The Institute of Fundraising document says there should be a ‘concerted drive’ to expand fundraising mentoring and advice services to smaller charities
The Institute of Fundraising has called for more money to be spent on providing fundraising training for smaller charities.
In a paper published today, the umbrella body says central government, local authorities and charitable and corporate foundations should increase the support they provide in this area.
It says the Department for Culture, Media and Sport should significantly increase the funding it provides for training in this area from its current level of £100,000 a year.
The scheme, announced in the Budget in March 2015, has been providing fundraising training to charities with annual incomes of up to £1m.
The IoF paper calls for a “concerted drive across the charity sector and funding bodies to expand mentoring and ongoing fundraising advice and support for smaller charities”.
The umbrella body said in a separate statement that it was working to arrange a meeting between small charities, funding organisations and infrastructure bodies to identify ways to increase fundraising support for smaller charities.
It said it hoped the meeting would kick-start a concerted drive across the voluntary sector to expand mentoring and ongoing fundraising advice and support for smaller charities.
The IoF paper says smaller charities have experienced a dramatic reduction in funding from government sources in recent years, while the level of individual donations has remained relatively flat.
“Central, devolved and local governments should produce a long-term vision and plan for how they will provide support for capacity-building and fundraising to the charity sector, with a particular focus on capacity-building support for smaller charities,” it says.
The paper calls on all funders to consider ensuring that when grant, contract or project funding is provided to a charity it includes funding for capacity-building, including fundraising, and overhead costs.
Mike Smith, head of external affairs at the IoF, said: “Fundraising is one of the most effective ways for many small charities to raise the money they need to continue their amazing work. However, they need more help and support to do so.
“By launching this campaign and holding the summit later in the year, we want to kick-start action to ensure the long-term support for smaller charities to be able to raise funds in a sustainable way for the causes they work on.”