[WiLT] The Equitable Charitable Trust - new guidelines

[WiL Admin]

The Equitable Charitable Trust - new guidelines

The Equitable Charitable Trust is an education charity.  It makes
grants of around £1 million each year towards projects for children
and young people under the age of 25 who are from disadvantaged
backgrounds or disabled.

Grants made by the Trust fall into three broad categories:
* education projects or services that support the learning and
development of disabled children and young people in the UK;
* education projects for disadvantaged children and young people in
the UK, particularly those that support delivery of the National
Curriculum or vocational learning opportunities;
* education projects that will help increase participation in, or
improve the quality of, education for disadvantaged or disabled
children and young people in developing countries.

Grants can be made for project costs, capital expenditure, equipment
and/or the salary costs of a post.

The majority of projects funded by the Trust take place within the UK
at local or regional level, though national projects and those
benefiting children or young people overseas (in developing countries
only) are also supported.

Please note that grants for overseas projects are only made through UK
registered charities.

They support a broad range of organisations; from small and medium
sized not-for-profit organisations to large charities.  However,
priority is normally given to organisations and charities with annual
incomes of under £5 million.  You do not need to be a UK registered
charity to apply unless you are applying for a grant towards a project
or work that will take place outside the UK.

The length of funding can range from one to three years.  Grants of
more than one year are paid in annual instalments, with instalments
beyond the first year dependent on receipt of progress reports that
are satisfactory to the Trustees.

The size of grants ranges from £2,500 to £30,000.  Most are for sums
between £5,000 and £25,000.  It is rare for a multi-year grant to
exceed £10,000 p.a.

The Trust does not make grants towards general appeals or mail shot
requests for donations (all applications should follow the guidelines
set out on the website), projects that are only loosely educational,
or those felt to be primarily social work or therapeutic treatments,
State maintained or voluntary aided schools, colleges or universities,
either directly or via another charity (e.g. Friends, PTAs), Local
Authorities, Public Schools, sports education or activities (e.g.
playing fields, sports clubs etc), minibuses, pre-School education
projects (unless these are solely for the benefit of children with
disabilities or special needs), individuals, bursary schemes, projects
that promote religious belief or practice, holidays, recreational
activities or overseas trips.

Please consult website below for further information.

Applications can be submitted at any time and are considered monthly
by the Trustees.

The Trust does not have an application form, but recommends that
organisations follow the guidelines outlined on website.

How to apply

Applications can be submitted at any time and are considered monthly
by the Trustees.

The Trust does not have an application form, but recommends that
organisations follow the guidelines outlined below when applying for a
grant:

Applications should be no longer than four A4 sides (plus budget and
accounts) and should begin with a short (half page) summary.

Applications should:-
* describe your organisation clearly, its background and track record,
what it does and who it seeks to benefit or help.
* provide details of your organisation's status (e.g. registered
charity, company limited by guarantee) and its trustees.
* state the name of the project you are asking us to fund, and clearly
and succinctly describe it; explain what the structure of the project
will be; why it is needed; the number of people who will benefit from
it; their ages; how you will ensure it is cost effective; provide
details of any partners (other organisations, statutory bodies etc),
and say what stage the project has so far reached.  If young people
are involved in the development or monitoring of the project please
provide details.
* say what the aims of the project are and what outcomes (practical
results, changes and/or improvements) it hopes to achieve.
* describe how the aims, progress and outcomes of the project will be
monitored and evaluated and, where appropriate, how you will
disseminate good practice to others.
* describe how the project will be managed and name the people who
will be in charge of it and their relevant experience or
qualifications.  If the application is for a salary, please include a
copy of the job description for the post.
* ask for a specific amount.
* enclose a detailed budget for the project, together with a copy of
your organisation's most recent audited accounts.  It is important
that if the accounts show a significant surplus or deficit of income,
you explain the reason for this.
* state what funds have already been raised for the project and list
any other funding you have applied for.
* explain where on-going funding (if required) will be obtained when
the Trust's grant ends.
provide the names and addresses of two independent referees that know
your organisation's work.  Tell us who these individuals are and how
they/their organisations are connected to yours.  Trustees, current
volunteers or beneficiaries are not suitable referees.

Please keep your application as simple as possible and avoid the use
of technical terms and jargon.

Applications should be addressed to Brian McGeough and Peter Goddard,
the Joint Managing Trustees.

The Trust receives a large number of applications each year and
unfortunately not all good applications can be supported.

A list of the grants paid by the Trust in 2008 can be downloaded from
our website.  Please do not use this list as definitive examples of
what we are and are not likely to fund.  Many of these grants were
made 2-3 years ago, when different guidelines were in force.

The Trust is normally able to provide a decision within eight weeks of
receipt of an application.

In some cases an in-principle decision is made by Trustees pending
receipt of references, further information or a visit being arranged.

Applicants who are unsuccessful will be notified in writing and cannot
re-apply for at least six months from the date of notification.

Download guidelines as either a pdf or a word document from
http://www.equitablecharitabletrust.org.uk/Grants/GuidelinesforApplicants/tabid/317/language/en-GB/Default.aspx

The Equitable Charitable Trust, Sixth Floor, 65 Leadenhall Street,
London   EC3A 2AD
Tel. 020 7264 4995/4993
Fax: 020 7488 9097
Email: jlong at equitablecharitabletrust.org.uk
Website: http://www.equitablecharitabletrust.org.uk/