Take this 5 minute survey to begin your grant access journey

Before you start an application, be clear about what your initiative intends to achieve, we recommend that you list these out and think about what you want to achieve, why you want to achieve it, what the benefit is etc.  

If you have purchased the FastTrack Tool Kit then refer to Sheet ‘Step 1 - Goals’, Action 1

Now let’s think about the unique aspects of your club and how your plans are likely to create interest from funding partners, this could be your diversity, scale, importance to the community, historical value, impacts to both social and economical circumstances etc.  FastTrack Tool Kit  Sheet ‘Step 1 - USP’, Action 2

OK, now what aspects do you need funding for, how much do you need to raise and how does it add value to your initiative and it’s participants. A simple method is to create a simple statement for each main component using the following structured sentence:.

Example:

‘I need £X  so I can purchase Y to achieve Z outcome.’ this translates to:-

I need £100 so the club can purchase 12 footballs to create a new junior football team for our local community.

FastTrack Tool Kit  Sheet ‘Step 1 - Requirements’, Action 3

Now consider how much of the £200 you need from a grant funder, you may already be able to afford some of this from club funds or from generous donors, sponsors or members. Make a list of these items and how they will be funded.

FastTrack Tool Kit  Sheet ‘Step 1 - Project Financials’, Action 4

Now you know what you need, how much funding is required, what benefit it brings and how it is likely to link to a grant funder's objectives…. Well done you! Now let’s move on to step 2.

The process for applying for grants is both rewarding and sometimes frustrating, it’s most certainly a time consuming process so don’t waste your time applying for grants that you can’t access, make sure that you read the guidelines & funding criteria IN FULL before starting your application. Take a look at the grant schemes we sent you and if you’re unsure, reach out to the funding partner outlining your need and ask them if it is something they would consider. 

Most funders will insist your club has its own bank account, club constitution & policies in place as a minimum requirement and restrictions on what funds can and can’t be spent on so be thorough so make sure you are ship shape and ready to go before moving to Step 3.

A common mistake is to start writing your application online, instead, we recommend you read the application form in full, capture the questions and max character limits and strawman your key points in a word document first, making sure you answer all the questions and meet the funders criteria and objectives. Only start the formal application once you’re clear about what information to share in each section. It’s not uncommon for grant application forms to be a little repetitive or subtle in their question sets, be sure you understand what they are looking for from you.

Before you start the application, bring together all the information you need. This might be a combination of public and community engagement, digital media content and other resources. Ask your fellow club officials to help. FastTrack Tool Kit - Community & Participant Feedback Examples

Be concise, make sure your content is easy to digest and cover as many of the funders criteria as you can; it may sound obvious but this is where a lot of applicants go wrong.  Be aware that it may mean omitting some elements of the broader project or initiative or allowing the grant scheme requirements to complement and influence your intended outcomes. So… be open minded and clear.

If you’re applying to several funders, make sure that you keep each submission bespoke and aligned to the individual funder's strategies and objectives, re-using another application's content is rarely a recipe for success and it can become muddled and cause more work.

We recommend that you draft your application in a word processor and save it to your clubs digital drive as keeping all your applications in one place makes life easier in the future and some schemes you can re-apply for after a certain elapsed time. FastTrack Tool Kit - Example Application

Try to learn from each submission, it’s good practice to keep a funding application log or tracker so you can track the status of your applications along with key information surrounding the outcome, how it is paid & what evidence is required and when. FastTrack Tool Kit  Sheet ‘Step 4 & 5 - Grant Tracker’

Our gift to you is our advice and sharing the details of funders who have awarded grants to grassroots clubs before, we would be very grateful if you could let us know how you get on via info@totalgrassroots.com and also share the Total Grassroots website to other grassroots clubs. We do offer grant writing services for % fee (excludes Football Foundation awards) but our hope is that for these simple grants that you can reap the benefits yourself.

If you would like to make life a little easier then we do offer a leg up where you can purchase our Small Grant FastTrack Toolkit that helps you navigate through the process described above and includes an excel tool to identify your requirements, financial appraisal tool, a tracker as well a handy example of a successful grant application for just £19.99, which you can purchase below.