish
Place in Flinders) ($915k)
To develop the new KidzWish Place to improve
access to therapy services for children who are
sick, disadvantaged or have a disability
Wollongong City Council
(Completing the Blue Mile)
($900k)
Revitalisation of the current aged asphalt track
from Belmore Basin to North Beach Bathers
Pavilion

NSRF Round 2 – project egs

Another example – ClubGrants
Category 3 (2014/15)
Source:
https://www.liquorandgaming.justice.nsw.gov.au/Documents/clubs/community-
involvement/ATT01_14_15_ClubGRANTS_Category3_Projects.pdf

Wise words..
“It’s important to view grants from a business
perspective. If you think about it in terms of helping
to solve a problem for government, that will
change the way you apply for funding”
Extract from Company Director article June 2015

Session summary take 2..
Planning your submission 
Developing your submission 
Language & Writing Style 
Economic Benefit & Merit
Criteria

Collaboration & Successful
Project examples


You are successful in obtaining
the grant! - the next steps

1. Formal Acceptance of grant offer

2. Signing funding agreement & terms (can
involve some back and forth between agency
and applicant)

3. Receiving grant monies (oftentimes in
instalments across life of grant following
project milestones being reached)

4. Completing project reporting
documentation (quarterly is common)

Questions??

Further questions
Tehla Bower
Senior Consultant – Funding & Strategy
Waples Marketing Group
Ph: (02) 4221 1300
M: 0412 738 752
E: tehla@waples.com.au
www.linkedin.com/in/tehlabower
www.twitter.com/tehlabower
www.waples.com.au

RDA Illawarra_Waples Marketing Grant Writing Workshop - Feb 2016

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