Funding the Future Event: VCSEs Unite to Overcome Funding Struggles

On 23^rd January 2025, more than 50 Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) organisations gathered in the Norwich Arts Centre to discuss the challenges faced by the sector in relation to funding and fundraising, as well as to hear from speakers and experts about how they could overcome some of these challenges.

Setting The Scene: The Growing Struggles of VCSEs in Securing Funding:

The event began with a keynote speech from David Hynes, CEO of Norwich Charitable Trusts. David has over 20 years of experience in the sector, and his work has impacted local and global communities, notably his work with Deafway in Nepal, which he referenced in his speech.

David shared his thoughts about the grant funding climate for VCSEs, including honest insight into the uncertainty of applying for grants and the increasing struggles VCSEs face to find funding. He emphasised the important of holding funders to account and the need for them to be conscientious and in touch with the real issues facing VCSEs.

David spoke about the changes to their application process Norwich Charitable Trusts have implemented to cut down on valuable time VCSEs spend filling out forms. He emphasised the Trusts’ personal approach to grant funding, which includes a pre-application meeting over coffee to get to know each other and screen for eligibility. His realistic approach to the topic encouraged the audience to share their own organisation’s experience with grants and he invited personal thoughts on his suggestions about how funders can help going forward.

Mastering the ‘Ask’: Strategies for Securing Corporate Sponsorship for VCSEs: 

The second talk was about corporate funding from Sue Fern, CEO of Fern Management Services. Sue has worked in the UK and America and has had success with major companies. She is also founder and CEO of her own business, Fern Management Services.

Sue explained how important it is to stand out from the crowd amongst other VCSEs by taking time to make real connections with prospective donors and getting your name in the media via influencing, social media and the news, highlighting the importance of your VCSE’s mission.

She discussed how to navigate a successful ‘Ask’ pitch to donors, sharing her personal experiences in relation to how to be successful. Fern mentions how it can be useful to include multiple people in funding meetings with corporate organisations, and that charity representatives should not be afraid to not know the answer to a question. However, they should be able to find out the answer and respond within a matter of hours to maintain relevancy against other potential clients. The key points were to be flexible, professional, clear and concise when asking for help for your VCSE. Finally, she encouraged the audience to be confident and not to think ‘I can’t do that’ when pitching to donors or considering alternative ways of generating funding.

Round Table Discussion Exploring Trading Models

FUSE Network hosted an informal discussion featuring social enterprises:

• The Shoebox Enterprises
• BUILD Charity
• New-U
• Cup-O-T

They shared their experiences of building trading into their business model. A key takeaway was that, if moving into trading feels daunting, start small! What does your organisation already do that could be monetised? Do you have expertise that businesses, the public sector or other VCSEs would benefit from? Conduct some research by meeting other social enterprises and potential customers and get their input.

FUSE are very happy to discuss with anyone who is interested in working towards a social enterprise model, or just wants to find out more! Email FUSE at hello@fusenetwork.org.uk.

What Makes a Successful Crowdfunding Campaign?

The final part of the day was a panel discussion about crowdfunding, with representatives from:

• Aviva Community Fund
• Norfolk County Council’s Crowdfund Norfolk Fund
• the Shoebox CIC
• Diss Designer Makers.

Each representative outlined their experience of crowdfunding, and we heard about the impact that has been made. Aviva Community Fund matches donations made towards a project. Crowdfund Norfolk matches donations made towards environmental, sustainability and net zero projects in Norfolk. The two VCSEs represented discussed their successful crowdfunding campaigns to save their historical premises and beloved local art hub.

There were many tips for successful crowdfunding shared. One was to ensure you include your local community as much as possible. Another was to consider multiple ways for the public to donate and get behind your project, and to do your research to ensure you are able to apply for match-funding to maximise funds raised.

During the day, attendees had the opportunity to network and meet other VCSE organisations, funders and experts. We also welcomed a range of stallholders who offer funds and support with funding, including:

• National Lottery Community Fund
• Norwich City Council
• Norfolk Community Foundation
• Community Action Norfolk.

Thank you to all our stallholders, speakers and contributors for an inspiring day – and thank you to attendees! Empowering Communities runs a series of events to support the VCSE sector in Norfolk throughout the year. Find out more about what events are coming up here.