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title: Grants Management Intelligence UK (May 2025)
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UK grants news for grants management professionals, curated by SmartyGrants UK ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­    ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­  

| View in browser May, 2025 Hi there, and welcome to Grants Management Intelligence, the free newsletter for grantmaking professionals, powered by SmartyGrants UK. Hot off the socials  Here's a little taster of what we've been reading, sharing and saying online. We'd love you to hear your views! SmartyGrants head data scientist's reflections on Tech for Social Justice  Why does match funding work so well? Why Henry Smith is getting a whole lotta lovin' National Lottery Community Fund launches new partnerships model  The Compton Foundation is (purposely) going out of business. Here are the six best things it did over its history Why are we blaming charities for problems they didn't create and can't possibly solve alone? SmartyGrants joins forces with leading voices for grantmaking in the UK and Ireland   SmartyGrants UK is pleased to announce two new collaborations that further our commitment to strengthening grantmaking across the UK and Ireland.   We’re partnering with Philanthropy Ireland, the leading network for philanthropy in Ireland, to help enhance its communications and elevate voices driving the sector forward.    We’ve also been selected as the technology partner for Yorkshire Funders, a respected network that connects local and national funders giving in the Yorkshire region, and works to foster collaboration and learning across the region.   Both organisations share our mission to deliver practical, impactful support for grantmakers - building stronger communities through better giving. We’re proud to stand alongside them. UK ratings reveal how funders can improve  A UK foundation rating system offers valuable insights into how grantmakers around the world can improve governance, accountability and equity. The Foundation Practice Rating project has assessed more than 100 UK charitable foundations across more than 100 criteria in a push to increase transparency, fairness, and trust in the foundation system, which distributes more than £6.4 billion a year. Friends Provident Foundation director Danielle Walker Palmour told Grants Management Intelligence that diversity had “proven the trickiest” quality for foundations to improve. Read More Measuring What Matters:  Roundtable for local authorities  Next month we'll be bringing together local council grants boffins from the UK and Ireland for an online session on outcomes.    The free online session will explore effective strategies, tools, and key performance indicators (KPIs) that enhance transparency, accountability, and impact assessment.   Participants will hear some real-life examples from local government grantmakers, take part in collaborative discussions, explore common challenges, and identify ways to improve grant design, outcomes tracking, and reporting.   What:   Measuring What Matters: A Roundtable on Outcomes in Local Government Who:    Local government grants managers and commissioners    When:  June 8, 10:00am – 11:30am Where: Online webinar Cost:    Free    Register Now! Sneak Peek: A taste of our new outcomes white paper  An upcoming grantmaking white paper calls on grantmakers across all sectors to consider outcomes at all stages of the grants lifecycle, not just at the end. Shifting to Outcomes-Orientated Grantmaking is for anyone who’s ever asked “Are our grants actually making a difference?” Outcomes-orientated grantmaking involves applying an intentional learning stance and returning to those core aims again and again. That means considering intended grant outcomes in every step of the process: In the design process: Set out with clear, achievable and measurable aims and outcomes for your grant programs. In the applications process: Seek applications from those who are most likely to help you achieve your aims. In the assessment process: Assess the likelihood that applicants will help shift the dials that matter to you. In the contracting process: Keep grantees focused on your overriding program goals when setting milestones and tracking/reporting requirements. In the reporting/acquittal process: Don’t just collect receipts, collect information about what worked, and what didn’t work, and why. The paper is particularly useful for SmartyGrants users, as it provides pointers for connecting your theory to practical steps to take within the system.    Watch for future editions of GMI and SmartyNews for information on how to get a copy. Grantmakers gain powerful data insights  SmartyGrants Analytics is now live! SmartyGrants has released an embedded reporting tool designed to strengthen grantmakers’ ability to track, analyse and report on funding activities.      SmartyGrants Analytics transforms grants data into dashboards, improving access to information for programme managers, finance teams and executive leadership.   This groundbreaking feature was released to Australian and New Zealand SmartyGrants customers on May 12, with a UK/EU release to follow shortly.    “Grantmakers have told us they need faster access to high-quality data to inform funding decisions, monitor their activity, and demonstrate accountability,” SmartyGrants chief technology officer Sarah Barker said. Read More Why "real" reports are so hard to share By Jen Riley, SmartyGrants Chief Impact Officer With the charities sector juggling restricted grants, tight timelines, and a must-succeed narrative, it’s no wonder many organisations default to “polished” reporting. It’s not about misleading – it’s about survival. It’s about trying to be seen as worthy of support in a system that often equates complexity with risk, a system that makes it genuinely hard to communicate impact with honesty, clarity, and confidence. So we report what’s safe. We soften what’s tricky. And we miss out on the real gold: the insights that would help us do better. At a recent gathering, I shared this message with grantmakers and changemakers: we don’t need more data – we need a better relationship with the data we already have. Read More Grants news digest A roundup of recent grants-related news     Major foundation embeds core funding by default in 10-year strategy (18/03/2025) In a shift likely to be welcomed by grantees, City Bridge Foundation has committed to offering core funding as standard. The policy change is part of a decade-long strategy aimed at improving partner resilience and mission delivery. Read more   NPC calls for match funding to maximise impact of government grants (20/03/2025) NPC is urging philanthropic funders to adopt match funding models that stretch limited government budgets and encourage collaborative funding approaches, particularly as public spending remains under pressure. Read more     Public funding to Scottish charities drops by 5% since 2021 (25/03/2025) A new report reveals that public sector funding for Scottish charities has fallen by 5% in real terms since 2021, with charities warning of mounting financial pressure as demand rises. Read more   Funder boosts grants with National Insurance uplift for 700 charities (08/04/2025) A major UK funder will provide additional funds to cover National Insurance increases for 700 grantees, in a rare move to help address rising operational costs for the sector. Read more   Smaller women's and girls' charities burdened by competitive commissioning (24/04/2025) Commissioning processes continue to favour larger, generalist providers, leaving specialist women's and girls' organisations overstretched and battling for piecemeal funding from trusts and foundations, a recent report reveals.  Read more   Foyle Foundation issues final £18m before closing after 25 years (24/04/2025) The Foyle Foundation has announced its final grants totalling £18 million, including major donations to leading cultural institutions. The foundation’s decision to close aims to accelerate its impact through strategic spend-down. Read more   Benefact Group launches peer-selected "pay it forward" grant scheme (28/04/2025) Benefact Group has launched an innovative grantmaking model allowing recipient charities to select the next beneficiaries. The £50,000 scheme aims to test more participatory approaches to funding, with 25 charities expected to receive £2,000 each. Read more   Small charities warn of 'broken' funding model in new NCVO report (30/04/2025) NCVO’s The Power of Small report has highlighted how unstable, short-term funding cycles are severely affecting smaller charities, forcing them to divert limited resources away from service delivery and into repetitive fundraising. Read more   Gates Foundation to spend down entire endowment by 2045 (09/05/2025) One of the largest private foundations in the world, the US-based Gates Foundation, has committed to spending its entire $200 billion endowment by 2045. The move marks a major departure from its original perpetual structure and signals a focus on maximising impact within a defined timeframe. Read more   Grantmakers urged to focus on wellbeing (15/5/2025) Charitable funders should measure wellbeing in order to understand the true value of the social impact programmes that they fund, a new report suggests. Read more  Stay in touch  Share this FREE newsletter subscription link Visit our SmartyGrants news page Connect with the editor, Matthew Schulz on LinkedIn or email Want to find out more about our world-leading technology solution? Contact our SmartyGrants UK Engagement and Support Manager Vicky Coutts.  Email:      vickyc@smartygrants.co.uk  Phone:    +44 204 553 8887 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vicky-coutts-b235462/  You're receiving this email because you signed up as a Grants Management Intelligence subscriber or because you received it automatically as part of your SmartyGrants subscription.  Our Community International, 5th Floor, 167-169 Great Portland Street, London, London W1W 5PF, United Kingdom Unsubscribe Manage preferences |
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