Guidance

Place-Based Philanthropy Community of Practice programme: competition guidance

Published 25 September 2026

Applies to England

This government’s vision is to build an ambitious, long-term partnership with philanthropists to deliver tangible national renewal within our communities. ‘Our place to give’ sets out how the government will work in partnership with local government, civil society and philanthropists to address barriers and strengthen place-based philanthropy. It has three key priorities, to strengthen links between donors and places, build better philanthropic partnerships and unlock further investment.

The community of practice programme will support delivery of the plan’s first of six actions. Place-based philanthropy has an important role to play in supporting thriving communities, strengthening local civic infrastructure and mobilising additional philanthropic resources towards locally identified priorities. 

We know that Place-Based Giving Initiatives (PBG initiatives) play an important role in enabling philanthropic donations into places which historically have not seen high levels of philanthropic investment. As these initiatives are led locally, they also give donors confidence that their money supports authentic, meaningful solutions. The brokerage that PBG initiatives provide helps even modest donations have a significant impact.  

These initiatives vary widely by region, depending on local history, economic needs, and the involvement of other organisations. There is no ‘one size fits all’ model that PBG initiatives follow, and we recognise that PBG initiatives might not always self-identify with this term. Example organisations that we think of as PBG initiatives could include Made in Stoke, Community Foundation North East’s ‘North East Roots initiative’ and Barking & Dagenham Giving. More examples can be found in ‘Our place to give’. 

In ‘Our place to give’ we suggest that PBG initiatives should:

• define their goals around improving a specific place
• work with local voices to use local knowledge to identify opportunities or problems that philanthropy could address
• attract donations by using their position and trusted local connections to encourage investment that benefits the people who live there

Due to this wide spectrum of what can be considered a PBG initiative, it would be the role of the delivery partner of this grant to decide on the criteria to determine what organisations would be in scope for the community of practice.

Programme objectives and expected outcomes

The Place-Based Philanthropy Community of Practice programme aims to strengthen and grow place-based philanthropy across England by supporting PBG initiatives and the wider ecosystem in which they operate.

Applicants should propose an approach that delivers against the following objectives by March 2029.

Objective 1: Establish a community of practice to strengthen the capacity, capability and sustainability of PBG initiatives and the wider philanthropy sector 

Establish and support a national community of practice that strengthens the capacity, capability and long-term sustainability of PBG initiatives across England. Proposals should demonstrate how they will bring together PBG initiatives from across England to support collaboration, peer learning, networking and knowledge sharing, helping to create a stronger, more connected and effective place-based philanthropy ecosystem.

Objective 2: Improve the ability of specific PBG initiatives to attract, sustain and grow philanthropic investment 

Provide targeted capacity-building support, including onward revenue grants, to participating PGB initiatives that strengthens fundraising capability, organisational resilience, partnership development and investment readiness, helping to create the conditions for greater philanthropic investment into local communities. Applicants should demonstrate how their selection approach supports PGB initatives operating in, or serving, places experiencing higher levels of deprivation and community need, including socio-economic need, existing community assets and infrastructure, and opportunities to achieve sustainable long-term impact.

Objective 3: Generate learning and evidence to support sector development

Capture, share and disseminate learning, evidence and good practice to support the continued development of place-based philanthropy and inform future policy, practice and investment.

Applicants should explain how their proposed approach will contribute to these objectives and outcomes. This should include a rationale for how participating PGB initiatives and places will be identified and supported, how resources will be allocated across programme activities, including any targeted capacity-building support and onward revenue grants, and how the proposed approach will maximise impact for places experiencing higher levels of deprivation and community need. DCMS expects proposals to demonstrate how they will engage a broad range of PGB initiatives from across England. As an indication of the scale of ambition for the programme, applicants should seek to engage a range of PBG initiatives, including representation from every region of England.

Expected outcomes

By March 2029, applicants should demonstrate progress towards:

• stronger organisational capacity and sustainability amongst participating PBG initiatives
• increased collaboration, peer learning and knowledge sharing across the place-based philanthropy sector
• enhanced support for places experiencing higher levels of deprivation and community need
• stronger local giving ecosystems and civic infrastructure
• improved ability of participating organisations to attract and sustain philanthropic investment
• increased engagement between PBG initiatives, philanthropists and potential philanthropists
• increased philanthropic resources mobilised for local priorities; and
• a stronger evidence base on effective approaches to place-based philanthropy

Applicants

Applicants should demonstrate significant experience of working within the place-based philanthropy, charitable giving, philanthropy infrastructure, community development or wider voluntary, community and social enterprise sectors.

They should be able to demonstrate the capability to convene diverse stakeholders, deliver learning and capacity-building programmes, administer grants effectively and provide robust governance, monitoring and evaluation arrangements. 

The successful organisation will be expected to work collaboratively with DCMS throughout the grant period, providing regular performance, financial and evaluation reporting, sharing learning generated through the programme and contributing to the evidence base for future place-based philanthropy policy development. 

The programme will run until March 2029 and will seek to create a lasting legacy through stronger peer networks, enhanced organisational capability, greater collaboration across the sector and increased readiness amongst PBG initiatives to attract and sustain philanthropic investment for the benefit of communities across England.

Eligibility, criteria, due diligence

Applicants may apply as a single organisation or as a consortium (with a lead organisation making the application). Where a consortium application is submitted, a lead organisation must be identified. The lead organisation will be accountable to DCMS for all aspects of grant delivery, including financial management, performance monitoring, reporting requirements and any onward grant administration arrangements.

Eligibility

Pass/fail

The grant funding will be provided under Section 70 of the Charities Act 2006. To be eligible to apply as a grant recipient, the applicant or lead applicant organisation for a consortium must be able to demonstrate eligibility to receive a grant under Section 70, as a charitable, philanthropic or benevolent institution, and be eligible to receive public grant funding.

Pass/fail

Financial eligibility - the value of any grant requested in any given year must not represent more than 50% of the applicant or, in the case of a consortium bid, the lead applicant’s, average annual income for the previous 2 financial years.

Pass/fail

Only one bid may be submitted by the lead applicant on the application form. The lead bidder may be included as a delivery partner in other applications by a different lead organisation

Mandatory documents

For single applications, and the lead organisation for consortium applications, applicants must provide:

1. A completed application form.

2. Evidence or a link to evidence (for example, terms of reference, articles of association) that shows that your organisation (or the lead organisation in your consortium application) was established for a charitable, benevolent or philanthropic purpose, to ensure you are eligible to receive a grant under Section 70 of the Charities Act 2006. 

3. A copy of annual report and audited or certified accounts, covering the last two financial years, or similar published information about your organisation if available. For consortium applications, both the lead applicant and each participating member must provide this evidence. Please note: in the event your last financial year end was more than 6 months ago, we may request further accounting information at a later date as part of the due diligence process.

4. A declaration of any conflicts of interest that could compromise the conduct of this particular fund by all participating partners (where applicable). For example, if trustees and directors from multiple organisations within a partnership application are related. Where multiple organisations hold the same address, they will be asked to provide an explanation. 

5. A project plan, including timeframes and key performance indicators for all outcomes and outputs outlined in the project.

6. A realistic and detailed programme budget.

7. An organogram showing the proposed governance and delivery structure.

Expectations

Applicants will be required to demonstrate how they meet the eligibility requirements and assessment criteria set out in this guidance and in the application form. Applications that do not meet the eligibility requirements will not proceed to full assessment.

We are interested in proposals that maximise the impact of public funding and contribute to the long-term development of place-based giving across England. Applicants are encouraged to identify any:

• match funding
• leveraged philanthropic investment
• in-kind contributions
• strategic partnerships
• additional resources that will enhance programme delivery

Applicants proposing additional contributions may be asked to provide supporting evidence as part of the application process.

Due diligence

DCMS does not tolerate fraud, bribery or corruption. To be eligible for this fund, shortlisted applications will be checked against various databases to assess the accuracy of the information provided. Any shortlisted applications which do not satisfy due diligence checks will not be assessed. DCMS will monitor the grant throughout its lifetime and may conduct additional assurance exercises to ensure that funding is being spent correctly. 

We expect applicants to provide further information, if requested, as the result of due diligence and risk assessment checks. DCMS will conduct its due diligence checks through processes including (but not limited to):

• the government’s online automated due-diligence tool ‘Spotlight’
• manual pre- and post-award checks in line with Cabinet Office’s Guidance for General Grants, including reputational checks such as social media

Examples of issues that arise during due diligence checks - and may preclude applicants from being eligible for funding - include (for the lead organisation or any participating consortium member):

• non-provision of the mandatory documentation
• inaccurate or incomplete information on the Charity Commission register/Companies House register
• inaccurate or incomplete budget and cash flow documents
• inaccurate or incomplete project plan

Funding

The maximum total grant funding available to the successful bidder is up to £997,000 revenue funding over the three year financial period between 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2029.

• Up to £330,333 in 2026/27
• Up to £333,333 in 2027/28
• Up to £333,334 in 2028/29

Applicants are responsible for determining the allocation of funding across programme activities, including any onward revenue grants. Proposals should demonstrate how the proposed distribution of funding will contribute to achieving the programme objectives and intended outcomes. Applicants should provide a clear rationale for their approach and explain how it will deliver meaningful support to participating Place-Based Giving Initiatives while supporting wider sector development, learning and collaboration.

All annually allocated funds awarded must be spent by 31 March of each financial year, and any unspent funds cannot be carried forward into future years. There is no funding for capital expenditure.

Funding may be used to support activities that include:

• the establishment and delivery of the national community of practice.
• the delivery of a programme of capacity building grants, as set out in the programme’s objective.
• learning, networking and sector convening activity.
• organisational development and capacity-building support.
• administration and management of capacity-building grants.
• stakeholder engagement and partnership development.
• monitoring, evaluation and learning activity.
• staff costs, where they directly relate to the delivery of the programme’s activity, meaning salaries, employer’s national insurance contributions, and employer’s contributions to any occupational pension scheme or stakeholder pension scheme and travel and subsistence (within parameters agreed in advance with DCMS).
• communication and marketing (subject to Cabinet Office controls)
• other delivery costs incurred by the scheme as appropriate to the proposed delivery methodology, such as learning and development activity
• administration costs related to delivering the programme; these costs support the overall business operations and include things like rent, utilities, administrative staff, senior oversight, and office supplies etc

This is not an exhaustive list but an indication of eligible spend. We may consider funding other types of activities as long as they are not listed as ineligible below. 

The funds may not be used for:

• capital expenditure
• payment that supports lobbying or activity intended to influence or attempt to influence Parliament, government or political parties, or attempting to influence the awarding or renewal of contracts and grants, or attempting to influence legislative or regulatory action
• redundancy costs for any staff assigned to the funded activities; for these purposes, redundancy costs mean any statutory redundancy pay entitlement (calculated in accordance with Part XI of the Employment Rights Act 1996) and any contractual redundancy pay entitlement to the extent it exceeds the statutory redundancy pay entitlement
• using grant funding to petition for additional funding
• input VAT reclaimable by you from HMRC
• payments for activities of a political or exclusively religious nature
• goods or services that you have a statutory duty to provide
• payments reimbursed or to be reimbursed by other public or private sector grants
• contributions in kind (meaning a contribution in goods or services, as opposed to money)
• depreciation, amortisation or impairment of fixed assets owned by you
• the acquisition or improvement of fixed assets (with ‘fixed asset’ defined as an asset that would be capitalised under DCMS’s own capitalisation policy, as set out in DCMS’s annual accounts) by you
• interest payments (including service charge payments for finance leases)
• gifts to individuals other than prize money as set out in the provided budget
• entertaining (entertaining for this purpose means anything that would be a taxable benefit to the person being entertained, according to current UK tax regulations)
• statutory fines, criminal fines or penalties
• liabilities incurred before the issue of this funding agreement unless agreed in writing by us
• use in respect of costs reimbursed or to be reimbursed by funding from any other source
• use to purchase buildings or land

Final agreed eligible spend will be set out in detail in the successful bidder’s grant offer letter.

Financial requirements

The DCMS financial year runs from 1 April to 31 March. If successful, drawdown requests and budgets must fit the DCMS financial year. Payments will be made quarterly and in arrears. 

You will need to provide a breakdown of actual, eligible expenditure to make a claim. We will only pay out the amount you can evidence as spent.

Variations between proposed drawdown amounts and actual drawdown requests across quarters of the same financial year will be accepted, subject to explanation and justification. Any funds not drawn down by the end of the financial year will become unavailable.

You must be able to transparently report on a quarterly basis and provide evidence of expenditure on the use of the programme. The programme must be shown as restricted funds in your accounts and you must be able to identify separately the value and purpose of the grant in your accounts. You will be asked to describe in your application the financial management systems and processes you will put in place to ensure you can achieve this.

Monitoring and evaluation

We are committed to ensuring that funded work is appropriately monitored and evaluated and that lessons learnt and examples of good practice are made widely available. Monitoring and evaluation requirements will be agreed as part of the grant funding agreement but are expected to include:

• regular monitoring meetings, with a minimum of quarterly reporting to the DCMS programme team, both in meetings and written performance reports
• reviewing performance against the intended objectives, as set out in the grant agreement
• providing expenditure reports and, on request, a sample of invoices to evidence expenditure.
• providing financial reconciliation statements
• submitting an end of grant review signed off by DCMS
• final evaluation report at the conclusion of the grant period, assessing delivery against the programme objectives, outcomes achieved and lessons learned 

The delivery partner will be expected to provide a final evaluation report, working with DCMS to define what data is collected over the lifecycle of the programme (for example, data collection could include feedback from community of practice members and direct grantees through surveys and feedback forms). Findings will be reviewed and shared with relevant stakeholders to inform future policy and programme development in place-based philanthropy.

Application process

Application dates

The timeline below is indicative and subject to change.

Competition opens for applications: Friday 25 September 2026

Information session: 11:30am to 12:30pm on Thursday 15 October 2026

Deadline for clarification questions: 11:59pm on Friday 16 October 2026. Questions should be sent to placebasedphilanthropycop@dcms.gov.uk

Publication of answers to clarification questions: Thursday 22 October 2026

Deadline of the application: 11:59pm on Sunday 8 November 2026

Application assessment: Monday 9 November 2026 to Friday 13 November 2026

Notification of recommendation for approval/of unsuccessful applications: week commencing Monday 16 November 2026

Final confirmation of appointment: week commencing Monday 23 November 2026

We expect the grant agreement will be finalised with the successful applicant(s) in November 2026, although the exact timing will be dependent on a number of factors. Delivery is expected to take place from November 2026 to March 2029, with all spending to be completed within this time period.

Any enquiries should be sent to placebasedphilanthropycop@dcms.gov.uk

How to apply 

Please follow the steps below to apply:

1. Ensure you have fully read this competition guidance document.

2. Sign up to attend the virtual applicant information session if you wish. An information session for prospective applicants will take place from 11.30am to 12.30pm on Thursday 15 October. Organisations wishing to attend should email placebasedphilanthropycop@dcms.gov.uk to be added to the invitation list.

3. Download and complete the application form which accompanies this guidance  on GOV.UK. Applications open on Friday 25 September 2026 and close at 11:59pm on Sunday 8 November 2026. 

4. Email your application form to placebasedphilanthropycop@dcms.gov.uk

Any applications received after the closing date will not be assessed.

It is your responsibility to ensure your application is concise, fully completed, and that you supply all the necessary supporting documentation.

Completing your application form

General tips:

• The criteria against which you are scored is set out in Annex A. Where a question is required but not scored or is desirable, this is made clear in the application form.
• There are a number of guidance notes included in the application form, please read these carefully and respond to all relevant points set out in the guidance notes.
• Write clearly and concisely avoiding the use of jargon or abbreviations.
• Please keep to the word limit set out in the application form. Information provided that is over the word limit and/or supplementary documents provided will not be included in the assessment. 
• Please read the guidance for applicants in full before completing your application.

The application form requires you to input details relating to the lead organisation. Please ensure that the contact details given are for the day-to-day contact for all enquiries relating to the application.

Consortium applications

We welcome and encourage consortium applications, but require one organisation to take the lead role as the applicant, main point of contact, payee for funds, and responsible body who agrees to ensure the terms and conditions of the grant offer are upheld by all involved.

If applicable, you should list all participating consortium members involved, it is expected that you have correspondence from authorised representatives at each partner organisation, that confirms involvement in the fund as described in your proposal and acknowledges submission of your application. You will be asked to provide evidence of this in your application form.

Delivery partners 

If applicable, you should list all delivery partners involved if you are applying as a single organisation but intend to work with other organisations to deliver the fund. Unless delivery partners have been, or will be chosen through a competitive and transparent procurement exercise, then funding made available to delivery partners will be subject to the same terms and conditions of this grant as the lead organisation. 

Where delivery partners are procured through a fair, open, and transparent process, they may be paid based on contractual costs. If delivery partners are not formally procured, they may only claim actual costs, and the funding made available to them will be strictly subject to the same grant terms and conditions as the lead organisation.

Assessment

A panel will assess the applications. Please assume that assessors have no or limited background knowledge of your organisation, its aims, and what it does. It is therefore important that your application is as clear, concise, and unambiguous as possible.

Stage 1: Initial sift

We will review your application to check that it meets the eligibility requirements (see ‘Eligibility’ section). Applications which do not meet the eligibility requirements will not have their application assessed. 

Stage 2: Assessment and moderation of eligible bids

We score eligible bids in line with our key criteria set out below: 

The table below outlines what we are looking for and the weighting across the application sections.

Application form section	Weighting
Proposal	2,000 words Weighting: 35%
Experience and capability	1,250 words Weighting: 25%
Project management and oversight	1,250 words Weighting 20%
Value for money and sustainability	1,250 words Weighting: 20%

Scoring criteria

We will assess applications based on the information provided to answer the application questions and each question response will be evaluated and marked on a scale of 0 to 4 where:

• 0 – Serious concerns: Fails to address a significant proportion of the assessment criteria. The response is unclear, incomplete, or provides little or no relevant evidence. There are major concerns about deliverability, capability, or compliance.
• 1 – Minor concerns: Addresses some assessment criteria but significant gaps remain. Evidence is limited, weak, or poorly linked to the proposal. Concerns remain about the applicant’s ability to deliver all aspects of the requirement.
• 2 – Adequate confidence: Addresses most assessment criteria and demonstrates a reasonable understanding of the requirements. Evidence is provided but lacks detail, specificity, or robustness in some areas. The proposal is broadly credible, although some aspects require further development.
• 3 – Good confidence: Fully addresses all assessment criteria and demonstrates a clear understanding of the requirements. Evidence is relevant and sufficiently detailed. The proposal is well developed, realistic, and gives confidence that the applicant can successfully deliver the programme.
• 4 – Excellent confidence: Fully addresses all assessment criteria and exceeds expectations in one or more areas. Evidence is comprehensive, compelling, and well substantiated. The proposal demonstrates exceptional understanding, a strong track record, and a highly credible approach that gives a very high level of confidence in successful delivery.

Applications will be assessed on their individual merits according to the criteria for funding outlined above. Your overall score will be a percentage and will be determined by the marks awarded for each criteria (out of 4) in accordance with the applicable weighting. You will not be contacted by DCMS to provide further information on your application. It is your responsibility to ensure your application is concise, fully completed and that you supply all necessary supporting documentation. 

However, where two applications receive the same score, we reserve the right to contact these bidders to seek additional information to make our final decision.

We will conduct due diligence checks on eligible applicants, including fraud risk indicators (see ‘Due Diligence’ section). The relevant documentation is expected to be provided alongside your application form.

Appropriate due diligence will be performed during the assessment of applications. Due diligence is an ongoing process, and initial assessments will be reviewed and updated as part of monitoring and post award assurance. Due diligence will be carried out to mitigate reputational risks, potential fraud, potential national security risks, errors and financial loss, and will include (but not be limited to) reviewing applicants’ eligibility, operations, financial management, and governance. Read the Cabinet Office guidance on due diligence in government grants.

Grant award

Acceptance of approval

DCMS will aim to notify the successful applicant who will be recommended for approval to be the grant recipient by the department by the end of November 2026 (subject to change). 

Your grant offer letter will set out the level of funding and the terms and conditions that apply specifically to your grant. The letter will also set out what the grant is for and the payment schedule. Once we have awarded a grant, we will ask you for regular financial and performance monitoring reports and a final project report at the end of the funding term.

Please note:

• prior to the grant agreement being signed, we will require a fraud risk assessment for the fund
• grant money will not be paid until we have received your written acceptance of the terms and conditions attached to your grant offer
• if applying as a consortium application, all participating partners will also be required to provide written acceptance of the terms and conditions, it will be the lead applicant’s responsibility to seek this acceptance
• you must acknowledge you have received our grant in your annual report and accounts covering the period of the project
• if there is any breach of the terms and conditions, or your organisation (or participating partners) ceases to operate before the grant has been spent, grant monies may have to be repaid
• when the grant ends, DCMS does not have a commitment to provide any further funding for the project
• anyone found to be acting dishonestly in making an application for funding or spending the grant will be reported to the police and may be liable for prosecution

Grant terms and conditions

Initial spend eligibility requirements are set out above (see ‘Funding’ section). Detailed terms and conditions will be set out within the final grant agreement letter, which will include DCMS’ standard terms and conditions. Please ensure you have read these before applying.

Unsuccessful applications

We will inform all unsuccessful applicants of the outcome of their application by the end of November 2026. We will issue written feedback to unsuccessful applicants which passed the pass/fail questions by the end of November 2026.

Please note that the decision will be final.

Advice and support

All available information and guidance relating to this grant funding is contained above and in the application form.

Clarification questions may be sent to placebasedphilanthropycop@dcms.gov.uk by 11:59pm on Friday 16 October 2026, after which no more will be responded to.

All clarification questions will be anonymised and made public so that all potential applicants are able to access any additional information. 

As the application process is competitive, we are unable to provide support in completing the application.

Privacy notice

All information will be processed in compliance with the Data Protection Act 2018, the UK General Data Protection Regulation and any other relevant data protection legislation.

Who controls the information you provide

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) is the data controller and holder of the data collected through the completion of the application process.

Why are we collecting and processing your personal data

Your personal data is being collected and processed by DCMS to perform fraud checks, assess your application and suitability to deliver Community of Practice. Our legal basis for the processing is that it is necessary for performance of a task in the public interest.

We will not be using any automated decision making.

Will we share your personal data

• Your personal data may be shared with colleagues in DCMS and external individuals participating in the assessment panel or as part of the grant management process.
• We may also share your personal data with third parties if we are required to do so by law — for example, by court order, or to prevent fraud or other crime.
• We will not transfer your personal data outside of the European Economic Area (EEA) or to international organisations.
• If we are required to share details of your application further or use your responses to illustrate findings, we will ensure that neither you nor the organisation you represent are identifiable.
• DCMS may share information (excluding personal data) relating to your application with third parties outside government where required to do so by law, for example in accordance with access to information regimes (these are primarily the Freedom of Information Act 2000, and the Environmental Information Regulations 2004).
• We will seek to publish and disseminate an evaluation (not including personal data)

We do not intend to use the data for any other purposes.

How long will we keep your personal data for

Information relating to successful grants will be stored for 7 years after the conclusion of any agreement per standard DCMS retention policy. Unsuccessful grant applications will be stored for 12 months and then disposed of with support of DCMS Knowledge and Information Management Team.

Your rights over your personal data

You have the right to see what personal data we have about you, to have it corrected, to request that we restrict what we do with your data in certain circumstances, and to ask us to stop using your data, but keep it on record.

If you would like to exercise any of these rights, please contact our Data Protection team at dcmsdataprotection@dcms.gov.uk, or please contact us at:

Department for Culture, Media and Sport
First Floor, 100 Parliament Street
London
SW1A 2BQ

Your right to complain

If you are not happy with how we have handled your personal data, you have the right to complain to our Data Protection Officer at any time.

You can contact the DPO by email at: dpo@dcms.gov.uk

You can also write to the DPO at:

Data Protection Officer
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
1st Floor, 100 Parliament Street
London
SW1A 2BQ

You also have the right to lodge a complaint to the Information Commissioner’s Office about our practices, to do so please visit the Information Commissioner’s Office.

By submitting an application, you are confirming that you have read and understood this statement and agree with its terms.

Annex A: scoring criteria

Information provided in any section of your application will be considered across the scoring criteria, where information is relevant.

Please note, anything provided in excess of the word limits provided or out of scope of the supplementary documents requested will not be assessed. This is to ensure fairness across all applications.

Section 1: Proposal

Weighting: 35%

Scoring criteria

Assessment question: How convincing is the applicant’s proposed approach to delivering the programme and achieving the intended objectives within the grant period?

We are looking for applicants to:

• demonstrate a clear understanding of place-based giving and philanthropy in England 
• set out a clear delivery proposal to explain how they will establish and manage a national community of practice and targeted capacity-building onward grants
• demonstrate how they will facilitate collaboration, peer learning, knowledge sharing and networking 
• explain how activities will contribute to stronger and more sustainable local giving ecosystems
• explain how they will identify, engage and support organisations operating in places experiencing higher levels of deprivation and community need, taking account of the principles set out in DCMS’s Place Framework, including socio-economic need, local assets and infrastructure, and opportunities for sustainable long-term impact
• explain how they will provide targeted capacity-building support, including onward revenue grants, to participating Place-Based Giving Initiatives
• provide a rationale for the proposed scale and distribution of support, including the chosen split of funding and how it best supports the programme objectives and intended outcomes
• describe how monitoring, evaluation and learning will be embedded throughout delivery 
• demonstrate how the proposal is informed by evidence, practice and lessons learned

Section 2: Experience and capability

Weighting: 25%

Scoring criteria

Assessment question: To what extent has the applicant demonstrated the experience, expertise and organisational capability required to deliver the programme?

Mandatory documents:

• confirmation you are eligible to receive a grant under Section 70 of the Charities Act 2006 
• an annual report and audited or certified accounts 
• declaration of conflicts of interest (where applicable)

We are looking for applicants to:

• demonstrate experience of working within philanthropy, charitable giving, VCSE, social investment, community wealth building or place-based giving sectors
• provide evidence of delivering comparable programmes, networks or infrastructure initiatives
• demonstrate experience of convening and supporting diverse stakeholders and partnerships, in particular philanthropists
• demonstrate experience of managing significant public, charitable or philanthropic funding
• provide details of key staff and relevant expertise
• demonstrate existing relationships with key stakeholders relevant to programme delivery
• where applicable, demonstrate experience of administering onward grants

Section 3: Project management and oversight

Weighting: 20%

Scoring criteria

Assessment question: How confident are you in the applicant’s ability to manage and govern the programme effectively?

Mandatory documents:

• a project plan
• an organogram

We are looking for applicants to:

• demonstrate a clear governance structure with defined decision-making and accountability arrangements
• provide evidence of sufficient staffing and organisational capacity
• demonstrate robust programme management arrangements
• explain how risks will be identified and managed
• demonstrate how consortium arrangements will operate, where applicable
• describe the proposed approach to administering onward grants
• demonstrate robust financial management, due diligence and reporting arrangements
• submit the necessary mandatory documents.

Section 4: Value for money and sustainability

Weighting: 20%

Scoring criteria

Assessment question: To what extent has the applicant demonstrated that the proposal is economical, efficient, effective and capable of delivering sustainable impact?

Mandatory documents:

• a budget

We are looking for applicants to:

• explain how resources will be allocated across the programme, including:
  • community of practice activity
  • capacity-building support
  • onward grant administration and delivery
  • stakeholder engagement
  • monitoring, evaluation and learning
  • programme management and governance
• provide a clear rationale for how funding will be distributed across programme activities, including any onward grants;
• explain how the scale and distribution of onward grants will maximise impact and contribute to programme objectives, including support for places experiencing higher levels of deprivation and community need.
• demonstrate how expenditure will contribute to programme outcomes
• describe plans to sustain benefits beyond the grant period
• identify any match funding, leveraged investment or in-kind contributions where applicable