Deadline: 6 November 2017
The Friends Provident Foundation is seeking applications for “Building Resilient Economies Programme” with an aim to contribute to a more resilient, sustainable and fairer economic system.
The current economic and social disruption in the UK and beyond has demonstrated that financial markets can exacerbate social disharmony and inequality.
Friends Provident Foundation is particularly concerned with the impact of economic systems on the most vulnerable. This is where the flaws in the system show most starkly, not just in terms of poverty, but also inequality.
Programme Outcomes
There are two outcomes that flow from the overall aim: ‘systems change’ and ‘local economic resilience’. The Foundation asks applicants to decide which one they wish to contribute to.
- Systems change:
- This part of the programme involves a radical assessment of how ‘disruptive innovation’ might change the financial system – exploring and informing changes to the regulatory, policy or other systemic level that would develop financial system innovations with the potential to deliver their aim. Projects in this category will require strong analysis of the issues and possible solutions. They will also need to develop and demonstrate methods that will effectively change policy and corporate behaviours in pursuit of wider social objectives. Their aim would be to stimulate feasible new ideas and scaleable, practical examples.
- Local economic resilience:
- The aim of this part of the programme will be to support the development of local economic resilience. Projects should build on the technologies and approaches that currently assist localities to create economic growth and retain its value. This could be work relating to community assets, sweat equity schemes and other local resources. The Foundation looks for projects in this category to build partnerships; either with other funders or with other organisations doing similar work at the local level, to learn from, build upon and share learning between local initiatives in a complementary way. Projects in this category should be guided by research that nef did for them on local or small-scale initiatives that build economic resilience through diversity, flexibility and increasing capacity.
Funding Criteria
What they will consider in funding:
- Requests for capital or revenue funding, core funds or project costs.
- Requests for loans, part-loans, underwriting, or other forms of financial support, in addition to grant funding.
- Requests for up to £200,000 worth of funding in total.
- Proposals for funding for up to five years.
- Activity that is charitable and for the public benefit.
What they will not fund:
- Individual or sole trader applicants.
- Organisations applying on behalf of another. The Foundation requires applicants to be legally independent organisations with the managerial and governance structures to contract with them for support.
- Work outside the UK, unless there is a clear link to activity or benefit to people or institutions in the UK.
- Work that is to benefit a narrow group of beneficiaries or which cannot be shared.
- Activities to promote a specific political party.
- Activity that has already happened.
- General appeals.
How to Apply
Applications must be submitted online via given website.
Eligible Country: United Kingdom
For more information, please visit Building Resilient Economies Programme.