Launching
a venture can be an effective way to generate funds – and many charities
already have the resources to do so
 |
| Charities could consider setting up a shop to become more self-sustaining. Photograph: Rex Features |
No
matter their size, charities and volunteer groups all have two aims. One is to
change the world in some way – be it big or small – and the other is to reduce
their dependence on grants.
While
funding bodies may like to put money into exciting projects, it’s the
relatively mundane things – paying the gas bill or the rent – the so called
“core funding” that most organisations have sleepless nights about. But one
method of raising cash many may not have considered is starting a business
venture.
Getting started
According
to Hayley Trowbridge, executive director of Wehearttech CIC, a social
enterprise in Liverpool that uses technology for social good, organisations
looking to build a business may already have some of the tools they need right
under their nose, including the use of existing premises, experienced staff and
volunteers willing to lend their expertise, and the support of the community.
Trowbridge
said: “From skill-sharing, to tapping into volunteering and social remit
schemes within workplaces, hiring out our own equipment and space, and selling
our expertise as consultancy packages, the sector is really beginning to think
and work in ways outside of the box.”
Nick
Walsh runs not-for-profit community interest company Nickel Support in Surrey,
which helps adults with learning disabilities into the world of work. It has
developed a range of side ventures that not only help service users develop
their business skills, but also raises much-needed funds.
“It was
quite clear to us from the outset that we did not want to rely solely on core
block funding because we did not feel it is a sustainable business model,” said
Walsh.
Among
Nickel’s business ventures are furniture recycling, where service users
recondition unwanted items and sell it in a shop and on eBay. It has proven so
popular that the organisation is in talks with the local council to expand it,
with the hope it could become entirely self-sufficient in the next three years.
Nickel
also has a café that runs once a week and stages events for other local people
with learning disabilities. All of its ventures are run and managed by a board
of people with learning disabilities.
Walsh
added: “The reason these enterprises were chosen is because they lent
themselves well to the experience and skill set our staff team have.
“They
all require creative thinking and give the staff the opportunity to be a part
of the shaping of the enterprise.”
Be creative
Ciaran
Shanahan, development manager and company secretary of the Halton Autistic
Family Support Group (HAFS) in Cheshire, claims smaller organisations can miss
out to national charities in the quest for grant funding, forcing them to get
creative.
To this
end, HAFS opened a charity shop in Runcorn in 2013 where donated items are sold
to raise cash. It also helps to raise awareness of autism in the wider
community and gives members valuable work experience. He said: “The shop opened
after a major refit and clean up, decorating and re-carpeting exercise that
took three months.
“This
was all done by our members and funded by ourselves.”
Even if
they don’t have their own premises or expertise in-house, exploring partnership
working is also something which groups can consider.
Health
Action Local Engagement is a healthy living project based in Shipley, West
Yorkshire. Formed in 2003, last year it set up a community café to raise funds
after losing £194,000 – two thirds of its annual budget – after failing to win
a council tender.
It was
able to open the café in a local GP practice, a move which Helen Parsons,
community connector co-ordinator at the charity, said showed how crucial it was
to have a network of relationships with other organisations.
She
said: “I think partnerships are key. I think as well the natural link between
Hale as a healthy living project and the setting of the cafe within a health
centre which helps raise our profile, promoting links with other health care
groups.”
Ask yourself these questions
But
starting a business is no simple task said David Saint, a former fundraiser for
Scope, Sense, SANE and Arthritis Care and now chairman of Action Planning,
which provides consultancy services for not-for-profit groups. He said they
should ask themselves the following questions:
Why do
you want to do it? Is there a better way of generating surpluses, such as
improving fundraising operations?
Is it
within your objectives and powers to start a business? If not, you may need to
set up a trading company first.
What are
your strengths? What do you know? What are you good at? What assets do you
have?
What
outside expertise, if any, must you bring in?
Saint
said: “Running a business is very different from running a charity, and getting
the right advice early on can save a lot of time, money and anguish.”
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