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Funding

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Funding

Funding

Funding can be a major challenge for most Sheds especially in the early days when securing and setting up the Shed. If you want to attract monetary funding, then there are some criteria we suggest you spend the time considering as a committee.

Your Shed at the very minimum will need to have a constitution and will need to open a bank account for funders to pay into. This means a Shed committee of at least three responsible named persons as Chair, Treasurer and Secretary to sign the bids.

Then your Shed, if following the suggested SMSA guidelines, will need to become a registered Scottish charity to open the doors to other types of available funding support.

As the SMSA becomes aware of funds and opportunities relevant to Men’s Sheds in Scotland, these are promoted through our bi-monthly ‘Shedloads of Opportunities’ Bulletin and electronic communications to Shed members. This is just one of the many benefits available to SMSA Shed Members. Not yet a Shed member? Click here to find out more.

Bidding for funding should be treated like a ‘Dragons’ Den’ as competition for ‘pots’ and resources can be fierce. An online presence through a website and/or social media can also be useful in showcasing your work, projects and impact in your community to potential funders.

Make sure your bid is relevant to the aims of both funders and of course, your Shed. Different funders have different priorities. Once you know what direction your Shed wants to head, spend some time thinking about how you will benefit your local community as well as your beneficiaries, your members/’Shedders’. 

For example, some Sheds have received financial support because of their contribution to improving health and wellbeing (physical, emotional, social and/or mental) , for recycling tools in their community, improving their environment, taking part in local wildlife projects, making energy-efficiency savings and improvements to their premises or the need for people to be more socially connected in their area.

So, keep asking yourselves the, ‘So What?’ question.

If we have a Shed, what difference will it make? Men will have a safe, inclusive and welcoming place to meet rather than go to the pub or the betting shop….. So what?… Men will be healthier. So What?, …. Men will have independent, happier, healthier lives and be able to do things for longer as they age. So What? …. As a preventative health measure, we start creating a real culture of looking after our health in our communities. Men will see the doctor less regularly and save the NHS on time and prescriptions. So What? … this will create a huge saving in a shrinking budget, create less pressure on GP’s appointments and reduce waiting times.

It shows how your application will fit the funders criteria or not. Save yourself a lot of work and heartache by asking the ‘So What?’ question and make sure it’s relevant to their aims and your Sheds. It might feel a hard thing to do, but it’s worth 

Funders increasingly want to see organisations working in partnership, which makes a lot of sense anyway. Consider which groups in your area might be useful to consult with and develop ideas for joint working together e.g. working with local schools to build play equipment, sensory gardens etc to improve intergenerational bonds in the community and improve relationships and environments as well as pass on skills and mentor others. 

Even a simple letter of support from another established organisation can help to strengthen your funding proposal.

Applications don’t have to be full of clever sounding jargon but they do need to be well presented, concise, coherent, well thought out for a clearly defined purpose and costed out carefully. For example, planning permission and building warrants already in place and quotes for services/materials will ensure that funders take your proposal more seriously. Have a look at some of our ‘Start a Shed’ example documents in the individual member section.

If you can measure it, you can manage it. Funders always want to see what impact their money will have in terms of your Shed making a difference and getting value for their money so consider what your outcomes will be e.g. what will change as a result of your Shed and its activities.

Understand and monitor your impact

Maintain data (e.g. no. of members, no, of veteran members, age range of your membership, activities on offer) and record your projects and partnerships made to understand and monitor the impact you are making. Also, engage with and collate feedback from your members and hear their ‘voices’ on the change that the Shed is making to their lives and also to make any improvements to the facility on offer.  This approach will not only ensure your activities are member-led but will also aid reporting to funders in the future.

Completing an application usually takes a lot longer than you think (but it is time well spent to do it properly). You may also need to wait for several weeks after a deadline before you know the results.

Type of Funding

This is ongoing costs – where there is no lasting asset – and includes things like electricity, rent, insurance, events, venue hire, activities, trips/excursions, transport/travel etc. Many funders want to see how a Shed will be able to become less reliant on revenue funding as they become more established and many Sheds do generate some income of their own through selling products that they make in the Shed.

Capital funding can be used to purchase assets – new or refurbishing existing assets. This is usually for more one-off material costs like a building, improving access, the creation of a social space, workshop, cabins, promotional material, a computer etc.

This is when the Men’s Shed agrees to put in a certain percentage of the total funding required and the funder provides the rest. 

This is increasingly expected to be a bid. Remember that ‘in kind’ funding can be invaluable, your Shedders time and skills could be used as ‘match funding’ e.g. a Shedder who is a tradesman is worth say, £15 an hour as matched funding. Other skills, e.g. clerical, have their equivalent values. DIY usually offer the best value for fitting out as it is using the existing skills of your membership and is a great way to get people involved and to create a sense of ownership.

As the name suggests this will be funding which has to be used for exactly what you have asked for. Simply put, what you apply for you have to buy.

This is funding which you can spend on anything of your choice to further the aims of your Shed and the objectives and purposes within your constitution. This is the best type of funding to acquire as some things like running costs are difficult to be had from main stream funders. You might achieve this funding from personal legacies, private supporters and from your own fundraising efforts. .

We have found that it is worth getting in contact with any funder before starting your application to check your bid proposal is of interest to them in principle. They might also ask you for a short basic application if you can’t speak to them. If they like what they initially read, they will ask you to submit a more detailed application. So make sure you don’t waffle and keep it straight to the point.

Sponsorship

Often local businesses will find it easier to donate goods or services rather than hard cash. A local window installer, for example, may be able to donate windows or doors for a new Shed, meanwhile some larger stores like B&Q and Wickes may have local arrangements with Sheds e.g. ‘Tradepoint’ discounts, materials, etc.

Branches of supermarkets and banks may allow Sheds table displays inside their stores. These can be great opportunities to raise the profile of your Shed in your local area, make new contacts, sell your wares and recruit new members.

Straightforward donations of cash can be a useful way to equip your Shed with the things you need. Sheds have secured donated income through personal contacts, legacies, house clearances, selling on Gumtree/Facebook Marketplace and a good old collection box.

The National Lottery Community Fund’s mission is to help communities and people most in need and they have a range of funding programmes which can support Men’s Shed type activity.

It is worth checking their website regularly to find out what funds are open or sign up to their mailing list to get regular updates on funding and events.

The main fund that they advise Men’s Sheds apply to is Awards for All Scotland:

Awards for All Scotland – this can provide funding of between £500 and £10,000 for up to 12 months to support activity which helps improve local communities and the lives of people most in need.  Funding can include new equipment or materials, improvement to sheds and transport costs.

If you’ve already received funding under Awards for All you can apply again however, priority is usually given to applicants that haven’t received funding in the last three years.

Another fund that might be relevant for some Men’s Sheds is medium grants for improving lives.

Medium grants for improving lives – this can provide funding of between £10,000 and £150,000 for up to five years to tackle loss, isolation and loneliness.  This funding is very competitive and applications to solely fund repairs or improvements to sheds or equipment will struggle.

  • how their activity helps the people involved overcome challenging circumstances and become more resilient.
  • the difference the funding will make
  • they also need to show how what they want to do is people-led, strengths based.
  • partnerships and connections to other organisations and the local community.

This document will help your Shed Fundraiser guys get a better understanding on using Evidence from Elsewhere: Gathering, analysing and using other people’s evidence. We have a lot of research documents for download in our Members online resource library which after reading this document can give you ideas how to use the info in these documents to improve your own Funding applications.  

General information, ‘how to’ and funders listings from:

 

Local funders/Third Sector Interface (TSI)

These are also general listings with direct links to funders websites. Check out your local Third Sector Interface and see if they have a listing/regular update on funds relevant to your local area e.g. Aberdeenshire Voluntary Action Funding Search.

The TSI Scotland Network is a body of charities that support the third sector across Scotland. There are 32 TSIs in Scotland, one for each local authority area. You can search for your local TSI on the TSI Scotland Network website.