Deadline: 12-Feb-21
The Comic Relief with Paul Hamlyn Foundation launched their joint UK Tech for Good funding programme, which was developed in response to the need for charities to use technology to explore different approaches to delivering better services.
The Tech for Good 2021 ‘Build’ programme will enable organisations or partnerships to define, test and develop digital solutions over nine months that meet a social need or challenge.
The programme will aim to fund a portfolio of digital projects at different stages of development. Build is suitable for both organisations at concept stage who are at a very early stage of scoping their idea, as well as for those who have already done some digital development.
Project Criteria
- The work to be delivered must take place in the UK (the work can have a local, regional, national or UK-wide reach).
- Funding is available for up to £70,000. This is intended to be used for a combination of:
- Paying for existing core costs that are supporting the delivery of this project, plus any eligible new costs associated with it (e.g. backfilling salaries for project leads);
- Sourcing external support from a digital partner;
- Funding can only cover expenditure incurred and activity delivered during the funding period (i.e. June 2021– February 2022), I.e. not any discovery work prior to applying or follow-on work beyond the 9-month funding period;
- The project duration is 9 months.
Ineligible Funding
These are the activities, they will not primarily fund through Tech for Good, although these activities can form part of a wider proposal:
- Upgrading of internal IT such as CRM (Customer Relationship Management) systems.
- Large scale capital costs.
- Hardware development.
- Updating websites and routine social media campaigns.
- Exploration events or hack days.
- Staff or volunteer training.
- The development or purchase of monitoring, evaluation, or project management platforms for the benefit of applicants’ organization’s wider work.
- Buying equipment to get people online.
- Digital inclusion, digital literacy, or computer skills training.
Eligibility Criteria
- Applicants must be based in the UK, for work to be carried out in the UK.
- Applicants must have an income of between £75,000 and £10 million.
- Applicants must be not-for-profit organisations. Additionally, the programme do not accept proposals from NHS trusts, hospitals, schools/colleges, statutory bodies including local authorities, and non-registered organisations without constitutions.
- Applicants do not need to have a tech development partner on board at the time of application.
- Where present, the tech partner cannot be the lead applicant or investment holder if successful i.e. they will act as a support function but should not have responsibility for managing the investment and the project.
- Organisations with an existing Comic Relief investment can apply as can holders of a previous Tech for Good or Tech vs Abuse investment, although proposals must clearly outline how they significantly build on work previously funded.
- Organisations can submit more than one proposal to the initiative and tech development partners can be associated with more than one bid.
- All applicants must identify a project sponsor at senior level i.e. CEO, who will participate in check-in sessions and workshops throughout the programme.
- People-Centered: partners should demonstrate a commitment to putting the people they seek to serve at the heart of their decision making.
For more information, visit https://www.comicrelief.com/funding/funding-opportunities/tech-for-good-build-2021/