Deadline: 25-May-23
The Oxfordshire Community Foundation is pleased to announce an open call for the Step Change Fund that focuses on capacity building and strengthening of Oxfordshire’s charitable sector.
The Step Change Fund is for charities with visionary leadership that realise they need to transform the way they are organised in order to create a more solid basis for delivering their core work. The Step Change Fund enables the local charitable sector to be stronger and more sustainable, and therefore better equipped to deal with the hard-hitting social problems faced by Oxfordshire communities.
Step Change also offers a unique proposition to grant applicants, with the support of a volunteer project manager included with every grant. The project manager, usually someone experienced in business strategy or management, will help you to develop a clear and fully costed plan to realise the step change that you desire. They will work alongside you through the duration of your project to support you in hitting targets and milestones.
Funding Information
- Amounts available: £10,000–£50,000 in the first instance, with the possibility of further funding up to £25,000 for follow-on projects
- Timescales: Spending can be planned over a year or more
What they’re looking for?
- The Step Change Fund’s panel is particularly interested in projects that enable a ‘step change’ in financial terms. Step Change believes that charitable organisations need excellent internal governance and a well thought through strategy to be effective in their use of time and money.
- This fund does not offer core funding simply for the continuance of existing services; grants will be given for projects that can demonstrate realistic plans for increasing reach and impact and for building longer-term resilience for the future.
Eligibility Criteria
The Step Change Fund accepts applications from registered charities, constituted groups or social enterprises/CICs that:
- Are based in Oxfordshire and operate primarily within the county
- Are focused on enhancing the quality of people’s lives
- Have an annual income of not less than £100,000 and not more than £1m
- Have been operating for three years or more
- Have outstanding leadership and the capacity to grow.
Exclusions
Grants will not be awarded to support:
- Statutory organisations, including schools
- Activities outside Oxfordshire
- Buses, mini buses or other community transport schemes
- Building costs, including access adaptations to buildings, except where these are essential to delivering the proposed step change
- Activities that are the statutory duty of the government or local authority.
For more information, visit Oxfordshire Community Foundation.